Title: Fluid-structure interactions in biological and geophysical flows

Speaker: Leif Ristroph, Applied Math Lab, Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University

Fluid dynamics textbooks are filled with examples of rigid, unyielding bodies in flows. Nonetheless, the natural world insists on giving us fascinating problems in which solid boundaries are dynamic and deformable or even disappear under the action of a fluid flow. Here, I’ll talk about three examples drawn from biological and geophysical scenarios, and I’ll show how we use experiments and mathematical models to strip each problem to its core elements. We’ll look at “schooling” or interactions between shape-changing bodies, the stability of flapping-wing flight, and the sculptures formed by erosion. In each case, we’ll stumble upon a surprise that comes about because of the two-way conversation between a flowing fluid and dynamic boundary.

When: Wednesday, October 17, 2012, 3:45 pm

Where: Richardson Hall 222