132 research outputs found
The Birth of a Galaxy: Primordial Metal Enrichment and Stellar Populations
By definition, Population III stars are metal-free, and their protostellar
collapse is driven by molecular hydrogen cooling in the gas-phase, leading to
large characteristic masses. Population II stars with lower characteristic
masses form when the star-forming gas reaches a critical metallicity of 10^{-6}
- 10^{-3.5} Z_\odot. We present an adaptive mesh refinement radiation
hydrodynamics simulation that follows the transition from Population III to II
star formation. The maximum spatial resolution of 1 comoving parsec allows for
individual molecular clouds to be well-resolved and their stellar associations
to be studied in detail. We model stellar radiative feedback with adaptive ray
tracing. A top-heavy initial mass function for the Population III stars is
considered, resulting in a plausible distribution of pair-instability
supernovae and associated metal enrichment. We find that the gas fraction
recovers from 5 percent to nearly the cosmic fraction in halos with merger
histories rich in halos above 10^7 solar masses. A single pair-instability
supernova is sufficient to enrich the host halo to a metallicity floor of
10^{-3} Z_\odot and to transition to Population II star formation. This
provides a natural explanation for the observed floor on damped Lyman alpha
(DLA) systems metallicities reported in the literature, which is of this order.
We find that stellar metallicities do not necessarily trace stellar ages, as
mergers of halos with established stellar populations can create superpositions
of t-Z evolutionary tracks. A bimodal metallicity distribution is created after
a starburst occurs when the halo can cool efficiently through atomic line
cooling.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures; replaced with accepted version to ApJ;
additional movies and images can be found at
http://www.astro.princeton.edu/~jwise/research/GalaxyBirth.htm
The impact of the supersonic baryon-dark matter velocity difference on the z~20 21cm background
Recently, Tseliakhovich and Hirata (2010) showed that during the cosmic Dark
Ages the baryons were typically moving supersonically with respect to the dark
matter with a spatially variable Mach number. Such supersonic motion may source
shocks that heat the Universe. This motion may also suppress star formation in
the first halos. Even a small amount of coupling of the 21cm signal to this
motion has the potential to vastly enhance the 21cm brightness temperature
fluctuations at 15<z<40 as well as to imprint acoustic oscillations in this
signal. We present estimates for the size of this coupling, which we calibrate
with a suite of cosmological simulations. Our simulations, discussed in detail
in a companion paper, are initialized to self-consistently account for gas
pressure and the dark matter-baryon relative velocity, v_bc (in contrast to
prior simulations). We find that the supersonic velocity difference
dramatically suppresses structure formation at 10-100 comoving kpc scales, it
sources shocks throughout the Universe, and it impacts the accretion of gas
onto the first star-forming minihalos (even for halo masses as large as ~10^7
Msun). However, we find that the v_bc-sourced temperature fluctuations can
contribute only as much as ~10% of the fluctuations in the 21cm signal. We do
find that v_bc could source an O(1) component in the power spectrum of the 21cm
signal via the X-ray (but not ultraviolet) backgrounds produced once the first
stars formed. In a scenario in which ~10^6 Msun minihalos reheated the Universe
via their X-ray backgrounds, we find that the pre-reionization 21cm signal
would be larger than previously anticipated and exhibit significant acoustic
features. We show that structure formation shocks are unable to heat the
Universe sufficiently to erase a strong 21cm absorption trough at z ~ 20 that
is found in most models of the sky-averaged 21cm intensity.Comment: 17 pages, 11 figures, accepted to ApJ; for movies see
http://astro.berkeley.edu/~mmcquinn/firstligh
Effects of Varying the Three-Body Molecular Hydrogen Formation Rate in Primordial Star Formation
The transformation of atomic hydrogen to molecular hydrogen through
three-body reactions is a crucial stage in the collapse of primordial,
metal-free halos, where the first generation of stars (Population III stars) in
the Universe are formed. However, in the published literature, the rate
coefficient for this reaction is uncertain by nearly an order of magnitude. We
report on the results of both adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) and smoothed
particle hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations of the collapse of metal-free halos as
a function of the value of this rate coefficient. For each simulation method,
we have simulated a single halo three times, using three different values of
the rate coefficient. We find that while variation between halo realizations
may be greater than that caused by the three-body rate coefficient being used,
both the accretion physics onto Population III protostars as well as the
long-term stability of the disk and any potential fragmentation may depend
strongly on this rate coefficient.Comment: 29 pages, 7 figures; Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical
Journa
Magnetic Fields in Population III Star Formation
We study the buildup of magnetic fields during the formation of Population
III star-forming regions, by conducting cosmological simulations from realistic
initial conditions and varying the Jeans resolution. To investigate this in
detail, we start simulations from identical initial conditions, mandating 16,
32 and 64 zones per Jeans length, and studied the variation in their magnetic
field amplification. We find that, while compression results in some
amplification, turbulent velocity fluctuations driven by the collapse can
further amplify an initially weak seed field via dynamo action, provided there
is sufficient numerical resolution to capture vortical motions (we find this
requirement to be 64 zones per Jeans length, slightly larger than, but
consistent with previous work run with more idealized collapse scenarios). We
explore saturation of amplification of the magnetic field, which could
potentially become dynamically important in subsequent, fully-resolved
calculations. We have also identified a relatively surprising phenomena that is
purely hydrodynamic: the higher-resolved simulations possess substantially
different characteristics, including higher infall-velocity, increased
temperatures inside 1000 AU, and decreased molecular hydrogen content in the
innermost region. Furthermore, we find that disk formation is suppressed in
higher-resolution calculations, at least at the times that we can follow the
calculation. We discuss the effect this may have on the buildup of disks over
the accretion history of the first clump to form as well as the potential for
gravitational instabilities to develop and induce fragmentation.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap
The Birth of a Galaxy. II. The Role of Radiation Pressure
Massive stars provide feedback that shapes the interstellar medium of
galaxies at all redshifts and their resulting stellar populations. Here we
present three adaptive mesh refinement radiation hydrodynamics simulations that
illustrate the impact of momentum transfer from ionising radiation to the
absorbing gas on star formation in high-redshift dwarf galaxies. Momentum
transfer is calculated by solving the radiative transfer equation with a ray
tracing algorithm that is adaptive in spatial and angular coordinates. We find
that momentum input partially affects star formation by increasing the
turbulent support to a three-dimensional rms velocity equal to the circular
velocity of early haloes. Compared to a calculation that neglects radiation
pressure, the star formation rate is decreased by a factor of five to 1.8 x
10^{-2} Msun/yr in a dwarf galaxy with a dark matter and stellar mass of 2.0 x
10^8 and 4.5 x 10^5 solar masses, respectively, when radiation pressure is
included. Its mean metallicity of 10^{-2.1} Z_sun is consistent with the
observed dwarf galaxy luminosity-metallicity relation. However, what one may
naively expect from the calculation without radiation pressure, the central
region of the galaxy overcools and produces a compact, metal-rich stellar
population with an average metallicity of 0.3 Z_sun, indicative of an incorrect
physical recipe. In addition to photo-heating in HII regions, radiation
pressure further drives dense gas from star forming regions, so supernovae
feedback occurs in a warmer and more diffuse medium, launching metal-rich
outflows. Capturing this aspect and a temporal separation between the start of
radiative and supernova feedback are numerically important in the modeling of
galaxies to avoid the "overcooling problem". We estimate that dust in early
low-mass galaxies is unlikely to aid in momentum transfer from radiation to the
gas.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, replaced with accepted version, MNRAS. Minor
changes with the conclusions unaffecte
Three Modes of Metal-Enriched Star Formation in the Early Universe
Simulations of the formation of Population III (Pop III) stars suggest that
they were much more massive than the Pop II and Pop I stars observed today.
This is due to the collapse dynamics of metal-free gas, which is regulated by
the radiative cooling of molecular hydrogen. We study how the collapse of gas
clouds is altered by the addition of metals to the star-forming environment by
performing a series of simulations of pre-enriched star formation at various
metallicities. For metallicities below the critical metallicity, Z_cr, collapse
proceeds similarly to the metal-free case, and only massive objects form. For
metallicities well above Z_cr, efficient cooling rapidly lowers the gas
temperature to the temperature of the CMB. The gas is unable to radiatively
cool below the CMB temperature, and becomes thermally stable. For high
metallicities, Z >= 10^-2.5 Zsun, this occurs early in the evolution of the gas
cloud, when the density is still relatively low. The resulting cloud-cores show
little or no fragmentation, and would most likely form massive stars. If the
metallicity is not vastly above Z_cr, the cloud cools efficiently but does not
reach the CMB temperature, and fragmentation into multiple objects occurs. We
conclude that there were three distinct modes of star formation at high
redshift (z >= 4): a `primordial' mode, producing massive stars (10s to 100s
Msun) at very low metallicities (Z <= 10^-3.75 Zsun); a CMB-regulated mode,
producing moderate mass (10s of Msun) stars at high metallicites (Z >= 10^-2.5
Zsun at redshift z ~ 15-20); and a low-mass (a few Msun) mode existing between
those two metallicities. As the universe ages and the CMB temperature
decreases, the range of the low mass mode extends to higher metallicities,
eventually becoming the only mode of star formation. (Abridged)Comment: Significant revisions made, emulateapj, 15 pages, 3 tables, 8
figures, accepted for publication in ApJ. High-res version available at:
http://solo.colorado.edu/~brittons/papers/threemodes.pd
The role impairment associated with mental disorder risk profiles in the WHO World Mental Health International College Student Initiative
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to assess the contribution of mental comorbidity to role impairment among college students. METHODS: Web-based self-report surveys from 14,348 first-year college students (Response Rate [RR] = 45.5%): 19 universities, eight countries of the World Mental Health International College Student Initiative. We assessed impairment (Sheehan Disability Scales and number of days out of role [DOR] in the past 30 days) and seven 12-month DSM-IV disorders. We defined six multivariate mental disorder classes using latent class analysis (LCA). We simulated population attributable risk proportions (PARPs) of impairment. RESULTS: Highest prevalence of role impairment was highest among the 1.9% of students in the LCA class with very high comorbidity and bipolar disorder (C1): 78.3% of them had severe role impairment (vs. 20.8%, total sample). Impairment was lower in two other comorbid classes (C2 and C3) and successively lower in the rest. A similar monotonic pattern was found for DOR. Both LCA classes and some mental disorders (major depression and panic, in particular) were significant predictors of role impairment. PARP analyses suggest that eliminating all mental disorders might reduce severe role impairment by 64.6% and DOR by 44.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Comorbid mental disorders account for a substantial part of role impairment in college students. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
Exclusive Intermediation
In this paper, we argue that an important function fulfilled by intermediaries is to facilitate trust by enabling social pressure towards the enforcement of informal agreements. To that end, we develop a new model that uses network theory to show that intermediaries who have exclusivity over a large enough number of interaction opportunities are able to exploit their position in the chains of interactions in the market to overcome incentive problems that would otherwise shut down the market. We derive conditions on the network structure under which intermediaries fulfill this function. Finally, we analyze two applications: (1) the market for short termapartment rentals; and (2) a financial market with investors and entrepreneurs. We provide additional examples suggesting that this paper uncovers an important channel through which intermediaries operate
Benefits and harms of perioperative high fraction inspired oxygen for surgical site infection prevention: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis of individual patient data of randomised controlled trials.
INTRODUCTION
The use of high fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) intraoperatively for the prevention of surgical site infection (SSI) remains controversial. Promising results of early randomised controlled trials (RCT) have been replicated with varying success and subsequent meta-analysis are equivocal. Recent advancements in perioperative care, including the increased use of laparoscopic surgery and pneumoperitoneum and shifts in fluid and temperature management, can affect peripheral oxygen delivery and may explain the inconsistency in reproducibility. However, the published data provides insufficient detail on the participant level to test these hypotheses. The purpose of this individual participant data meta-analysis is to assess the described benefits and harms of intraoperative high FiO2compared with regular (0.21-0.40) FiO2 and its potential effect modifiers.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS
Two reviewers will search medical databases and online trial registries, including MEDLINE, Embase, CENTRAL, CINAHL, ClinicalTrials.gov and WHO regional databases, for randomised and quasi-RCT comparing the effect of intraoperative high FiO2 (0.60-1.00) to regular FiO2 (0.21-0.40) on SSI within 90 days after surgery in adult patients. Secondary outcome will be all-cause mortality within the longest available follow-up. Investigators of the identified trials will be invited to collaborate. Data will be analysed with the one-step approach using the generalised linear mixed model framework and the statistical model appropriate for the type of outcome being analysed (logistic and cox regression, respectively), with a random treatment effect term to account for the clustering of patients within studies. The bias will be assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials V.2 and the certainty of evidence using Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation methodology. Prespecified subgroup analyses include use of mechanical ventilation, nitrous oxide, preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis, temperature (2.5 hour).
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION
Ethics approval is not required. Investigators will deidentify individual participant data before it is shared. The results will be submitted to a peer-review journal.
PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER
CRD42018090261
- …