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I will focus on the question of how relativistic fluid dynamics should be thought of as a Wilsonian effective field theory emerging from Schwinger Keldysh path integrals. Taking the basic principles of Schwinger-Keldysh formalism seriously, we will be led to a series of remarkable statements, which I'll phrase in terms of a programme relating relativistic fluid dynamics and topological sigma models. I will exemplify this explicitly by constructing a balanced topological field theory for linear dissipative dynamics. Time permitting, I will also attempt to draw some connections to black hole physics.

Mukund is a new faculty member in the Department of Physics, one of five who were hired last year in the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe initiative.