3,349 research outputs found
Diverse Structural Evolution at z > 1 in Cosmologically Simulated Galaxies
From mock Hubble Space Telescope images, we quantify non-parametric
statistics of galaxy morphology, thereby predicting the emergence of
relationships among stellar mass, star formation, and observed rest-frame
optical structure at 1 < z < 3. We measure automated diagnostics of galaxy
morphology in cosmological simulations of the formation of 22 central galaxies
with 9.3 < log10 M_*/M_sun < 10.7. These high-spatial-resolution zoom-in
calculations enable accurate modeling of the rest-frame UV and optical
morphology. Even with small numbers of galaxies, we find that structural
evolution is neither universal nor monotonic: galaxy interactions can trigger
either bulge or disc formation, and optically bulge-dominated galaxies at this
mass may not remain so forever. Simulated galaxies with M_* > 10^10 M_sun
contain relatively more disc-dominated light profiles than those with lower
mass, reflecting significant disc brightening in some haloes at 1 < z < 2. By
this epoch, simulated galaxies with specific star formation rates below 10^-9.7
yr^-1 are more likely than normal star-formers to have a broader mix of
structural types, especially at M_* > 10^10 M_sun. We analyze a cosmological
major merger at z ~ 1.5 and find that the newly proposed MID morphology
diagnostics trace later merger stages while G-M20 trace earlier ones. MID is
sensitive also to clumpy star-forming discs. The observability time of typical
MID-enhanced events in our simulation sample is less than 100 Myr. A larger
sample of cosmological assembly histories may be required to calibrate such
diagnostics in the face of their sensitivity to viewing angle, segmentation
algorithm, and various phenomena such as clumpy star formation and minor
mergers.Comment: 23 pages, 16 figures, MNRAS accepted versio
Dimensional Strategies and the Minimization Problem: Barrier-Avoiding Algorithms
In the present paper we examine the role of dimensionality in the minimization problem. Since it has such a powerful influence on the topology of the associated potential energy landscape, we argue that it may prove useful to alter the dimensionality of the space of the original minimization problem. We explore this general idea in the context of finding the minimum energy geometries of Lennard-Jones clusters. We show that it is possible to locate barrier-free, high-dimensional pathways that connect local, three-dimensional cluster minima. The performance of the resulting, ābarrier-avoiding minimizationā algorithm is examined for clusters containing as many as 55 atoms
Beyond Spheroids and Discs: Classifications of CANDELS Galaxy Structure at 1.4 < z < 2 via Principal Component Analysis
Important but rare and subtle processes driving galaxy morphology and
star-formation may be missed by traditional spiral, elliptical, irregular or
S\'ersic bulge/disk classifications. To overcome this limitation, we use a
principal component analysis of non-parametric morphological indicators
(concentration, asymmetry, Gini coefficient, , multi-mode, intensity
and deviation) measured at rest-frame -band (corresponding to HST/WFC3 F125W
at 1.4 ) galaxy morphologies. Principal component analysis (PCA) quantifies
the correlations between these morphological indicators and determines the
relative importance of each. The first three principal components (PCs) capture
75 per cent of the variance inherent to our sample. We interpret the
first principal component (PC) as bulge strength, the second PC as dominated by
concentration and the third PC as dominated by asymmetry. Both PC1 and PC2
correlate with the visual appearance of a central bulge and predict galaxy
quiescence. PC1 is a better predictor of quenching than stellar mass, as as
good as other structural indicators (S\'ersic-n or compactness). We divide the
PCA results into groups using an agglomerative hierarchical clustering method.
Unlike S\'ersic, this classification scheme separates compact galaxies from
larger, smooth proto-elliptical systems, and star-forming disk-dominated clumpy
galaxies from star-forming bulge-dominated asymmetric galaxies. Distinguishing
between these galaxy structural types in a quantitative manner is an important
step towards understanding the connections between morphology, galaxy assembly
and star-formation.Comment: 31 pages, 24 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Special topic: The association between pulse ingredients and canine dilated cardiomyopathy: addressing the knowledge gaps before establishing causation.
In July 2018, the Food and Drug Administration warned about a possible relationship between dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs and the consumption of dog food formulated with potatoes and pulse ingredients. This issue may impede utilization of pulse ingredients in dog food or consideration of alternative proteins. Pulse ingredients have been used in the pet food industry for over 2 decades and represent a valuable source of protein to compliment animal-based ingredients. Moreover, individual ingredients used in commercial foods do not represent the final nutrient concentration of the complete diet. Thus, nutritionists formulating dog food must balance complementary ingredients to fulfill the animal's nutrient needs in the final diet. There are multiple factors that should be considered, including differences in nutrient digestibility and overall bioavailability, the fermentability and quantity of fiber, and interactions among food constituents that can increase the risk of DCM development. Taurine is a dispensable amino acid that has been linked to DCM in dogs. As such, adequate supply of taurine and/or precursors for taurine synthesis plays an important role in preventing DCM. However, requirements of amino acids in dogs are not well investigated and are presented in total dietary content basis which does not account for bioavailability or digestibility. Similarly, any nutrient (e.g., soluble and fermentable fiber) or physiological condition (e.g., size of the dog, sex, and age) that increases the requirement for taurine will also augment the possibility for DCM development. Dog food formulators should have a deep knowledge of processing methodologies and nutrient interactions beyond meeting the Association of American Feed Control Officials nutrient profiles and should not carelessly follow unsubstantiated market trends. Vegetable ingredients, including pulses, are nutritious and can be used in combination with complementary ingredients to meet the nutritional needs of the dog
The K2-HERMES Survey: Age and Metallicity of the Thick Disc
Asteroseismology is a promising tool to study Galactic structure and
evolution because it can probe the ages of stars. Earlier attempts comparing
seismic data from the {\it Kepler} satellite with predictions from Galaxy
models found that the models predicted more low-mass stars compared to the
observed distribution of masses. It was unclear if the mismatch was due to
inaccuracies in the Galactic models, or the unknown aspects of the selection
function of the stars. Using new data from the K2 mission, which has a
well-defined selection function, we find that an old metal-poor thick disc, as
used in previous Galactic models, is incompatible with the asteroseismic
information. We show that spectroscopic measurements of [Fe/H] and
[/Fe] elemental abundances from the GALAH survey indicate a mean
metallicity of for the thick disc. Here is the
effective solar-scaled metallicity, which is a function of [Fe/H] and
[/Fe]. With the revised disc metallicities, for the first time, the
theoretically predicted distribution of seismic masses show excellent agreement
with the observed distribution of masses. This provides an indirect
verification of the asteroseismic mass scaling relation is good to within five
percent. Using an importance-sampling framework that takes the selection
function into account, we fit a population synthesis model of the Galaxy to the
observed seismic and spectroscopic data. Assuming the asteroseismic scaling
relations are correct, we estimate the mean age of the thick disc to be about
10 Gyr, in agreement with the traditional idea of an old -enhanced
thick disc.Comment: 21 pages, submitted to MNRA
Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with hard and light intensity physical activity but not time spent sedentary in 10ā14 year old schoolchildren: the HAPPY study
Sedentary behaviour is a major risk factor for developing chronic diseases and is associated with low cardiorespiratory fitness in adults. It remains unclear how sedentary behaviour and different physical activity subcomponents are related to cardiorespiratory fitness in children. The purpose of this study was to assess how sedentary behaviour and different physical activity subcomponents are associated with 10ā14 year-old schoolchildren's cardiorespiratory fitness
The ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury
The ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury (ANGST) is a systematic survey to
establish a legacy of uniform multi-color photometry of resolved stars for a
volume-limited sample of nearby galaxies (D<4 Mpc). The survey volume
encompasses 69 galaxies in diverse environments, including close pairs, small &
large groups, filaments, and truly isolated regions. The galaxies include a
nearly complete range of morphological types spanning a factor of ~10^4 in
luminosity and star formation rate. The survey data consists of images taken
with ACS on HST, supplemented with archival data and new WFPC2 imaging taken
after the failure of ACS. Survey images include wide field tilings covering the
full radial extent of each galaxy, and single deep pointings in uncrowded
regions of the most massive galaxies in the volume. The new wide field imaging
in ANGST reaches median 50% completenesses of m_F475W=28.0 mag, m_F606W=27.3
mag, and m_F814W=27.3 mag, several magnitudes below the tip of the red giant
branch (TRGB). The deep fields reach magnitudes sufficient to fully resolve the
structure in the red clump. The resulting photometric catalogs are publicly
accessible and contain over 34 million photometric measurements of >14 million
stars. In this paper we present the details of the sample selection, imaging,
data reduction, and the resulting photometric catalogs, along with an analysis
of the photometric uncertainties (systematic and random), for both the ACS and
WFPC2 imaging. We also present uniformly derived relative distances measured
from the apparent magnitude of the TRGB.Comment: 54 pages, including 24 pages of figures and 16 pages of tables.
Project website and data available at http://www.nearbygalaxies.org/ . Data
is also available through MAST. Scheduled to appear in the Astrophysical
Journal Supplements. (Replaced to fix several figures that were damaged
during compression
Are genetic risk factors for psychosis also associated with dimension-specific psychotic experiences in adolescence?
Psychosis has been hypothesised to be a continuously distributed quantitative phenotype and disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder represent its extreme manifestations. Evidence suggests that common genetic variants play an important role in liability to both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Here we tested the hypothesis that these common variants would also influence psychotic experiences measured dimensionally in adolescents in the general population. Our aim was to test whether schizophrenia and bipolar disorder polygenic risk scores (PRS), as well as specific single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) previously identified as risk variants for schizophrenia, were associated with adolescent dimension-specific psychotic experiences. Self-reported Paranoia, Hallucinations, Cognitive Disorganisation, Grandiosity, Anhedonia, and Parent-rated Negative Symptoms, as measured by the Specific Psychotic Experiences Questionnaire (SPEQ), were assessed in a community sample of 2,152 16-year-olds. Polygenic risk scores were calculated using estimates of the log of odds ratios from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium GWAS stage-1 mega-analysis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The polygenic risk analyses yielded no significant associations between schizophrenia and bipolar disorder PRS and the SPEQ measures. The analyses on the 28 individual SNPs previously associated with schizophrenia found that two SNPs in TCF4 returned a significant association with the SPEQ Paranoia dimension, rs17512836 (p-value=2.57x10-4) and rs9960767 (p-value=6.23x10-4). Replication in an independent sample of 16-year-olds (N=3,427) assessed using the Psychotic-Like Symptoms Questionnaire (PLIKS-Q), a composite measure of multiple positive psychotic experiences, failed to yield significant results. Future research with PRS derived from larger samples, as well as larger adolescent validation samples, would improve the predictive power to test these hypotheses further. The challenges of relating adult clinical diagnostic constructs such as schizophrenia to adolescent psychotic experiences at a genetic level are discussed
Associations between cardiorespiratory fitness, physical activity and clustered cardiometabolic risk in children and adolescents: the HAPPY study
Clustering of cardiometabolic risk factors can occur during childhood and predisposes individuals to cardiometabolic disease. This study calculated clustered cardiometabolic risk in 100 children and adolescents aged 10-14Ā years (59 girls) and explored differences according to cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) levels and time spent at different physical activity (PA) intensities. CRF was determined using a maximal cycle ergometer test, and PA was assessed using accelerometry. A cardiometabolic risk score was computed as the sum of the standardised scores for waist circumference, blood pressure, total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein ratio, triglycerides and glucose. Differences in clustered cardiometabolic risk between fit and unfit participants, according to previously proposed health-related threshold values, and between tertiles for PA subcomponents were assessed using ANCOVA. Clustered risk was significantly lower (pā<ā0.001) in the fit group (mean 1.21āĀ±ā3.42) compared to the unfit group (mean -0.74āĀ±ā2.22), while no differences existed between tertiles for any subcomponent of PA. Conclusion These findings suggest that CRF may have an important cardioprotective role in children and adolescents and highlights the importance of promoting CRF in youth
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