Mechanics of Materials, 2nd Edition

I was immediately impressed with the Craig book. The text has clear discussions and explanations and a masterful emphasis on the three fundamentals of structural mechanics: equilibrium, material behavior and geometry of deformation. For my money it is head and shoulders above the Gere and Timoshenko and the Beer and Johnston texts. Not that they are bad books; but the Craig book is a much better book. The Beer and Johnston text is largely a cookbook approach. The emphasis is on learning specific methods to solve specific types of problems. The Gere and Timoshenko text is a virtual strength of materials encyclopedia. No book in this field has a more thorough discussion of beams. But what students (and practicing engineers) need most is where the Craig text has no peer: 1)clear, simple explanations with an emphasis on equilibrium, material behavior, and geometry of deformation and 2)a rational and logical problem solving procedure that shows students how practicing engineers approach real-world problems. A student who learns the material in this book will have solid basis for becoming a competent engineer and for more advanced work in structural mechanics.

Some of the strengths of this text include:

1. A graphic-based menu-driven computer program that includes for modules for beams, section properties, solution of simultaneous linear algebraic equations, plotting shear and moment diagrams, and plotting of Mohr's circles for stress and strain. The output from one module can be imported to the other modules. This is very user-friendly software. It can be used to solve homework problems and for carrying out iterative design solutions.

2. Emphasis on a rational and logical four-step problem-solving procedure including flow charts. The procedure includes planning the solution as well as reviewing the solution for reasonableness. Making these two steps an ingrained habit is essential to being a competent and proficient structural engineer.

3. Repeated emphasis on the three fundamental concepts of structural mechanics: equilibrium, deformation behavior of materials, and geometry of deformation. Part of becoming a competent engineer is making these three concepts second nature and learning to apply them in a skillful manner.

4. The use of force-method and displacement-method concepts; understanding these concepts is essential in more advanced work in structural mechanics.

5. All of the traditional mechanics of materials subjects are covered including what I consider the best, most through discussion of strain found in any of the popular texts on this subject. The discussion of strain includes a thorough explanation of the concept of deformation diagrams and strain-displacement analysis.

6. An introductory chapter that reviews the concept of static equilibrium and relates it to the equilibrium of deformable bodies.

7. A superior discussion of stress concentrations and failure theories.

8. Exceptionally clear discussions of stress and strain in beams.

9. The illustrations in the Craig text are clearly superior to the illustrations in the competitive texts.

10. Appendix A includes a valuable discussion of the use of power series approximation formulas. The approximations are useful in strain-displacement analysis because they allow the reduction of complex, nonlinear strain-displacement equations to linear, small-displacement forms.

11. The Craig book comes across to me as a book written by someone who passionately cares about his subject and really wants his students to understand the subject. Not just to learn enough problem solutions to pass the course. I get the impression that this book was a labor of love by the author. If an engineering student can pick up on that he has to believe that this is an important subject to master, not just to pass. The writing in the competitive texts comes across as somewhat stale. Maybe they have been through so many editions they just are not fresh and have become another job for the authors.