By Roberto Camassa, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The interplay between structures in relative motion with respect to an ambient fluid and density stratifications, including such extreme cases as free surfaces, are a constant source of interesting physical an mathematical phenomena. This talk will outline examples in this area of research involving a combination of analytical, numerical and experimental techniques, stemming from interdisciplinary projects centered around the facilities of the UNC Joint Fluids Lab in collaboration with science departments at UNC.