Process Substitution <(LIST) >(LIST)

Process substitution is supported on systems that support named pipes (FIFOs) or the /dev/fd method of naming open files. It takes the form of

<(list)
or
>(list)

The process list is run with its input or output connected to a FIFO or some file in /dev/fd. The name of this file is passed as an argument to the current command as the result of the expansion. If the >(list) form is used, writing to the file will provide input for list. If the <(list) form is used, the file passed as an argument should be read to obtain the output of list. Note that no space may appear between the < or > and the left parenthesis, otherwise the construct would be interpreted as a redirection.

For example:
$ cat < <(ls)
$ (echo "YES")> >(read str; echo "1:${str}:first";)> >(read sstr; echo "2:$sstr:two")> >(read ssstr; echo "3:$ssstr:three")

See also:

Bash Reference Manual
Bash Hackers Wiki

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