Abstract:  This talk will describe the physics of fluid flow in microfluidic devices with deformable features, which exploit  solid/fluid coupling to control flow.  It will be shown that dynamic flow characteristics can be predicted using elementary models of solid and fluid behaviors, which greatly facilitates the design of networks with specific flow responses. Experimental results will be presented which illustrate flow switching in a branched network without the use of externally activated valves. The models will also be used to describe the swimming/propulsion of pulsatile swimmers such as salps and squid; the results illustrate that swimming economy (distance traveled per unit input work) and device effficiency (useful output work per unity input work) are optimal at different pumping frequencies.