Early evolution of disrupted asteroid P/2016 G1 (PANSTARRS)

We present deep imaging observations of activated asteroid P/2016 G1 (PANSTARRS) using the 10.4m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) from late April to early June 2016. The images are best interpreted as the result of a relatively short-duration event with onset about $\mathop{350}_{-30}^{+10}$ days before perihelion (i.e., around 10th February, 2016), starting sharply and decreasing with a $\mathop{24}_{-7}^{+10}$ days (Half-width at half-maximum, HWHM). The results of the modeling imply the emission of $\sim$1.7$\times$10$^7$ kg of dust, if composed of particles of 1 micrometer to 1 cm in radius, distributed following a power-law of index --3, and having a geometric albedo of 0.15. A detailed fitting of a conspicuous westward feature in the head of the comet-like object indicates that a significant fraction of the dust was ejected along a privileged direction right at the beginning of the event, which suggests that the parent body has possibly suffered an impact followed by a partial or total disruption. From the limiting magnitude reachable with the instrumental setup, and assuming a geometric albedo of 0.15 for the parent body, an upper limit for the size of possible fragment debris of $\sim$50 m in radius is derived.Comment: Accepted by ApJ Letter

Dust loss from activated asteroid P/2015 X6

We present observations and dust tail models of activated asteroid P/2015 X6 from deep imaging data acquired at the 10.4m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) from mid-December 2015 to late January 2016. The results of the modeling indicate that the asteroid has undergone a sustained dust loss over a two-month or longer period. The dust parameters, derived from multidimensional fits of the available images, are compatible with either ice sublimation or rotational instability processes. An impulsive event, as it could be associated to an impact with another body, is less likely. A power-law distribution of particles, with minimum and maximum radius of 1 $\mu$m and 1 cm, and power index of --3.3 is found to be consistent with the observations. Depending on the ejection velocity model adopted, the particle velocities are found in the 0.3 to 10 m s$^{-1}$ range. The activation time was between 18-26 days before discovery. The total ejected mass from that time to the most recent observation is in the range 5-9$\times$10$^6$ kg. No dust features giving indication of past activity earlier than the activation time have been observed.Comment: Accepted by ApJ, May 15th 201

On the dust environment of Main-Belt Comet 313P/Gibbs

We present observations carried out using the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias and an interpretative model of the dust environment of activated asteroid 313P/Gibbs. We discuss three different models relating to different values of the dust parameters, i.e, dust loss rate, maximum and minimum sizes of particles, power index of the size distribution, and emission pattern. The best model corresponds with an isotropic emission of particles which started on August 1st. The size of grains were in the range of $0.1-2000$ $\mu$m, with velocities for 100 $\mu$m particles between $0.4-1.9$ m$~$s$^{-1}$, with a dust production rate in the range of $0.2-0.8$ kg$~$s$^{-1}$. The dust tails' brightness and morphology are best interpreted in terms of a model of sustained and low dust emission driven by water-ice sublimation, spanning since 2014 August 1st, and triggered by a short impulsive event. This event produced an emission of small particles of about 0.1 $\mu$m with velocities of $\sim$4 m$~$s$^{-1}$. From our model we deduce that the activity of this Main-Belt Comet continued for, at least, four months, since activation.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

Grammarians and academies. Towards a sociology of linguistic knowledge

En este trabajo se describen los presupuestos ideológicos que informan la actividad de los gramáticos normativistas y de las instituciones, principalmente las academias de las lenguas, que oficializan dicha actividad cuyo fin es la implantación de un determinado modelo de lengua basado en la variedad lingüística de la clase dominante. Se hace ver que este modelo de lengua se fundamenta en una concepción filológica que procede de la Antigüedad Clásica y que esta visión distorsiona algunas de las propiedades esenciales de las lenguas naturales humanas y, por tanto, supone una dificultad para el progreso del conocimiento científico de las lenguas naturales.This article discusses the ideological background of the linguistic activity of grammarians and academies. It is shown that the purpose of this activity consists in establishing a language model based on the linguistic variety of the dominant class. This language model shows a philological conception inherited from the Ancient Antiquity that distorts some of the fundamental properties of natural human languages and, therefore, thwarts an adequate progress in the scientific description of natural languages

Observaciones sobre la sintaxis de «casi».

Sin resume

The dust environment of Main-Belt Comet P/2012 T1 (PANSTARRS)

Main-Belt Comet P/2012 T1 (PANSTARRS) has been imaged using the 10.4m Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) and the 4.2m William Herschel Telescope (WHT) at six epochs in the period from November 2012 to February 2013, with the aim of monitoring its dust environment. The dust tails brightness and morphology are best interpreted in terms of a model of sustained dust emission spanning 4 to 6 months. The total dust mass ejected is estimated at $\sim$6--25$\times10^6$ kg. We assume a time-independent power-law size distribution function, with particles in the micrometer to centimeter size range. Based on the quality of the fits to the isophote fields, an anisotropic emission pattern is favored against an isotropic one, in which the particle ejection is concentrated toward high latitudes ($\pm45^\circ$ to $\pm90^\circ$) in a high obliquity object ($I$=80$^\circ$). This seasonally-driven ejection behavior, along with the modeled particle ejection velocities, are in remarkable agreement to those we found for P/2010 R2 (La Sagra) \citep{Moreno11a}.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letter

Sintaxis formal y sintaxis conceptual : más allá de la tipología de las oraciones de relativo

In this paper I present a conceptual analysis of adjectival subordination. It is argued that adjectival subordination conveys the conceptual operation of eventive characterization of individuals. This operation consists in using an event to characterize an individual; it is claimed that many syntactic properties of adjectival subordination in the world's languages follow from this conceptual operation, and that a full explanation of the typology of this type of subordination can only be produced in a semantic framework. It is also shown how adjectival subordination interacts with other syntactic processes such as incorporation, verbal adjectivization and substantivation, elision, anaphora and how these interactions can be accounted for in the conceptual framework sketched in this paper. The examples illustrating the main points are drawn from Georgian, Chukchi, Hungarian, Basque and Spanish, since the investigation is typologically oriented.En este artículo presento un análisis conceptual de la subordinación adjetivada. Se plantea que la subordinación adjetivada transmite la acción conceptual de la eventual caracterización de individuos. Esta operación consiste en usar un evento para definir a una persona; se declara que muchas propiedades sintácticas de la subordinación adjetival en los idiomas del mundo siguen esta acción conceptual, y que una explicación completa de la tipología de este tipo de subordinación sólo puede ser producida en un marco de trabajo semántico. También se muestra cómo la subordinación adjetival interactúa con otros procesos sintácticos como la incorporación, la adjetivación verbal y la sustantivación, la omisión y la anáfora, y el cómo estas interacciones pueden ser recogidas en el espacio de trabajo conceptual que se abarca en este artículo. Los ejemplos que ilustran los puntos principales se recogen del georgiano, chukchi, húngaro, vasco y español, ya que la investigación está orientada tipológicamente

The role of sound symbolism in protolanguage: Some linguistic and archaeological speculations

In this paper, I have tried to clarify the role of sound symbolism in the early development of human language vocabulary The mimicking of natural sounds by means of an articulated language, producing onomatopoeic sound-symbolism could be considered as one first stage in human language vocabulary evolution. The following step consists in using sounds to symbolize phenomena perceptible by non-auditory senses. Sound symbolization began to relate certain sounds to the visual aspects of objects such as size or shape or to certain aspects of actions and states. This is called pheno-mimic sound-symbolism. The transition from phono-mimic or onomatopoeic sound symbolism to pheno-mimic sound representations can be related to the stage of human mind evolution proposed by S. Mithen (1996) in which domain-specific modules work together with a seamless flow of information across different domains. This is called cognitive fluidity. This cognitive fluidity could be responsible for the connection between different cognitive abilities: visual processing, auditory processing and the socialsemiotic activity of linguistic symbolism