Modern materials abound in systems to which the quasiparticle picture does not apply, and developing their theoretical description remains an important challenge in condensed matter physics. I will describe recent progress in understanding the dynamics of two systems without quasiparticles: (i) ultracold atoms in optical lattices, and (ii) the nematic quantum critical point of metals with applications to the `strange metal’ found in the high temperature superconductors. A combination of field-theoretic, holographic, and numerical methods will be used.
