Extreme Events in Nature, Rogue Waves in Optics

Professor John Dudley
Leader of the Optics Component, CNRS - Université de Franche-Comte, France

The study of extreme events in nature encompasses many and diverse phenomena that are unexpected and severe.  These include natural phenomena such as floods and earthquakes, medical emergencies such as epileptic seizures, and societal events such as financial crises.  The science of describing and analyzing these events is now a rapidly-developing field of research, and the aim of this talk will be to provide a general introduction to recent advances that aim to develop a unified picture of this field.  Particular examples of extreme freak or rogue wave events in oceanography and the generation of giant high intensity laser pulses will be discussed in more detail because they illustrate how multidisciplinary approaches to research in this field are proving especially fruitful.  The presentation will be suitable for a general audience. 

NB: Place: The auditorium of the iNANO House (1593-012), Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C