10,236 research outputs found
A search for new hot subdwarf stars by means of Virtual Observatory tools
Hot subdwarf stars are faint, blue objects, and are the main contributors to
the far-UV excess observed in elliptical galaxies. They offer an excellent
laboratory to study close and wide binary systems, and to scrutinize their
interiors through asteroseismology, as some of them undergo stellar
oscillations. However, their origins are still uncertain, and increasing the
number of detections is crucial to undertake statistical studies. In this work,
we aim at defining a strategy to find new, uncatalogued hot subdwarfs. Making
use of Virtual Observatory tools we thoroughly search stellar catalogues to
retrieve multi-colour photometry and astrometric information of a known sample
of blue objects, including hot subdwarfs, white dwarfs, cataclysmic variables
and main sequence OB stars. We define a procedure to discriminate among these
spectral classes, particularly designed to obtain a hot subdwarf sample with a
low contamination factor. In order to check the validity of the method, this
procedure is then applied to two test sky regions: the Kepler FoV and to a test
region of around (RA:225, DEC:5) deg. As a result, we obtained 38 hot subdwarf
candidates, 23 of which had already a spectral classification. We have acquired
spectroscopy for three other targets, and four additional ones have an
available SDSS spectrum, which we used to determine their spectral type. A
temperature estimate is provided for the candidates based on their spectral
energy distribution, considering two-atmospheres fit for objects with clear
infrared excess. Eventually, out of 30 candidates with spectral classification,
26 objects were confirmed to be hot subdwarfs, yielding a contamination factor
of only 13%. The high rate of success demonstrates the validity of the proposed
strategy to find new uncatalogued hot subdwarfs. An application of this method
to the entire sky will be presented in a forthcoming work.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figure
Asymptotics of the minimum values of Riesz and logarithmic potentials generated by greedy energy sequences on the unit circle
In this work we investigate greedy energy sequences on the unit circle for
the logarithmic and Riesz potentials. By definition, if
is a greedy -energy sequence on the unit circle, the Riesz potential
, , generated by the first
points of the sequence attains its minimum value at the point , for
every . In the case we minimize instead the logarithmic
potential . We analyze the
asymptotic properties of these extremal values , studying
separately the cases , . We obtain second-order
asymptotic formulas for in the cases , , and
(the corresponding first-order formulas are well known). A first-order result
for is proved, and it is shown that the normalized sequence
is bounded and divergent in this case. We also consider,
briefly, greedy energy sequences in which the minimization condition is
required starting from the point (instead of the point as
previously stated), for some . For this more general class of greedy
sequences, we prove a first-order asymptotic result for .Comment: 37 pages, several figures. In this version we have added a new result
(Theorem 1.8) and some open problems (Problems 1.9 and 1.10). The title is
slightly modified, and some new bibliographic references have been adde
Spatial clustering of interacting bugs: Levy flights versus Gaussian jumps
A biological competition model where the individuals of the same species
perform a two-dimensional Markovian continuous-time random walk and undergo
reproduction and death is studied. The competition is introduced through the
assumption that the reproduction rate depends on the crowding in the
neighborhood. The spatial dynamics corresponds either to normal diffusion
characterized by Gaussian jumps or to superdiffusion characterized by L\'evy
flights. It is observed that in both cases periodic patterns occur for
appropriate parameters of the model, indicating that the general macroscopic
collective behavior of the system is more strongly influenced by the
competition for the resources than by the type of spatial dynamics. However,
some differences arise that are discussed.Comment: This version incorporates in the text the correction published as an
Erratum in Europhysics Letters (EPL) 95, 69902 (2011) [doi:
10.1209/0295-5075/95/69902
Contrasting human perceptions of and attitudes towards two threatened small carnivores, Lycalopex fulvipes and Leopardus guigna, in rural communities adjacent to protected areas in Chile
Indexación: Scopus.The interaction between humans and small carnivores is a phenomenon especially frequent in rural fringes, as is the case of communities surrounding natural areas. In Chile, two species of threatened carnivores, the Darwin's Fox and the Guigna, have increased their contact with humans due to human-induced changes in their habitat. The objective of this study was to characterize the interactions of these species with humans by assessing human perceptions and attitudes toward them, and to assess livestock and poultry ownership and management practices in local communities to evaluate their possible roles in the phenomenon. We conducted semi-structured interviews in rural communities adjacent to natural protected areas of two different regions in southern Chile. We found that people have a more positive perception of Darwin's Foxes than Guignas, but both species are considered damaging due to poultry attacks. Livestock and poultry management was generally deficient. Improvements in animal management and education programs could lead to a significant decrease in negative interactions. © Sacristan et al. 2018.https://www.threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/view/4030/442
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