740 research outputs found
A multimodal turn in Digital Humanities. Using contrastive machine learning models to explore, enrich, and analyze digital visual historical collections
Until recently, most research in the Digital Humanities (DH) was monomodal, meaning that the object of analysis was either textual or visual. Seeking to integrate multimodality theory into the DH, this article demonstrates that recently developed multimodal deep learning models, such as Contrastive Language Image Pre-training (CLIP), offer new possibilities to explore and analyze image–text combinations at scale. These models, which are trained on image and text pairs, can be applied to a wide range of text-to-image, image-to-image, and image-to-text prediction tasks. Moreover, multimodal models show high accuracy in zero-shot classification, i.e. predicting unseen categories across heterogeneous datasets. Based on three exploratory case studies, we argue that this zero-shot capability opens up the way for a multimodal turn in DH research. Moreover, multimodal models allow scholars to move past the artificial separation of text and images that was dominant in the field and analyze multimodal meaning at scale. However, we also need to be aware of the specific (historical) bias of multimodal deep learning that stems from biases in the training data used to train these models.</p
An interferometric study of the post-AGB binary 89 Herculis. II Radiative transfer models of the circumbinary disk
The presence of disks and outflows is widespread among post-AGB binaries. In
the first paper of this series, a surprisingly large fraction of optical light
was found to be resolved in the 89 Her post-AGB system. The data showed this
flux to arise from close to the central binary. Scattering off the inner rim of
the circumbinary disk, or in a dusty outflow were suggested as two possible
origins. With detailed dust radiative transfer models of the disk we aim to
discriminate between these two configurations. By including Herschel/SPIRE
photometry, we extend the SED such that it now fully covers UV to sub-mm
wavelengths. The MCMax radiative transfer code is used to create a large grid
of disk models. Our models include a self-consistent treatment of dust settling
as well as of scattering. A Si-rich composition with two additional opacity
sources, metallic Fe or amorphous C, are tested. The SED is fit together with
mid-IR (MIDI) visibilities as well as the optical and near-IR visibilities of
Paper I, to constrain the structure of the disk and in particular of its inner
rim. The near-IR visibility data require a smooth inner rim, here obtained with
a two-power-law parameterization of the radial surface density distribution. A
model can be found that fits all the IR photometric and interferometric data
well, with either of the two continuum opacity sources. Our best-fit passive
models are characterized by a significant amount of mm-sized grains, which are
settled to the midplane of the disk. Not a single disk model fits our data at
optical wavelengths though, the reason being the opposing constraints imposed
by the optical and near-IR interferometric data. A geometry in which a passive,
dusty, and puffed-up circumbinary disk is present, can reproduce all the IR but
not the optical observations of 89 Her. Another dusty, outflow or halo,
component therefore needs to be added to the system.Comment: 15 pages, in pres
Computer Vision for the Humanities: An Introduction to Deep Learning for Image Classification (Part 1)
This is the first of a two-part lesson introducing deep learning based computer vision methods for humanities research. Using a dataset of historical newspaper advertisements and the fastai Python library, the lesson walks through the pipeline of training a computer vision model to perform image classification
The Chandra Galactic Bulge Survey: optical catalogue and point-source counterparts to X-ray sources
As part of the Chandra Galactic Bulge Survey (GBS), we present a catalogue of
optical sources in the GBS footprint. This consists of two regions centered at
Galactic latitude b = 1.5 degrees above and below the Galactic Centre, spanning
(l x b) = (6x1) degrees. The catalogue consists of 2 or more epochs of
observations for each line of sight in r', i' and H{\alpha} filters. It is
complete down to r' = 20.2 and i' = 19.2 mag; the mean 5{\sigma} depth is r' =
22.5 and i' = 21.1 mag. The mean root-mean-square residuals of the astrometric
solutions is 0.04 arcsec. We cross-correlate this optical catalogue with the
1640 unique X-ray sources detected in Chandra observations of the GBS area, and
find candidate optical counterparts to 1480 X-ray sources. We use a false alarm
probability analysis to estimate the contamination by interlopers, and expect ~
10 per cent of optical counterparts to be chance alignments. To determine the
most likely counterpart for each X-ray source, we compute the likelihood ratio
for all optical sources within the 4{\sigma} X-ray error circle. This analysis
yields 1480 potential counterparts (~ 90 per cent of the sample). 584
counterparts have saturated photometry (r'<17, i'<16), indicating these objects
are likely foreground sources and the real counterparts. 171 candidate
counterparts are detected only in the i'-band. These sources are good qLMXB and
CV candidates as they are X-ray bright and likely located in the Bulge.Comment: 18 pages, 18 figures. Published in MNRAS. 2016MNRAS.458.4530
Constraining the nature of the accreting binary in CXOGBS J174623.5-310550
We report optical and infrared observations of the X-ray source CXOGBS
J174623.5-310550. This Galactic object was identified as a potential quiescent
low-mass X-ray binary accreting from an M-type donor on the basis of optical
spectroscopy and the broad Halpha emission line. The analysis of X-shooter
spectroscopy covering 3 consecutive nights supports an M2/3-type spectral
classification. Neither radial velocity variations nor rotational broadening is
detected in the photospheric lines. No periodic variability is found in I- and
r'-band light curves. We derive r' = 20.8, I = 19.2 and Ks = 16.6 for the
optical and infrared counterparts with the M-type star contributing 90% to the
I-band light. We estimate its distance to be 1.3-1.8 kpc. The lack of radial
velocity variations implies that the M-type star is not the donor star in the
X-ray binary. This could be an interloper or the outer body in a hierarchical
triple. We constrain the accreting binary to be a < 2.2 hr orbital period
eclipsing cataclysmic variable or a low-mass X-ray binary lying in the
foreground of the Galactic Bulge.Comment: (9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS
The fast transient sky with Gaia
The ESA Gaia satellite scans the whole sky with a temporal sampling ranging
from seconds and hours to months. Each time a source passes within the Gaia
field of view, it moves over 10 CCDs in 45 s and a lightcurve with 4.5 s
sampling (the crossing time per CCD) is registered. Given that the 4.5 s
sampling represents a virtually unexplored parameter space in optical time
domain astronomy, this data set potentially provides a unique opportunity to
open up the fast transient sky. We present a method to start mining the wealth
of information in the per CCD Gaia data. We perform extensive data filtering to
eliminate known on-board and data processing artefacts, and present a
statistical method to identify sources that show transient brightness
variations on ~2 hours timescales. We illustrate that by using the Gaia
photometric CCD measurements, we can detect transient brightness variations
down to an amplitude of 0.3 mag on timescales ranging from 15 seconds to
several hours. We search an area of ~23.5 square degrees on the sky, and find
four strong candidate fast transients. Two candidates are tentatively
classified as flares on M-dwarf stars, while one is probably a flare on a giant
star and one potentially a flare on a solar type star. These classifications
are based on archival data and the timescales involved. We argue that the
method presented here can be added to the existing Gaia Science Alerts
infrastructure for the near real-time public dissemination of fast transient
events.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures and 5 tables; MNRAS in pres
Spectroscopic classification of X-ray sources in the Galactic Bulge Survey
We present the classification of 26 optical counterparts to X-ray sources
discovered in the Galactic Bulge Survey. We use (time-resolved) photometric and
spectroscopic observations to classify the X-ray sources based on their
multi-wavelength properties. We find a variety of source classes, spanning
different phases of stellar/binary evolution. We classify CX21 as a quiescent
cataclysmic variable (CV) below the period gap, and CX118 as a high accretion
rate (nova-like) CV. CXB12 displays excess UV emission, and could contain a
compact object with a giant star companion, making it a candidate symbiotic
binary or quiescent low mass X-ray binary (although other scenarios cannot be
ruled out). CXB34 is a magnetic CV (polar) that shows photometric evidence for
a change in accretion state. The magnetic classification is based on the
detection of X-ray pulsations with a period of 81 2 min. CXB42 is
identified as a young stellar object, namely a weak-lined T Tauri star
exhibiting (to date unexplained) UX Ori-like photometric variability. The
optical spectrum of CXB43 contains two (resolved) unidentified double-peaked
emission lines. No known scenario, such as an AGN or symbiotic binary, can
easily explain its characteristics. We additionally classify 20 objects as
likely active stars based on optical spectroscopy, their X-ray to optical flux
ratios and photometric variability. In 4 cases we identify the sources as
binary stars.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA
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