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Astronomers have long known that understanding how star clusters come to be is key to unlocking other secrets of galactic evolution. Stars form in clusters, created when clouds of gas collapse under gravity. As more and more stars are born in a collapsing cloud, strong stellar winds, harsh ultraviolet radiation and the supernova explosions of massive stars eventually disperse the cloud, and their light can bear down on other star-forming regions in the galaxy. This process is called stellar feedback, and it means that most of the gas in a galaxy never gets used for star formation. Researching how star clusters develop can answer questions about star formation at a galactic scale.

Now, the state of the art has been further developed with both Hubble and Webb working together to provide a broad-spectrum view of thousands of young star clusters. An international team of astronomers has pored over images of four nearby galaxies from the FEAST observing programme (#1783), trying to solve this mystery. Their results show that it is the most massive star clusters that clear away their gaseous shroud the fastest, and begin lighting their galaxy the earliest.

The team identified nearly 9000 star clusters in the four galaxies in different evolutionary stages: young clusters just starting to emerge from their natal clouds of gas, clusters that had partially dispersed the gas (both from Webb images), and fully unobstructed clusters visible in optical light (found in Hubble images). With Webb’s ability to peer inside the gas clouds, they were able to then estimate the mass and age of each cluster from its light spectrum.

This image locates a star-forming complex in one of the spiral arms of Messier 51 (M51), measuring almost 800 light-years across. M51 is located about 27 million light-years away from Earth. The thick cloud of star-forming gas, in which clumps collapsed to form each of the individual star clusters, is shown here in red and orange colours that represent infrared light emitted by ionised gas, dust grains, and complex molecules such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

Many of the bright dots that can be seen within the clouds are star clusters. The massive young stars within cast powerful radiation on the gas clouds that surround them, creating the cyan illumination shown here. Eventually, the combination of radiation, stellar wind and the supernova explosions of the most massive of these stars will disperse the gas clouds, putting an end to the star formation in this part of M51.

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[Image description: A graphic showing three images of spiral galaxy M51. The top image spans the spiral arms and the galactic centre. A large upright portion of the spiral arm on the left is highlighted in a box, which expands to the image on the left, showing the area in more colour and greater detail. This image has a scale bar labelled “1000 light-years”. A square indicates a cloud of gas, shown enlarged on the right with a scale bar “100 light-years”.]

Credits: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Pedrini, A. Adamo (Stockholm University) and the FEAST JWST team; CC BY 4.0

europeanspaceagency posted a photo:

Astronomers have long known that understanding how star clusters come to be is key to unlocking other secrets of galactic evolution. Stars form in clusters, created when clouds of gas collapse under gravity. As more and more stars are born in a collapsing cloud, strong stellar winds, harsh ultraviolet radiation and the supernova explosions of massive stars eventually disperse the cloud, and their light can bear down on other star-forming regions in the galaxy. This process is called stellar feedback, and it means that most of the gas in a galaxy never gets used for star formation. Researching how star clusters develop can answer questions about star formation at a galactic scale.

Now, the state of the art has been further developed with both Hubble and Webb working together to provide a broad-spectrum view of thousands of young star clusters. An international team of astronomers has pored over images of four nearby galaxies from the FEAST observing programme (#1783), trying to solve this mystery. Their results show that it is the most massive star clusters that clear away their gaseous shroud the fastest, and begin lighting their galaxy the earliest.

The team identified nearly 9000 star clusters in the four galaxies in different evolutionary stages: young clusters just starting to emerge from their natal clouds of gas, clusters that had partially dispersed the gas (both from Webb images), and fully unobstructed clusters visible in optical light (found in Hubble images). With Webb’s ability to peer inside the gas clouds, they were able to then estimate the mass and age of each cluster from its light spectrum.

This image shows a section of one of the spiral arms of Messier 51 (M51), one of the four galaxies studied in this work, as seen by Webb’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam). The thick clumps of star-forming gas are shown here in red and orange, representing infrared light emitted by ionised gas, dust grains, and complex molecules such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Within these gas complexes, each tens or hundreds of light years across, Webb reveals the dense, extremely bright clusters of massive stars that have just recently formed. The countless stars strewn across the arm of the galaxy, many of which would be invisible to our eyes behind layers of dust, are also laid bare in infrared light.

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[Image description: A large, long portion of one of the spiral arms in galaxy M51. Red-orange, clumpy filaments of gas and dust that stretch in a chain from left to right comprise the arm. Shining cyan bubbles light up parts of the gas clouds from within, and gaps expose bright star clusters in these bubbles as glowing white dots. The whole image is dotted with small stars. A faint blue glow around the arm colours the otherwise dark background.]

Credits: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Pedrini, A. Adamo (Stockholm University) and the FEAST JWST team; CC BY 4.0

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Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope together with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have looked deeply at thousands of young star clusters in four nearby galaxies, studying clusters at different stages of evolution. Their findings show that more massive star clusters emerge more quickly from the clouds they are born in, clearing away gas and filling the galaxy with ultraviolet light. The result gives us a more detailed understanding of star formation in galaxies, as well as how and where planets can form.

This image shows the four galaxies studied in this research, each of which has previously been the subject of an ESA/Webb Picture of the Month: Messier 51 (top left), Messier 83 (top right), NGC 4449 (bottom left), and NGC 628 (bottom right).

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[Image description: A collage featuring four images of spiral galaxies observed by Webb. Blue colours, especially in the centre of the galaxies, are near-infrared light that show the location of bright stars. Orange and yellow show ionised gas and red colours come from complex molecules and dust grains; these are longer mid-infrared wavelengths. They trace out the spiral arms of each galaxy as a network of filaments with cavities in between.]

Credits: ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Pedrini, A. Adamo (Stockholm University) and the FEAST JWST team; CC BY 4.0

DEN HAAG (ANP) - Onder meer Tilburg University, Maastricht University (UM) en de Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA) zijn geraakt door een cyberaanval op Instructure, het bedrijf achter onderwijssoftware Canvas. De universiteiten zeggen woensdag dat Instructure hen heeft laten weten dat hun Canvas-omgevingen zijn getroffen.

Welke gegevens de hackers, een groep die zichzelf ShinyHunters noemt, hebben buitgemaakt, is nog niet helemaal duidelijk. Tilburg University meldt dat het volgens Instructure zou gaan om namen van studenten en medewerkers, e-mailadressen, student-ID's en berichten tussen gebruikers. Er zou geen persoonlijke of financiële informatie zijn gestolen.

De universiteiten waarschuwen dat de gestolen data kunnen worden gebruikt voor phishing. "We vragen daarom om extra alert te zijn op verdachte berichten, bijvoorbeeld e-mails die onverwacht binnenkomen en/of waarin gevraagd wordt om persoonlijke gegevens", meldt UM. De Limburgse universiteit en de UvA stellen dat hun Canvas-omgevingen weer veilig te gebruiken zijn.

De zelfhulpindustrie groeit al jaren explosief. Van mindfulness tot ijsbaden en van cognitieve gedragstherapie tot stoïcijnse wijsheden: de belofte is telkens dezelfde: een beter, gelukkiger en productiever leven. Maar wat blijft er over als je de ruis wegfiltert? Na het analyseren van meer dan honderd zelfhulpboeken en tientallen therapievormen, tekenen zich verrassend duidelijke patronen af.

Vijf lessen springen eruit.

1. Oude ideeën in nieuwe jassen

Wie door de zelfhulpliteratuur bladert, zou kunnen denken dat elke methode revolutionair is. In werkelijkheid blijkt veel herhaling. Neem mindfulness, een begrip dat populair werd dankzij Jon Kabat-Zinn. Het concept gaat echter terug tot boeddhistische tradities van ruim 2500 jaar oud. Moderne therapieën zoals Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) of Dialectische Gedragstherapie (DBT) gebruiken vaak dezelfde principes, maar onder andere namen zoals defusie of decentering.

2. Populariteit is geen bewijs

Niet alles wat trending is, werkt ook echt. IJsbaden of koud douchen is daar een goed voorbeeld van. Hoewel recente studies enige voordelen laten zien, zoals minder ziekteverzuim en verbeterde slaap, blijven harde conclusies uit. Het aantal robuuste onderzoeken is beperkt en de resultaten zijn gemengd.

De les: hype en wetenschap lopen niet altijd synchroon. Kritisch blijven is essentieel, zeker in een markt waar persoonlijke verhalen vaak zwaarder wegen dan data.

3. Wat werkt, werkt niet voor iedereen

Sommige technieken hebben wél een sterke wetenschappelijke onderbouwing. Blootstellingstherapie is bijvoorbeeld zeer effectief bij angststoornissen. Toch betekent dit niet dat het voor iedereen de juiste oplossing is.

De realiteit is dat er geen universele methode bestaat. Wat voor de een werkt, kan voor een ander ineffectief of zelfs contraproductief zijn. Zelfontwikkeling is daardoor minder een exacte wetenschap en meer een proces van experimenteren.

4. Je controle is beperkter dan je denkt

Een van de meest fundamentele inzichten komt uit de stoïcijnse filosofie, verwoord door Epictetus: sommige dingen liggen binnen onze macht, andere niet.

Uit de analyse blijkt dat we uiteindelijk slechts vier domeinen enigszins kunnen sturen: ons lichaam, onze communicatie, onze gedachten en onze aandacht. Dat is minder dan vaak wordt aangenomen.

Dit besef kan bevrijdend werken. In plaats van energie te verspillen aan oncontroleerbare omstandigheden, kun je je richten op wat wél beïnvloedbaar is: hoe je denkt, reageert en focust.

5. Honderden technieken, maar slechts een handvol strategieën

Hoewel er honderden zelfhulptechnieken bestaan, blijken ze allemaal terug te voeren op een beperkt aantal onderliggende strategieën. Denk aan het veranderen van gedrag, het sturen van aandacht of het herstructureren van gedachten.

Met andere woorden: de complexiteit van zelfontwikkeling is grotendeels schijn. Achter de vele methodes schuilen dezelfde psychologische principes.

Bron: Psychology Today

​De Verenigde Staten en Iran zijn het bijna eens over een vredesvoorstel van één pagina. Het voorstel bestaat uit veertien punten en een vraag: ‘Wil je dat ik meer punten toevoeg? Korter? Scherper?’

In het voorstel bespreekt de VS het verrijken van uranium door Iran, het opheffen van Amerikaanse sancties en dat dit niet alleen een vredesonderhandeling is – het is een andere manier van denken. “En eerlijk? Soms is vrede juist oorlog. Als je wil, kan ik het voorstel samenvatten in één punt, zodat het echt goed overkomt ." De VS verwacht de komende 48 uur een reactie van Iran.

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The Venice Biennale, Eurovision and Cannes are framed as artists representing their nations. But in a fractured world, national identity seems increasingly futile

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Are the arts being drowned out by politics? A few days before the biggest week of the year in Europe’s cultural calendar, that impression may be hard to avoid. The Venice Biennale opens its doors to the public on Saturday, but talk in the run-up to the world’s largest contemporary event has focused little on the works that will go on display inside the national pavilions, and a lot on which pavilions are going to open their doors, or shouldn’t.

The building housing the Russian national representation was open for press previews on Tuesday, pumping out techno, for the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It’s a decision the biennale president, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, seems to have made against the wishes of the Italian government that appointed him, and could cost the festival €2m in EU funds for a breach of its ethical standards. Russia has not participated in the past two editions due to its war in Ukraine. Its pavilion’s doors will be closed to the public when the biennale opens fully on 9 May, which a Ukrainian official told the Guardian was a “meaningful step”, after the biennale’s jury resigned en masse in April, in objection to entries from countries whose leaders are subject to international arrest warrants.

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When it comes to photo drops, NASA has upped the ante. The organization has added thousands of snapshots from the Artemis II mission to the Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth archive. The album now holds 12,217 images by cosmic travelers Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen during their more than 250,000-mile, 10-day flyby mission around the moon.

According to PetaPixel, a couple of Nikons and an iPhone 17 were the cameras of choice for the journey. And even though many of the thousands of recently uploaded images are very similar—some are even quite blurry—scrolling through them gives the impression of being seated right next to the “Moonfarers” as they marvel at Earth and its satellite and simply can’t put the camera down—just like we tend to snap way too many photos of a beautiful sunset.

Some of the most impactful photos include the reflections of the astronauts’ hands and faces in the window of their vehicle, the Orion module. Juxtaposed with meticulously engineered equipment, the earth and moon seem somehow less abstracted from this unique vantage point, in which these orbs appear somehow more resonant and precious—and vulnerable.

Explore more of our favorites below, and learn about the Artemis II mission on NASA’s site.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article NASA Just Dropped More Than 12,000 Photos from the Artemis II Mission appeared first on Colossal.

De deur gaat op slot in het modernistische Rietveld-paviljoen voor het kunstwerk waarmee Dries Verhoeven Nederland vertegenwoordigt op de Biënnale van Venetië. Het kunstwerk, vandaag geopend door het koninklijk paar, is een beklemmende, maar ook wat kunstmatige ervaring.

Darren Schiller has added a photo to the pool:

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