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3. ARE STARBURSTS IMPORTANT?

Starbursts are certainly fascinating, but how important are they? An interesting way to frame the question is to ask: if we didn't know that major starbursts existed from direct observations, would we have difficulties explaining what we see in the universe? That is, are starbursts a necessary inference from other phenomena? The answer is an emphatic "yes," and here is a tentative and incomplete list of the essential fingerprints of starbursts based on issues raised in this conference:

The remaining items on the list involve superwinds generated by starbursts:

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