January 20
Kristian Finlator
(UC Santa Barbara)
Searching for Simplicity in the High-Redshift
Universe
The study of
galaxy evolution across cosmic time is maturing rapidly owing to the
breathtaking pace of observational advances. The ongoing study of galaxies both as
cosmological probes and as star formation laboratories motivate efforts to
incorporate the diverse array of available observational clues into a minimal
but comprehensive theoretical model.
In this talk, I will describe recent insights from statistical
comparisons between cosmological hydrodynamic simulations and
observations. I will show that the
observed abundance, colors, and metallicities of
single- and multi-epoch galaxy samples are consistent with models in which the
steady accretion of cold gas inflows drives the smooth star formation histories
of bright galaxies. I will discuss theoretical
insight into evidence for extreme high-redshift environments such as submillimeter galaxies and metal-free stellar populations. Finally, I will discuss early results on
the coupling between galaxies and the intergalactic medium from radiation
hydrodynamic simulations of the cosmic dark ages. Numerical models clearly support the idea
that star formation in faint but metal-enriched galaxies drove reionization, but many questions regarding the dominant
feedback processes remain unclear. These
questions inform the ways in which observers will use next-generation
facilities such as ALMA and JWST to decipher the very first stages of galaxy
formation.