Abstract
Constraining almost 14 billion years of galaxy evolution from observations of galaxies as they are seen today is fraught with peril. Here we propose a program to extend galaxy evolution studies to infrared wavelengths and higher redshifts (larger lookback times) to consistently investigate galaxies and their environments over a significant time baseline. A major step will be the implementation of the galaxy photometry tool GALPHAT to give a solid statistical basis for analyzing galaxy structural parameters. We have already examined in great detail the properties of early-type galaxies (ETGs) in the nearby Universe. By studying global properties of local ETGs, such as color gradients, the fundamental plane, stellar populations, and their initial mass function (IMF), we have been able to constrain models of galaxy formation and evolution. We have characterized these galaxies' environments using a physically meaningful and consistent measure of the host group/cluster velocity distributions, so that we can begin to separate the effects of environment (nurture) and individual galaxy properties (nature). We will build upon our expertise and existing toolkit to examine galaxies at an earlier epoch, providing rigorous, consistent, and minimally biased comparison samples for evaluating physical scenarios of galaxy formation and assembly. One fundamental aspect of this proposal is the major investment in the Bayesian Inference Engine package. This will create the necessary synergy between our team and the two groups of computer scientists participating in this effort. Projects dealing with massive amounts of data in the near future will require a strong commitment from the two groups. (AU)
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