In this paper we survey certain aspects of the classical Weil-Petersson metric and its generalizations. Being a natural L^2 metric on the parameter space of a family of complex manifolds or holomorphic vector bundles which admit some canonical metrics, the Weil-Petersson metric is well defined when the automorphism group of each fiber is discrete and the curvature of the Weil-Petersson metric can be computed via certain integrals over each fiber. We will discuss the case when these fibers have continuous automorphism groups. We also discuss the relation between the Weil-Petersson metric and energy of harmonic maps.

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IN 1970 Lawson [22] proved that two embedded closed diffeomorphic minimal surfaces in the unit three-dimensional sphere S3 in lRJ are ambiently isotopic in S3. Lawson proved this theorem by first proving that an embedded orientable closed minimal surface of genus y in a closed orientable Riemannian three-manifold Mwith positive Ricci curvature disconnects M-into two genus-8 handlebodics. A result of Frankel [7] was used to prove this. Lawson then applied a deep result of Waldhauscn [33] that states that decompositions of SJ into two genus-cl handlebodies arc unique up to ambient isotopy. More prcciscly. Waldhauscns uniqucncss thcorcm states that whenever a closed surface of genus y in S separates SJ into handlcbodics, then the embedding of the surface is as simple as possible; in other words, the surface is obtained from a two-sphere Sz c Sby adding handles in an unknotted manner.

We discuss the concepts of energy and mass in relativity. On a finitely extended spatial region, they lead to the notion of quasilocal energy/mass for the boundary 2-surface in spacetime. A new definition was found in [27] that satisfies the positivity, rigidity, and asymptotics properties. The definition makes use of the surface Hamiltonian term which arises from Hamilton-Jacobi analysis of the gravitation action. The reference surface Hamiltonian is associated with an isometric embedding of the 2-surface into the Minkowski space. We discuss this new definition of mass as well as the reference surface Hamiltonian. Most of the discussion is based on joint work with PoNing Chen and Shing-Tung Yau.

We discuss the uniruledness of various base loci of linear systems related to the canonical divisor. In particular we prove that the stable base locus of the canonical divisor of a smooth projective variety of general type is covered by rational curves.