Detailed observations of galaxies have led to some spectacular discoveries: vast quantities of non-baryonic dark matter, super massive black holes, mega parsec-scale jets of charged particles etc. SALT will provide new opportunities for detailed study of galaxies, potentially providing new discoveries and a more detailed understanding of the formation and evolution of galaxies.
I'll discuss four projects, at least three of which could lead to SALT projects in galaxy formation and evolution. The first uses radio-loud galaxies as tracers of large-scale structure, the second involves a cosmological-scale N-body simulation, the third uses Keck spectra of giant stars in the halo of M31 to probe angular momentum in the outer parts of galaxies and, in the fourth, we attempt to measure figure rotation of an elliptical galaxy.