Journal of Fluid Mechanics

Table of Contents - Volume 698 - 2012  

Focus on Fluids

Survival hydrodynamics

M. S. Triantafylloua1 c1

a1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA

Abstract

Fish escaping from predators exhibit amazing acceleration. The hydrodynamic mechanisms employed to power this acceleration are highlighted in the paper by Gazzola, van Rees & Koumoutsakos (J. Fluid Mech., this issue, vol. 698, 2012, pp. 5–17), showing that the fish bends its entire body and caudal fin, in order to entrap and then accelerate as large a mass of water as possible. It is also shown that hydrodynamic optimization drives the fast-start kinematics.

(Received February 07 2012)

(Reviewed February 07 2012)

(Accepted February 07 2012)

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    Key Words:

    • swimming/flying;
    • vortex dynamics

    Correspondence:

    c1 Email address for correspondence: mistetri@mit.edu

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