Properties of Very Luminous Galaxies

Recent analysis of the SSRS2 data based on cell-counts and two-point correlation function has shown that very luminous galaxies are much more strongly clustered than fainter galaxies. In fact, the amplitude of the correlation function of very luminous galaxies ($L > L^*$) asymptotically approaches that of $R \ge 0$ clusters. In this paper we investigate the properties of the most luminous galaxies, with blue absolute magnitude $M_B \le -21$. We find that: 1) the population mix is comparable to that in other ranges of absolute magnitudes; 2) only a small fraction are located in bona fide clusters; 3) the bright galaxy-cluster cross-correlation function is significantly higher on large scales than that measured for fainter galaxies; 4) the correlation length of galaxies brighter than \MB $\sim -20.0$, expressed as a function of the mean interparticle distance, appears to follow the universal dimensionless correlation function found for clusters and radio galaxies; 5) a large fraction of the bright galaxies are in interacting pairs, others show evidence for tidal distortions, while some appear to be surrounded by faint satellite galaxies. We conclude that very luminous optical galaxies differ from the normal population of galaxies both in the clustering and other respects. We speculate that this population is highly biased tracers of mass, being associated to dark halos with masses more comparable to clusters than typical loose groups.Comment: 29 pages (6 figures) + 2 tables; paper with all figures and images available at http://boas5.bo.astro.it/~cappi/papers.html; The Astronomical Journal, in pres

Labels for non-individuals

Quasi-set theory is a first order theory without identity, which allows us to cope with non-individuals in a sense. A weaker equivalence relation called ``indistinguishability'' is an extension of identity in the sense that if $x$ is identical to $y$ then $x$ and $y$ are indistinguishable, although the reciprocal is not always valid. The interesting point is that quasi-set theory provides us a useful mathematical background for dealing with collections of indistinguishable elementary quantum particles. In the present paper, however, we show that even in quasi-set theory it is possible to label objects that are considered as non-individuals. We intend to prove that individuality has nothing to do with any labelling process at all, as suggested by some authors. We discuss the physical interpretation of our results.Comment: 11 pages, no figure

The Power Spectrum of Galaxies in the Nearby Universe

We compute the power spectrum of galaxy density fluctuations in a recently completed redshift survey of optically-selected galaxies in the southern hemisphere (SSRS2). The amplitude and shape of the SSRS2 power spectrum are consistent with results of the Center for Astrophysics redshift survey of the northern hemisphere (CfA2), including the abrupt change of slope on a scale of 30-50Mpc/h; these results are reproducible for independent volumes of space and variations are consistent with the errors estimated from mock surveys. Taken together, the SSRS2 and CfA2 form a complete sample of 14,383 galaxies which covers one-third of the sky. The power spectrum of this larger sample continues to rise on scales up to ~ 200Mpc/h, with weak evidence for flattening on the largest scales. The SSRS2+CfA2 power spectrum and the power spectrum constraints implied by COBE are well-matched by an Omega*h ~ 0.2, Omega+lambda_0=1 CDM model with minimal biasing of optically-selected galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Sept. 23, 1994. 10 pages uuencoded compressed postscript, including two figures. JHU-9410200