Preparation methods for giant unilamellar vesicles. Preparation and properties of giant plasma membrane vesicles and giant unilamellar vesicles from natural membranes. Protein reconstitution in giant vesicles. GUVs with cytoskeleton. Understanding giant vesicles - a theoretical perspective. Simulating membranes, vesicles, and cells. Theory of vesicle dynamics in flow and electric fields. Particle-membrane interactions. Theory of polymer-membrane interactions. Application of optical microscopy techniques on giant unilamellar vesicles. Mechanics assays of synthetic lipid membranes based on micropipette aspiration. Atomic force microscopy of giant unilamellar vesicles. Manipulation and biophysical characterization of GUVs with an optical stretcher. Vesicle fluctuation analysis. Using electric fields to assess membrane material properties in GUVs. Creating membrane nanotubes from GUVs. Measuring GUV adhesion. Phase diagrams and tie lines in GUVs. Vesicle dynamics in flow: an experimental approach. Membrane permeability measurements. Lipid and protein mobility in GUVs. Shining light on membranes. Protein-membrane interactions. Effects of antimicrobial peptides and detergents on guvs. Lipid-polymer interactions: effect on GUVs shapes and behavior. Polymersomes. Giant hybrid polymer/lipid vesicles. Giant unilamellar vesicles: from protocell models to the construction of minimal cells. Encapsulation of aqueous two-phase systems and gels within giant lipid vesicles. Droplet-supported giant lipid vesicles as compartments for synthetic biology. List of lipids and physical constants of lipid bilayers. List of membrane dyes and fluorescent groups conjugated to lipids. List of detergents. List of water-soluble dyes or their fluorescent groups and their structures