Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Evolution of Massive Stars. I. Red Supergiants in the Magellanic Clouds

We investigate the red supergiant (RSG) content of the SMC and LMC using multiobject spectroscopy on a sample of red stars previously identified by BVR CCD photometry. We obtained high-accuracy (<1 km s-1) radial velocities for 118 red stars seen toward the SMC and 167 red stars seen toward the LMC, confirming most of these (89% and 95%, respectively) as red supergiants. Spectral types were also determined for most of these RSGs. We find that the distribution of spectral types is skewed toward earlier type at lower metallicities: the average (median) spectral type is K5–K7 I in the SMC, M1 I in the LMC, and M2 I in the Milky Way. Our examination of the Kurucz ATLAS9 model atmospheres suggests that the effect that metallicity has on the appearance on the TiO lines is probably sufficient to account for this effect, and we argue that RSGs in the Magellanic Clouds are 100 K (LMC) and 300 K (SMC) cooler than Galactic stars of the same spectral types. The colors of the Kurucz models are not consistent with this interpretation for the SMC, although other models (e.g., Bessell et al.) show good agreement. A finer grid of higher resolution synthetic spectra appropriate to cool supergiants is needed to better determine the effective temperature scale. We compare the distribution of RSGs in the H-R diagram to that of various stellar evolutionary models; we find that none of the models produce RSGs as cool and luminous as what is actually observed. This result is much larger than any uncertainty in the effective temperature scale. We note that, were we to simply adopt the uncorrected Galactic effective scale for RSGs and apply this to our sample, then the SMC's RSGs would be underluminous compared with the LMC's, contrary to what we expect from stellar evolution considerations. In all of our H-R diagrams, however, there is an elegant sequence of decreasing effective temperatures with increasing luminosities; explaining this will be an important test of future stellar evolutionary models. Finally, we compute the blue-to-red supergiant ratio in the SMC and LMC, finding that the values are indistinguishable (∼15) for the two Clouds. We emphasize that "observed" B/R values must be carefully determined if a comparison with that predicted by stellar models is to be meaningful. The nonrotation Geneva models overestimate the number of blue to red supergiants for the SMC, but underestimate it for the LMC; however, given the inability to produce high-luminosity RSGs in the models that match what is observed in the H-R diagram, such a disagreement is not surprising.
Strange mode instabilities and mass-loss in evolved massive primordial stars

A linear stability analysis of models for evolved primordial stars with masses between 150 and 250 M$_{\odot}$ is presented. Strange mode instabilities with growth rates in the dynamical range are identified for stellar models with effective temperatures below log T$_{\rm{eff}}$ = 4.5. For selected models the final fate of the instabilities is determined by numerical simulation of their evolution into the non-linear regime. As a result, the instabilities lead to finite amplitude pulsations. Associated with them are acoustic energy fluxes capable of driving stellar winds with mass-loss rates in the range between 7.7 $\times$ 10$^{-7}$ and 3.5 $\times$ 10$^{-4}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$.
Dynamical modelling of galactic disc outskirts

Abstract I review briefly some dynamical models of structures in the outer parts of disc galaxies, including models of polar rings, tidal tails and bridges. I then discuss the density distribution in the outer parts of discs. For this, I compare observations to results of a model in which the disc galaxy is in fact the remnant of a major merger, and find good agreement. This comparison includes radial profiles of the projected surface density and of stellar age, as well as time evolution of the break radius and of the inner and outer disc scale lengths. I also compare the radial projected surface density profiles of dynamically motivated mono-age populations and find that, compared to older populations, younger ones have flatter density profiles in the inner region and steeper in the outer one. The break radius, however, does not vary with stellar age, again in good agreement with observations.
Population dynamics of reef fish in the Kwandang Bay, Sulawesi Sea, Indonesia

Abstract. Achmad DS, Gani S, Ardiansyah W, Mokoginta MM, Nurdin MS, Jompa J, Indrianti MA, Achmad N. 2022. Population dynamics of reef fish in the Kwandang Bay, Sulawesi Sea, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23: 5217-5226. The grouper stocks in Kwandang Bay, Sulawesi Sea, Indonesia, are dominated by orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) and coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus). However, the Kwandang Bay grouper fishery is currently experiencing serious challenges due to population decline resulting in a decline in both the average size of fish caught and the production volume. This study was conducted in Kwandang Bay, Sulawesi Sea, from January to December 2021. The population dynamics parameters estimated were growth, recruitment, mortality, exploitation rate and yield per recruit. The results showed that the total length (TL) of E. coioides and P. leopardus ranged from 16.50-101 cm and 17.90-60 cm, respectively, with Von Bertalanffy K-coefficients of 0.38 and 0.69, respectively. Recruitment occurred during most of the year, with respective recruitment value ranges of 0.99-17.11% and 0.08-19.22%. Natural and fishing mortality was 0.69/year-1 and 0.87/year-1 for E. coioides, 1.16/year-1 and 1.47/year-1 for P. leopardus. Beverton and Holt yield per recruit analysis indicated recruitment overfishing of both E. coioides and P. leopardus. Fishing regulations are needed to maintain a sustainable grouper fishery, including a 25% reduction in fishing vessels and gear, to enable the groupers of Kwandang Bay to spawn at least once during their life cycle.
Multiverses and cosmology: Philosophical issues

The idea of a multiverse – an ensemble of universes or universe domains – has received increasing attention in cosmology, both as the outcome of the originating process that generated our own universe, and as an explanation for why our universe appears to be fine-tuned for life and consciousness. Here we review how multiverses should be defined, stressing the distinction between the collection of all possible universes and ensembles of really existing universes, which distinction is essential for anthropic arguments. We show that such realised multiverses are by no means unique, and in general require the existence of a well-defined and physically motivated distribution function on the space of all possible universes. Furthermore, a proper measure on these spaces is also needed, so that probabilities can be calculated. We then discuss several other physical and philosophical problems arising in the context of ensembles of universes, including realized infinities and the issue of fine-tuning – whether very special or generic primordial conditions are more fundamental in cosmology. Then we briefly summarise scenarios like chaotic inflation, which suggest how ensembles of universe domains may be generated, and point out that the regularities underlying any systematic description of truly disjoint multiverses must imply some kind of common generating mechanism, whose testability is problematic. Finally, we discuss the issue of testability, which underlies the question of whether multiverse proposals are really scientific propositions rather than metaphysical proposals.
A dynamical study of the circumstellar gas in UX Orionis

We present the results of a high spectral resolution (== 49 000) study of the circumstellar (CS) gas around the intermediate mass, pre-main sequence star UX Ori. The results are based on a set of 10 ´ echelle spectra covering the spectral range 3800-5900 A, monitoring the star on time scales of months, days and hours. A large number of transient blueshifted and redshifted absorption features are detected in the Balmer and in many metallic lines. A multigaussian fit is applied to determine for each transient absorption the velocity,v, dispersion velocity,v, and the parameter R, which provides a measure of the absorption strength of the CS gas. The time evolution of those parameters is presented and discussed. A comparison of intensity ratios among the transient absorptions suggests a solar-like composition of the CS gas. This confirms previous results and excludes a very metal-rich environment as the cause of the transient features in UX Ori. The features can be grouped by their similar velocities into 24 groups, of which 17 are redshifted and 7 blueshifted. An analysis of the velocity of the groups allows us to identify them as signatures of the dynamical evolution of 7 clumps of gas, of which 4 represent accretion events and 3 outflow events. Most of the events decelerate at a rate of tenths of m s 2 , while 2 events accelerate at approximately the same rate; one event is seen experiencing both an acceleration and a deceleration phase and lasts for a period of few days. This time scale seems to be the typical duration of outflowing and infalling events in UX Ori. The dispersion velocity and the relative aborption strength of the features do not show drastic changes during the lifetime of the events, which suggests they are gaseous blobs preserving their geometrical and physical identity. These data are a very useful tool for constraining and validating theoretical models of the chemical and physical conditions of CS gas around young stars; in particular, we suggest that the simultaneous presence of infalling and outflowing gas should be investigated in the context of detailed magnetospheric accretion models, similar to those proposed for the lower mass T Tauri stars.
High-Resolution Continuum Imaging at 1.3 and 0.7 Centimeters of the W3 IRS 5 Region

High-resolution images of the hypercompact H II (HC H II) regions in W3 IRS 5 taken with the Very Large Array (VLA) at 1.3 and 0.7 cm are presented. Four HC H II regions were detected with sufficient signal-to-noise ratios to allow the determination of relevant parameters, such as source position, size, and flux density. The sources are slightly extended in our ~0. ″2 beams; the deconvolved radii are less than 240 AU. A comparison of our data with VLA images taken at epoch 1989.1 shows proper motions for sources IRS 5a and IRS 5f. Between 1989.1 and 2002.5, we find a proper motion of 210 mas at a position angle of 12° for IRS 5f and a proper motion of 190 mas at a position angle of 50° for IRS 5a. At the assumed distance to W3 IRS 5, 1.83 ± 0.14 kpc, these offsets translate to proper motions of ~135 and ~122 km s-1, respectively. These sources are either shock-ionized gas in an outflow or ionized gas ejected from high-mass stars. We find no change in the positions of IRS 5d1/d2 and IRS 5b, and we show through a comparison with archival NICMOS 2.2 μm images that these two radio sources coincide with the infrared double constituting W3 IRS 5. These sources contain B or perhaps O stars. The flux densities of the four sources have changed compared to the epoch 1989.1 results. In our epoch 2002.5 data, none of the spectral indices obtained from flux densities at 1.3 and 0.7 cm are consistent with optically thin free-free emission; IRS 5d1/d2 shows the largest increase in flux density from 1.3 to 0.7 cm. This may be an indication of free-free optical depth within an ionized wind, a photoevaporating disk, or an accretion flow. It is less likely that this increase is caused by dust emission at 0.7 cm.
A Herschel–Bulkley model for mud flow down a slope

The spreading and sediment deposit of a two-dimensional, unsteady, laminar mud flow from a constant-volume source on a relatively steep slope is studied theoretically and experimentally. The mud under consideration has the rheological properties of a Herschel–Bulkley fluid. The flow is of low-Reynolds-number type and has a well-formed wave front moving a substantial distance downslope. Due to the nonlinear rheological characteristics, a set of nonlinear partial differential equations is needed for this transient problem. Depth-integrated continuity and momentum equations are derived by applying von Kármán's momentum integral method. A matched-asymptotic perturbation method is implemented analytically to get asymptotic solutions for both the outer region away from, and the inner region near, the wave front. The outer solution gives accurate results for spreading characteristics, while the inner solution, which is shown to agree well with experimental results of Liu & Mei (1989) for a Bingham fluid, predicts fairly well the free-surface profile near the wave front. A composite solution uniformly valid over the whole spreading length is then achieved through a matching of the inner and outer solutions in an overlapping region. The range of accuracy of the solution and the size of the inner and overlapping regions are quantified by physical scaling analyses. Rheological and dynamic measurements are obtained through laboratory experiments. Theoretical predictions are compared with experimental results, showing reasonable agreement. The impact of shear thinning on the runout characteristics, free-surface profiles and final deposit of the mud flow is examined. A mud flow with shear thinning spreads beyond the runout distance estimated by a Bingham model, and has a long and thin deposit.
Primordial black holes with an accurate QCD equation of state

Making use of definitive new lattice computations of the Standard Model thermodynamics during the quantum chromodynamic (QCD) phase transition, we calculate the enhancement in the mass distribution of primordial black holes (PBHs) due to the softening of the equation of state. We find that the enhancement peaks at approximately 0.7M⊙, with the formation rate increasing by at least two orders of magnitude due to the softening of the equation of state at this time, with a range of approximately 0.3M⊙<M<1.4M⊙ at full width half-maximum. PBH formation is increased by a smaller amount for PBHs with masses spanning a large range, 10−3M⊙<MPBH<103M⊙, which includes the masses of the BHs that LIGO detected. The most significant source of uncertainty in the number of PBHs formed is now due to unknowns in the formation process, rather than from the phase transition. A near scale-invariant density power spectrum tuned to generate a population with mass and merger rate consistent with that detected by LIGO should also produce a much larger energy density of PBHs with solar mass. The existence of BHs below the Chandresekhar mass limit would be a smoking gun for a primordial origin and they could arguably constitute a significant fraction of the cold dark matter density. They also pose a challenge to inflationary model building which seek to produce the LIGO BHs without overproducing lighter PBHs.
US Consumer Behavior during a Pandemic: Precautionary Measures and Compensatory Consumption

This study’s purposes were to examine how selected demographic variables affect frequency of use of precautionary measures when shopping for clothing in retail stores; and how uncertainty avoidance/ambiguity intolerance and fashion innovativeness affect (a) precautionary measures used when shopping in retail stores during a pandemic and (b) compensatory consumption. Participants (122 US men; 209 US women aged 20 to 64) completed an online questionnaire containing demographic items plus measures of uncertainty avoidance/ambiguity intolerance, compensatory consumption, precautionary measures, and fashion innovativeness. Data analysis included reliability, factor analysis, M/ANOVA and SNK. Older adults, adults with higher education, and married adults more frequently used precautionary measures when shopping in retail stores. Men and women reported similar frequency of use. Fashion innovators and consumers with less tolerance for uncertainty/ambiguity more frequently used precautionary measures. Fashion innovators and consumers higher in uncertainty avoidance/ambiguity intolerance engaged in more compensatory consumption. Generalization of the results is limited because the data are context-specific: country (US), time period (during a pandemic), and sample. Guidelines for the general public regarding precautionary measures came from within organizations, between organizations and experts but the general public was not consulted (public open innovation) perhaps hindering compliance with precautionary measures.
Effects of Different Dietary β-Glucan Levels on Antioxidant Capacity and Immunity, Gut Microbiota and Transcriptome Responses of White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) under Low Salinity

β-Glucan could significantly improve the antioxidant capacity of aquatic animals. The effects of different dietary levels (0 (control), 0.05, 0.1, 0.2 or 0.4%) of β-glucan on the growth, survival, antioxidant capacity, immunity, intestinal microbiota and transcriptional responses of Litopenaeus vannamei under low salinity (≤3) were investigated. The dietary growth trial lasted 35 days (initial shrimp 0.26 ± 0.01 g). The results indicated that the growth performance of the 0.1% and 0.2% groups was significantly better than that of the control group. A second-order polynomial regression analysis of growth performance against dietary β-glucan indicated that the optimal dietary β-glucan level was 0.2% of dry matter. The digestive enzyme activity of the hepatopancreas was enhanced with increasing β-glucan levels. The antioxidant and nonspecific immunity capacities of the hepatopancreas were also enhanced in the 0.1% group. The α-diversity index analysis of the intestinal microbiota showed that the intestinal microbial richness of L. vannamei increased in the 0.1% group. The relative abundance of Proteobacteria decreased in the 0.1% group compared with the control group. The transcriptome results indicate that the prebiotic mechanisms of β-glucan include upregulating the expression of nonspecific immune genes and osmoregulation genes and activating KEGG pathways associated with carbohydrate metabolism under low-salinity stress. These results suggested that dietary supplementation with β-glucan markedly increased growth performance and alleviated the negative effects of low-salinity stress by contributing to the activity of biochemical enzymes and enriching carbohydrate metabolism in L. vannamei.
Complexities of Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer has a long disease history and a wide variety and uncertainty in individual patients’ clinical progress. In recent years, we have seen a revolutionary advance in both prostate cancer patient care and in the research field. The power of deep sequencing has provided cistromic and transcriptomic knowledge of prostate cancer that has not discovered before. Our understanding of prostate cancer biology, from bedside and molecular imaging techniques, has also been greatly advanced. It is important that our current theragnostic schemes, including our diagnostic modalities, therapeutic responses, and the drugs available to target non-AR signaling should be improved. This review article discusses the current progress in the understanding of prostate cancer biology and the recent advances in diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.
Two Key Parameters Controlling Particle Clumping Caused by Streaming Instability in the Dead-zone Dust Layer of a Protoplanetary Disk

The streaming instability and Kelvin–Helmholtz instability are considered the two major sources causing clumping of dust particles and turbulence in the dust layer of a protoplanetary disk as long as we consider the dead zone where the magnetorotational instability does not grow. Extensive numerical simulations have been carried out in order to elucidate the condition for the development of particle clumping caused by the streaming instability. In this paper, a set of two parameters suitable for classifying the numerical results is proposed. One is the Stokes number that has been employed in previous works and the other is the dust particle column density that is nondimensionalized using the gas density in the midplane, Keplerian angular velocity, and difference between the Keplerian and gaseous orbital velocities. The magnitude of dust clumping is a measure of the behavior of the dust layer. Using three-dimensional numerical simulations of dust particles and gas based on Athena code v. 4.2, it is confirmed that the magnitude of dust clumping for two disk models are similar if the corresponding sets of values of the two parameters are identical to each other, even if the values of the metallicity (i.e., the ratio of the columns density of the dust particles to that of the gas) are different.
Dark Galaxy Candidates at Redshift ∼3.5 Detected with MUSE

Recent theoretical models suggest that the early phase of galaxy formation could involve an epoch when galaxies are gas rich but inefficient at forming stars: a “dark galaxy” phase. Here, we report the results of our Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) survey for dark galaxies fluorescently illuminated by quasars at z > 3. Compared to previous studies which are based on deep narrowband (NB) imaging, our integral field survey provides a nearly uniform sensitivity coverage over a large volume in redshift space around the quasars as well as full spectral information at each location. Thanks to these unique features, we are able to build control samples at large redshift distances from the quasars using the same data taken under the same conditions. By comparing the rest-frame equivalent width (EW0) distributions of the Lyα sources detected in proximity to the quasars and in control samples, we detect a clear correlation between the locations of high-EW0 objects and the quasars. This correlation is not seen in other properties, such as Lyα luminosities or volume overdensities, suggesting the possible fluorescent nature of at least some of these objects. Among these, we find six sources without continuum counterparts and EW0 limits larger than 240 Å that are the best candidates for dark galaxies in our survey at z > 3.5. The volume densities and properties, including inferred gas masses and star formation efficiencies, of these dark galaxy candidates are similar to those of previously detected candidates at z ≈ 2.4 in NB surveys. Moreover, if the most distant of these are fluorescently illuminated by the quasar, our results also provide a lower limit of t = 60 Myr on the quasar lifetime.
A Reflection of Metabolic Syndrome through the Window of COVID-19

COVID-19 and metabolic syndrome, though seemingly different disorders, appear to share certain common pathogenic components, especially in the development of COVID-19-associated diabetes mellitus. The similarities include impairment in immunoendothelial, gastrointestinal, pancreatic, adipose and mitochondrial functions, with several critical micronutrients undergirding the intricate interactions among these dysfunctions. This discussion aims to highlight the parallels between COVID-19 and metabolic syndrome and to propose the possibility of SARS-CoV-2 being a prototype of an acquired etiological agent which can eventually lead to the development of classical metabolic syndrome. Based on the proposed model, the discussion will include the implication for early management of COVID-19 and metabolic syndrome.