Recent observational and theoretical studies indicate that the stellar initial mass function (IMF) varies systematically with the environment (star formation rate - SFR, metallicity). Although the exact dependence of the IMF on those properties is likely to change with improving observational constraints, the reported trend in the shape of the IMF

The early evolution of Sun-like stars may be interspersed by energetic FU Orionis (FUor) type accretion outbursts. We analysed eight years of photometric and spectroscopic variability of V582 Aur, a bona fide FUor, in outburst. While the accretion rate derived from near-infrared measurements was constant, radical brightness changes occurred due to

Under Newtonian dynamics, the relative motion of the components of a binary star should follow a Keplerian scaling with separation. Once orientation effects and a distribution of ellipticities are accounted for, dynamical evolution can be modeled to include the effects of Galactic tides and stellar mass perturbers, over the lifetime of the solar

In a recent paper, Zioutas and Valachovic (2018) claim that dark matter is responsible for a significant fraction of the melanoma skin cancer. This conclusion is drawn from their observation of a significant correlation between skin melanoma incidence in the US and the inner planets positions (especially those of Mercury and Earth). Here, I present

Polarimetry provides key physical information on the properties of interacting binary systems, sometimes difficult to obtain by any other type of observation. Indeed, radiation processes such as scattering by free electrons in the hot plasma above accretion discs, cyclotron emission by mildly relativistic electrons in the accretion shocks on the

Two exotic elements have been introduced into the standard cosmological model: non-baryonic dark matter and dark energy. The success in converting a hypothesis into a solid theory depends strongly on whether we are able to solve the problems in explaining observations with these dark elements and whether the solutions of these problems are unique