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Theory of Elasticity by Timoshenko and Goodier

Submitted by Megan McCain on

Although I know it is not very original, I am recommending Timoshenko's Theory of Elasticity textbook. I find this book useful because it solves many classical solid mechanics problems without assuming the reader has a strong background in the subject (like me). When I am having difficulty with a homework problem, I turn to the index and it usually directs me to a section of the book directly related to the problem, or sometimes even the solution itself. Many parts of the book complement the course, such as the chapters "Plane Stress and Plane Strain" and "Analysis of Stress and Strain in 3 Dimensions."

The book starts with basic definitions and derivations of stress and strain, then applies these equations to solve problems in different coordinate systems. It also includes chapters on more specific topics, like torsion and thermal stress.

Textbook Recommendation

Submitted by Michael T. Petralia on

It's a bit hard to recommend a text, when I have yet to find one that I really love. Currently I am working from Advanced Strength and Applied Elasticity by A.C. Ugural & S.K. Fenster. It contains all of the relevant information, though I find the explanations of the concepts a bit slim. So far is has covered all of topics we covered in class. The first four chapters seem the most relevent. These are titled Analysis of Stress; Strain and Stress-Strain Relations; Two-Dimensional Problems in Elasticity; and Failure Criteria. The rest of the text deals with more specific topics (torsion, bending, plastic behavior, etc.).

Here is a link to the Amazon page, where the book gets mediocore reviews.

Persistent step-flow growth of strained films on vicinal substrates

Submitted by Wei Hong on

We propose a model of persistent step flow, emphasizing dominant kinetic processes and strain effects. Within this model, we construct a morphological phase diagram, delineating a regime of step flow from regimes of step bunching and island formation. In particular, we predict the existence of concurrent step bunching and island formation, a new growth mode that competes with step flow for phase space, and show that the deposition flux and temperature must be chosen within a window in order to achieve persistent step flow. The model rationalizes the diverse growth modes observed in pulsed laser deposition of SrRuO3 on SrTiO3

 Physical Review Letters 95, 095501 (2005)

new moderator

Submitted by Eloy Villanueva on

hi everyone,

I'm a student at Harvard University working with Professur Zhigang Suo to develop iMechanica. I hope to add features to this website that will keep your research and ideas protected while encouraging the flow of communication and great ideas among the brightest minds in the sciences. If you have any ideas, comments, or suggestions please let me know. We hope you enjoy iMechanica.

The Future of Ink

Submitted by Michael H. Suo on

Since I know (or was told 20 minutes ago) that some of you are interested in large area electronics and displays, I thought I would throw something out for you.

Lately, e-book readers have been a new trend in the tech industry. The potential for it is incredible: hundreds of books in the palm of your hand, digitized content distribution, and infinite number of bookmarks, searchable text, hyperlinks between books; the list goes on. However, all these benefits come at a price; namely battery life and readability.

But what kind of display should they use? The average LCD screen has about 72 dpi (dots per inch), meaning that there are 72 pixels in every inch of screen. While that's passable for regular computer usage, anyone who's tried heavy reading will tell you that it's just not clear enough. By comparison, the average newspaper has over 300 dpi, and the average book has about 400 dpi.

Carbon Nanotube Lecture on Nov 1st at MIT

Submitted by Namiko Yamamoto on

Dr. John Hart from MIT is giving a carbon nanotube (CNT) tutorial at the International Symposoum on Nanomanufacturing (ISNM) at MIT on November 1st, Wednesday. Please see the following if you are interested.

 

Carbon Nanotubes: Fundamentals, synthesis, and applications

Dr. John Hart, MIT
November 1st
9.00 am - 12.30pm (with 1 break)

http://www.isnm2006.org/Professional_courses.html

Raymond D. Mindlin's 100th Birthday: a Reminiscence by Bruno A. Boley

Submitted by Xi Chen on

The past September marks the 100th birthday of Professor Raymond D. Mindlin. In June 2006, we organized a Mindlin Centennial Symposium in Boulder, CO, which was the largest symposium in USNCTAM'06 with more than 50 speakers.

The Symposium was very successful, and we are in particular grateful to Professor Bruno A. Boley (Mindlin's former colleague at Columbia University), who presented the opening reminiscence speech about Professor Mindlin, and to Professor Yih-Hsing Pao (Mindlin's doctoral student in 1950's), who, despite of his adverse health condition, delivered the first technical presentation entitled R. D. Mindlin and Applied Mechanics.

SNORING: SOURCE IDENTIFICATION AND SIMULATION

Submitted by zishun liu on

Snoring is defined as sounds made by vibrations in the soft palate and their adjacent tissues during sleep. Heavy snoring can result in sleep-related upper airway narrowing, which leads to respiratory flow limitation and increased respiratory effort. If untreated, heavy snoring may be complicated by excessive daytime sleepiness. Hence, snoring has received a great deal of clinical attention in recent years.

Looking for a job in academia?

Submitted by Teng Li on

Finding an academic job is like finding a perfect match. Universities advertise openings, you choose a list of places to apply. Nowadays an opening can easily attract hundreds of applicants, of which several are invited for on-campus interview. When the whole process is over, there might be a perfect match between you and a department (Congratulations!), while sometimes there is not.