Using binary statistics in Taurus-Auriga to distinguish between brown dwarf formation processes

Whether BDs form as stars through gravitational collapse ("star-like") or BDs and some very low-mass stars constitute a separate population which form alongside stars comparable to the population of planets, e.g. through circumstellar disk ("peripheral") fragmentation, is one of the key questions of the star-formation problem. For young stars in Taurus-Auriga the binary fraction is large with little dependence on primary mass above ~0.2Msun, while for BDs it is <10%. We investigate a case in which BDs in Taurus formed dominantly through peripheral fragmentation. The decline of the binary frequency in the transition region between star-like and peripheral formation is modelled. A dynamical population synthesis model is employed in which stellar binary formation is universal. Peripheral objects form separately in circumstellar disks with a distinctive initial mass function (IMF), own orbital parameter distributions for binaries and a low binary fraction. A small amount of dynamical processing of the stellar component is accounted for as appropriate for the low-density Taurus-Auriga embedded clusters. The binary fraction declines strongly between the mass-limits for star-like and peripheral formation. The location of characteristic features and the steepness depend on these mass-limits. Such a trend might be unique to low density regions hosting dynamically unprocessed binary populations. The existence of a strong decline in the binary fraction -- primary mass diagram will become verifiable in future surveys on BD and VLMS binarity in the Taurus-Auriga star forming region. It is a test of the (non-)continuity of star formation along the mass-scale, the separateness of the stellar and BD populations and the dominant formation channel for BDs and BD binaries in regions of low stellar density hosting dynamically unprocessed populations.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A, 11 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl

Traps of multi-level governance. Lessons from the implementation of the Water Framework Directive in Italy

During recent decades, different patterns of multi-level governance (MLG) have spread across Europe as a consequence of Europeanisation of public policies, which have increasingly adopted decentralized and participatory procedures conceived as a tool of more effective and accountable policy-making. It appears, however, that the implementation of operational designs based on MLG may be rather problematic and it does not necessarily bring to the expected performance improvements. Referring to the case of the EU Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC), which conceives the creation of new multi-level institutional settings as a key tool for enacting a new holistic approach to water management and protection, this article explores the difficulties that the implementation of such settings has brought in Italy, despite some favorable pre-conditions existing in the country. Evidence is provided that along with institutional and agency variables, the implementation effectiveness of MLG arrangements promoted by the EU can be challenged by their inherent characteristics

Medical data processing and analysis for remote health and activities monitoring

Recent developments in sensor technology, wearable computing, Internet of Things (IoT), and wireless communication have given rise to research in ubiquitous healthcare and remote monitoring of human\u2019s health and activities. Health monitoring systems involve processing and analysis of data retrieved from smartphones, smart watches, smart bracelets, as well as various sensors and wearable devices. Such systems enable continuous monitoring of patients psychological and health conditions by sensing and transmitting measurements such as heart rate, electrocardiogram, body temperature, respiratory rate, chest sounds, or blood pressure. Pervasive healthcare, as a relevant application domain in this context, aims at revolutionizing the delivery of medical services through a medical assistive environment and facilitates the independent living of patients. In this chapter, we discuss (1) data collection, fusion, ownership and privacy issues; (2) models, technologies and solutions for medical data processing and analysis; (3) big medical data analytics for remote health monitoring; (4) research challenges and opportunities in medical data analytics; (5) examples of case studies and practical solutions

Close Packing of Atoms, Geometric Frustration and the Formation of Heterogeneous States in Crystals

To describe structural peculiarities in inhomogeneous media caused by the tendency to the close packing of atoms a formalism based on the using of the Riemann geometry methods (which were successfully applied lately to the description of structures of quasicrystals and glasses) is developed. Basing on this formalism we find in particular the criterion of stability of precipitates of the Frank-Kasper phases in metallic systems. The nature of the ''rhenium effect'' in W-Re alloys is discussed.Comment: 14 pages, RevTex, 2 PostScript figure

The holy blood and the holy grail: Myths of scientific racism and the pursuit of excellence in sport

Despite the continuing publication of research that suggests there is no scientific basis to 'race' as a biological category, theories of racial difference continue to be invoked within sport to explain the perceived dominance of black athletes. In the case of John Entine's controversial 'Taboo: why black athletes dominate sports and why we are afraid to talk about it' or undergraduate textbooks that suggest 'racial differences' in physique may significantly affect athletic performance, scientific racism is normalised in sport. In this article, the relationship between scientific racism and sport will be examined. Qualitative research with current sport scientists is used to investigate the socio-ethical tensions within the subject field of sport science between professionalism, scientism and the demand from external interests to produce results that help people in sport win medals. It will be shown that these tensions, combined with the history of race as a category in sport science, combine to create the discourse of scientific knowledge that reflects, rather than challenges, folk genetics of black athletic physicality

Recent advances on IMF research

Here I discuss recent work on brown dwarfs, massive stars and the IMF in general. The stellar IMF can be well described by an invariant two-part power law in present-day star-formation events within the Local Group of galaxies. It is nearly identical in shape to the pre-stellar core mass function. The majority of brown dwarfs follow a separate IMF. Evidence from globular clusters and ultra-compact dwarf galaxies has emerged that IMFs may have been top heavy depending on the star-formation rate density. The IGIMF then ranges from bottom heavy at low galaxy-wide star formation rates to being top-heavy in galaxy-scale star bursts.Comment: 6 pages, LaTeX, to appear in The Labyrinth of Star Formation, 18-22 June 2012, Crete, (eds.) D. Stamatellos, S. Goodwin, and D. Ward-Thompson, Springer, in press; replaced version: very minor corrections plus the addition of reference Smith & Lucey (2013) on the bottom-heavy IMF in elliptical galaxie