We will explain how branched coverings can be used to show that certain homology classes in symplectic 4-manifolds cannnot be represented by embedded, possibly disconnected, symplectic surfaces.
Links:
[1] http://www.mpim-bonn.mpg.de/taxonomy/term/39
[2] http://www.mpim-bonn.mpg.de/node/3444
[3] http://www.mpim-bonn.mpg.de/node/3651