Galaxies are not distributed randomly in the cosmic web but are instead arranged in filaments and sheets surrounding cosmic voids. Observationally, there is still no convincing evidence of a link ...between the properties of galaxies and their host structures. However, by the tidal torque theory (our understanding of the origin of galaxy angular momentum), such a link should exist. Using the presently largest spectroscopic galaxy redshift survey (Sloan Digital Sky Survey), we study the connection between the spin axes of galaxies and the orientation of their host filaments.
We use a 3D field of orientations to describe cosmic filaments. To restore the inclination angles of galaxies, we use a 3D photometric model of galaxies that gives these angles more accurately than traditional 2D models.
We found evidence that the spin axes of bright spiral galaxies have a weak tendency to be aligned parallel to filaments. For elliptical/S0 galaxies, we have a statistically significant result that their spin axes are aligned preferentially perpendicular to the host filaments; we show that this signal practically does not depend on the accuracy of the estimated inclination angles for elliptical/S0 galaxies.
The main feature of the spatial large-scale galaxy distribution is its intricate network of galaxy filaments. This network is spanned by the galaxy locations that can be interpreted as a ...three-dimensional point distribution. The global properties of the point process can be measured by different statistical methods, which, however, do not describe directly the structure elements. The morphology of the large-scale structure, on the other hand, is an important property of the galaxy distribution. Here, we apply an object point process with interactions (the Bisous model) to trace and extract the filamentary network in the presently largest galaxy redshift survey, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We search for filaments in the galaxy distribution that have a radius of about 0.5 h
−1 Mpc. We divide the detected network into single filaments and present a public catalogue of filaments. We study the filament length distribution and show that the longest filaments reach the length of 60 h
−1 Mpc. The filaments contain 35-40 per cent of the total galaxy luminosity and they cover roughly 5-8 per cent of the total volume, in good agreement with N-body simulations and previous observational results.
Scientific literature has repeatedly shown that populism feeds on crises, exploiting divisions which grow within societies. Populist narratives that flourished during the COVID-19 pandemic argued ...that the health crisis is yet another pretext for the "corrupt, globalist elites" to strip "the honest citizens" of their fundamental values, amongst which those of religious nature. In Romania, the nationalist conservative Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR) won 9 percent of the votes in the parliamentary elections held in December 2020. A newcomer in Romanian politics, AUR vowed to rest its political action on four main pillars, i.e. family, nationhood, faith and liberty - all of them strong religious symbols. Moreover, in its political programme, AUR claims to fight against the persecution that Christianity has allegedly been subjected to in recent decades. The current paper looks into how AUR used political advertising in social media to frame elites as anti-religious, thus illegitimate to represent Romanians or to influence national politics. It is usually that the party's scapegoating strategy targets high-profile national or supranational political figures (most often European Union officials or institutions), blamed for their loose, if not severed, connections with ordinary citizens. The study also shows that during a crisis, populist political advertising makes extensive use of its religious dimension.
Ever since its accession to the EU, Romania was considered an exceptional case among member states, given the unwavering high levels of popular support for the EU. However, the most recent elections ...held in Romania brought about the unexpected emergence of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), a far-right populist party that strongly opposes the European project, which it accuses of resembling "a harmful hegemony." The war in Ukraine represented another chance for AUR to bash the EU for its reaction in supporting Ukraine. The current article examines the degree to which anti-EU appeals of AUR influence Eurosceptic attitudes in Romania. In doing so, the present research pursues two distinct, but complementary goals. The first is to perform a content analysis of Eurosceptic narratives disseminated by AUR through its main social media channels since the start of the war. The second goal is then, employing four logistic regression models and using unique data collected through an online interactive survey, to test which of these narratives matter the most in shaping Eurosceptic attitudes. The article allows us to develop a nuanced understanding of what triggered a change of heart in a significant part of the Romanian electorate vis-a-vis the EU and the influence of Eurosceptic media discourse in this sense.
Women’s underrepresentation in political leadership has been a constant global challenge during recent decades. Although women’s leadership and its impact on organizational and country performance ...have been systematically explored, new research avenues are opened through the emergence of various crises. Crises constitute instances in which the intersection of leadership and communication is shaped and enforced, and how female leaders tackled and managed crises has been found to be different from that of their male counterparts in various instances. This study aims to examine the crisis communication approach taken by Jacinda Ardern during the 2020 global public health crisis generated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Female leaders were found to enforce a more effective and persuasive communication approach during the crisis, but Jacinda Ardern’s crisis management approach has been grounded in a feminist ethics of care since her response to the Christchurch mosque shootings in 2019. This article aims to emphasize the importance of communication in reframing leadership, by analyzing Jacinda Ardern’s Facebook communication from the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis. By examining how her messaging is embedded in values and attitudes specific to the ethics of care, we contribute to theorizing ways in which crisis communication is grounded in feminist ethics.
We assessed whether a near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)-based algorithm for the personalized optimization of cerebral oxygenation during cardiopulmonary bypass combined with a restrictive red cell ...transfusion threshold would reduce perioperative injury to the brain, heart, and kidneys.
In a randomized controlled trial, participants in three UK centres were randomized with concealed allocation to a NIRS (INVOS 5100; Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis, MN, USA)-based ‘patient-specific’ algorithm that included a restrictive red cell transfusion threshold (haematocrit 18%) or to a ‘generic’ non-NIRS-based algorithm (standard care). The NIRS algorithm aimed to maintain cerebral oxygenation at an absolute value of > 50% or at > 70% of baseline values. The primary outcome for the trial was cognitive function measured up to 3 months postsurgery.
The analysis population comprised eligible randomized patients who underwent valve or combined valve surgery and coronary artery bypass grafts using cardiopulmonary bypass between December 2009 and January 2014 (n=98 patient-specific algorithm; n=106 generic algorithm). There was no difference between the groups for the three core cognitive domains (attention, verbal memory, and motor coordination) or for the non-core domains psychomotor speed and visuo-spatial skills. The NIRS group had higher scores for verbal fluency; mean difference 3.73 (95% confidence interval 1.50, 5.96). Red cell transfusions, biomarkers of brain, kidney, and myocardial injury, adverse events, and health-care costs were similar between the groups.
These results do not support the use of NIRS-based algorithms for the personalized optimization of cerebral oxygenation in adult cardiac surgery.
http://www.controlled-trials.com, ISRCTN 23557269.
Co-creation in place branding is used as an umbrella term for the complex brand meaning emerging through stakeholders’ participation in place activities, their contribution, collaborations and ...interchange of ideas and resources. Co-creation is often an aspiration for places to create and promote their brands collectively. In this context, storytelling—an old technique used in corporate marketing to instigate brand stakeholders’ participation—serves as a method which facilitates place brand co-creation through shared place stories. With the rise of online interactions, the chances of place stakeholders’ participation in brand meaning creation increase, and place stories are effective in allowing diverse place meanings to emerge from various stakeholders. However, when storytelling emerges as a marketing tactic, mostly from a top-down campaign, the stories are not always accepted by all place stakeholders, and they create contrasting brand meanings. The paper aims to investigate the benefits and risks of participation in “Many Voices One Town” (2018), a top-down campaign from Luton, UK, which used storytelling to instigate place brand co-creation. The campaign was created by the Luton Council with an external advertising agency. The campaign attempted to tackle the town’s segregation issues and foster community cohesion through the promotion of seven selected Lutonians’ stories about their diverse and multicultural experiences of living in Luton. The study employs a qualitative methodology to analyse the MVOT case study. Interviews with the council and participants in the campaign and netnographic data from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram were used to gain an insight into residents’ participation in a top-down approach and examine the outcomes of co-creation. Residents’ participation in such a campaign shows numerous benefits but also risks for the place brand. The findings show that participation can sometimes intensify disputes about the town if people’s needs are not properly addressed. The study highlights the importance of open communication between all parties involved in the process, bringing into focus the need for careful coordination of top-down initiatives in line with stakeholders’ needs. It also demonstrates the ‘power of the people’ in the sense that stakeholder engagement with the shared stories led to negative outcomes that were not predicted by the Council.
The paper focuses on the integration in hybrid architectures of plasma produced nanomaterials. The routes for the fabrication of layered structures consisting of carbon nanowalls on carbon nanotubes ...(CNW/CNT), of carbon nanotubes on carbon nanowalls (CNT/CNW), and nanoparticles on carbon nanowalls (NP/CNW) are presented. The morphology and structure of the hybrid architectures were investigated by electron microscopy techniques. We show that higher substrate temperature promotes the formation of high mass hydrogenated carbon clusters which favors the dominance of CNW growth over that of CNT. On this basis, a procedure of obtaining CNT/CNW architectures by switching the growth regime via substrate temperature is described. The specific limitations or advantages concerning the control or the properties of the obtained architectures are discussed.
We propose to apply a marked point process to automatically delineate filaments of the large-scale structure in redshift catalogues. We illustrate the feasibility of the idea on an example of ...simulated catalogues, describe the procedure, and characterize the results. We find the distribution of the length of the filaments, and suggest how to use this approach to obtain other statistical characteristics of filamentary networks.
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