We discuss the effects of initial collision geometry and centrality bin definition on correlation and fluctuation observables in nucleus-nucleus collisions. We focus on the forward-backward correlation coefficient recently measured by the STAR Collab
oration in Au+Au collisions at RHIC. Our study is carried out within two models: the Glauber Monte Carlo code with a `toy wounded nucleon model and the hadron-string dynamics (HSD) transport approach. We show that strong correlations can arise due to averaging over events in one centrality bin. We, furthermore, argue that a study of the dependence of correlations on the centrality bin definition as well as the bin size may distinguish between these `trivial correlations and correlations arising from `new physics.
Highly excited nuclear matter created in ultrarelativistic heavy-ion collisions possibly reaches the phase of quark deconfinement. It quickly cools down and hadronises. We explain that the process of hadronisation may likely be connected with disinte
gration into fragments. Observable signals of such a scenario are proposed.
