Extreme Elastohydrodynamics
The borderlands between elasticity and hydrodynamics lead naturally to a number of moving boundary problems in elastohydrodynamics. I will discuss some phenomena in this rich area involving extreme geometries using a combination of experimental, analytical and numerical approaches: the flapping of a slender flag in a breeze and its generalizations, the generation and propagation of elastohydrodynamic solitary waves, the dynamics of gait and speed selection in fish swimming far from and close to a wall, and the mechanics and control of song production in birds.
L.Mahadevan, Harvard University