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Whether in search of better trade opportunities or escaping wars, humans have always been on the move. For almost a century, mathematical models of human mobility have been instrumental in the quantification of commuting patterns and migratory fluxes. Equity is a common premise of most of these mathematical models, such that living conditions and job opportunities are assumed to be equivalent across cities. Growing inequalities in modern urban economy and pressing effects of climate change significantly strain this premise. Here, we propose a mobility model that is aware of inequalities across cities in terms of living conditions and job opportunities. Comparing results with real datasets, we show that the proposed model outperforms the state-of-the-art in predicting migration patterns in South Sudan and commuting fluxes in the United States. This model paves the way to critical research on resilience and sustainability of urban systems.

Velocity gradient tensor, $A_{ij}\equiv \partial u_i/\partial x_j$, in a turbulence flow field is modeled by separating the treatment of intermittent magnitude ($A = \sqrt{A_{ij}A_{ij}}$) from that of the more universal normalized velocity gradient tensor, $b_{ij} \equiv A_{ij}/A$. The boundedness and compactness of the $b_{ij}$-space along with its universal dynamics allows for the development of models that are reasonably insensitive to Reynolds number. The near-lognormality of the magnitude $A$ is then exploited to derive a model based on a modified Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process. These models are developed using data-driven strategies employing high-fidelity forced isotropic turbulence data sets. A posteriori model results agree well with direct numerical simulation (DNS) data over a wide range of velocity-gradient features.

The local streamline topology classification method of Chong et al. (1990) is adapted and extended to describe the geometry of infinitesimal vortex lines. Direct numerical simulation (DNS) data of forced isotropic turbulence reveals that joint probability density function (PDF) of the second ($q_\omega$) and third ($r_\omega$) normalized invariants of the vorticity gradient tensor asymptotes to a self-similar bell form beyond $Re_\lambda > 200$. The same PDF shape is also seen at the late stages of breakdown of Taylor-Green vortex suggesting the universality of the bell-shaped pdf form in turbulent flows. Additionally, vortex reconnection from different initial configurations is examined. The local topology and geometry of the reconnection bridge is shown to be identical in all cases with elliptic vortex lines on one side and hyperbolic filaments on the other. Overall, topological characterization of vorticity field provides a useful analytical basis for examining vorticity dynamics in turbulence and other fluid flows.

This study develops a comprehensive description of local streamline geometry and uses the resulting shape features to characterize velocity gradient ($A_{ij}$) dynamics. The local streamline geometric shape parameters and scale-factor (size) are extracted from $A_{ij}$ by extending the linearized critical point analysis. In the present analysis, $A_{ij}$ is factorized into its magnitude ($A \equiv \sqrt{A_{ij}A_{ij}}$) and normalized tensor $b_{ij} \equiv A_{ij}/A$. The geometric shape is shown to be determined exclusively by four $b_{ij}$ parameters -- second invariant, $q$; third invariant, $r$; intermediate strain-rate eigenvalue, $a_2$; and, angle between vorticity and intermediate strain-rate eigenvector, $\omega_2$. Velocity gradient magnitude $A$ plays a role only in determining the scale of the local streamline structure. Direct numerical simulation data of forced isotropic turbulence ($Re_\lambda \sim 200 - 600$) is used to establish streamline shape and scale distribution and, then to characterize velocity-gradient dynamics. Conditional mean trajectories (CMTs) in $q$-$r$ space reveal important non-local features of pressure and viscous dynamics which are not evident from the $A_{ij}$-invariants. Two distinct types of $q$-$r$ CMTs demarcated by a separatrix are identified. The inner trajectories are dominated by inertia-pressure interactions and the viscous effects play a significant role only in the outer trajectories. Dynamical system characterization of inertial, pressure and viscous effects in the $q$-$r$ phase space is developed. Additionally, it is shown that the residence time of $q$-$r$ CMTs through different topologies correlate well with the corresponding population fractions. These findings not only lead to improved understanding of non-local dynamics, but also provide an important foundation for developing Lagrangian velocity-gradient models.

Turbulence small-scale behavior has been commonly investigated in literature by decomposing the velocity-gradient tensor ($A_{ij}$) into the symmetric strain-rate ($S_{ij}$) and anti-symmetric rotation-rate ($W_{ij}$) tensors. To develop further insight, we revisit some of the key studies using a triple decomposition of the velocity-gradient tensor. The additive triple decomposition formally segregates the contributions of normal-strain-rate ($N_{ij}$), pure-shear ($H_{ij}$) and rigid-body-rotation-rate ($R_{ij}$). The decomposition not only highlights the key role of shear, but it also provides a more accurate account of the influence of normal-strain and pure rotation on important small-scale features. First, the local streamline topology and geometry are described in terms of the three constituent tensors in velocity-gradient invariants' space. Using DNS data sets of forced isotropic turbulence, the velocity-gradient and pressure field fluctuations are examined at different Reynolds numbers. At all Reynolds numbers, shear contributes the most and rigid-body-rotation the least toward the velocity-gradient magnitude ($A^2$). Especially, shear contribution is dominant in regions of intermittency (high values of $A^2$). It is also shown that the high-degree of enstrophy intermittency reported in literature is due to the shear contribution toward vorticity rather than that of rigid-body-rotation. The study also provides an explanation for the absence of intermittency of the pressure-Laplacian, despite the strong intermittency of enstrophy and dissipation fields. Overall, it is demonstrated that triple decomposition offers unique and deeper understanding of velocity-gradient behavior in turbulence.