Book Description

This fully revised and updated edition of "Control Theory" addresses recent developments in the field. It discusses how the rise of H∞ and similar approaches has allowed a combination of practicality, rigor and user interaction to be brought to bear on complex control problems and has helped bridge the gap between control theory and practice. The book also examines the effects of the rise of artificial intelligence techniques and the increasing availability of comprehensive software packages. The book concentrates on the structure, principles and context of control theory, and will be of interests to students and professionals alike. ... Read more

Book Description

Analysis and Design of Energy Systems is a readable, self-contained (data, properties), computer based and applications oriented book. It includes a large number of realistic examples and problems, with an emphasis on problem formulation and solution, not programming, and on component details.Topics are developed from the basics; the contents are useful and practical; first-order details are provided; and problem solution tactics and strategies are discussed. This edition includes MathCad as the arithmetic engine, and Math Cad worksheets are included for every procedure in the book.Useful for practicing engineers as a reference book, particularly for reference for piping systems, pumps, and heat exchangers. ... Read more

Book Description

Uses an integrated approach to show the interrelationships between thermodynamics, heat transfer and fluid dynamics, stressing the physics of each. Mathematical description is included to allow the solution of simple problems in thermal sciences. New to this edition--SI and English units plus twice as many example problems which emphasize practical applications of the principles discussed. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Students View.
Its not that its a bad book, but that it was certainly not a book that I feel makes the subject easy to understand or comprehend. I feel that there must be other books, such as those in similar fields by Cengal and Boles.

If its prescribed for a paper I would reckomend getting it out from thelibrary rather than buying it. I had to buy it for an open book exam, andam now having trouble selling it, no one wants it!

If you want a book toread to learn about thermodynamics try other titles, this one wont do youreffort justice.

(I got a B in the paper anyways) ... Read more

Book Description

A Comprehensive Introduction to a Dynamic Field More modeling.more controls.more electrical and mechanical devices.. The second edition contains more coverage of key topics for a comprehensive introduction to dynamic systems and control. This includes modeling and analysis techniques, the fundamentals and applications of control systems, transfer functions, sensitivity and robust control, and digital control. Engineering design is also emphasized throughout the text with case studies, design examples, problems, and extensive hardware coverage. Key Features of the Second Edition
* Extensive coverage on modeling is expanded to four chapters. The selection of engineering examples and the clear writing effectively relates the math methods to the real world.
* Laplace transform response techniques are introduced as needed in the context of engineering applications. This approach clearly demonstrates the need for and the power of these techniques.
* Case studies are integrated throughout the text to provide in-depth treatment of practical engineering applications such as motion control system design, electromechanical system design, vehicle suspension design, and aircraft response modes.
* Optional sections at the end of each chapter introduce Matlab commands and applications relevant to the chapter's topics.
* Digital controller design using Matlab is covered without the need for z-transform theory. ... Read more

Book Description

At last! A thermophysics text that is a manageable length--under 350 pages--for upper-level students who have already completed a calculus-based physics course. Introduction to Thermophysics covers heat and other introductory topics in the first three chapters, thermodynamics in the next four chapters, and the basics of statistical mechanics in the final five chapters. Espinola uses the same four sample systems (gases, simple solid model, paramagnetic salt, and pure substances) in examples and problems throughout the thermo and statistical mechanics sections and then adds the fifth system (stretched wire) in the problem sets for your more advanced students. With a variety of problems, this text also provides a solid background for more rigorous graduate-level courses. ... Read more

Book Description

The second part of 'Statistical Physics' deals with the quantum theory of the condensed state of matter. This volume is essentially an entirely new book, based on the large amount of new material which has become available in statistical physics since' Part 1' was published. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Great Book, the best I've ever seen!
no words can describe the richness and clarity of this book.the description of Maxwell's distribution, Gibbs formalism,etc...all with marvelous clarity and rigour. Everyone who wants to learn statistical Mechanics (under and graduates) MUST read this book.

Unrivalled Masterpiece
This book is a classic, especially in the sense it is somewhat old fashioned in its basic approaches when compared with newer books. For example it examines statistics and entropy from the ergodic as opposed to the ensemble approach. Information Theory and role of symmetry and symmetry breaking is not treated in detail. However I can't hold these omissions against the book since these developments happend mostly in the late 70s.

What Landau does here, and which in explicably very few Statistical Mechanics books do nowadays, is the full Gibbs Formalism. Not only is the Gibbs Formalism more compatible with Quantum Mechanics, it can also fits in beautifully with Ensemble Statistics and Inofrmation Theory. More over, it is at once clear Maxwell and Boltzmann statistics are only special cases of the Gibbs formalism, and can be easily shown in a few lines.

What Landau does, is to gave an elegant and cohesive view the trully fundamental features of Statistical Mechanics. Chapters 1-6 of this book alone displays a deeper level of understanding than whole books that have been written. If you are interested in Statistical Mechanics at all, this must be a centerpiece of your library.

A UNIQUE BOOK ON MODERN STATISTICAL PHYSICS
This is the Volume 9 of the famous Course of Theoretical Physics by L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz. All serious students of theoretical physics must possess the ten volumes of this excellente Course, which cover in detail and rigour practically all the branches of theoretical physics. The Volume 9 treats important specialized topics of modern statistical physics. These topics include the theory of quantum liquids(Fermi and Bose types), the theory of superfluidity, created by Landau to account for the phenomena ocurring in liquid helium at approximately 2 kelvin, the microscopic theory of superconductivity, the general method of Green's functions, so important to modern statistical physics, and some other topics, such as the quantum mechanics of a electron in a crystal lattice. The book still contains the general theory of electromagnetic and hydrodynamic fluctuations, treated in the spirit of the Green's functions. These topics are treated with rigour, efficiency and c! larity of language. For this reason, all readers with some aqquaintance with basic statistical physics can read and understand much of this book without major problems. Certainly there is not other book comparable with the Volume 9, a unique and valuable addition to the literature on modern statistical physics!

THE BEST BOOK ON STATISTICAL PHYSICS
This is the Volume 5 of the famous Course of Theoretical Physics by L. D. Landau and E. M. Lifshitz. All serious students of theoretical physics must possess the ten volumes of this excellent Course, which cover in detail and rigour practically all the branches of theoretical physics. The Volume 5 treats the subject of classical and quantum statistics. It contains an unusual approach of these subjects, based on the general Gibbs method, avoiding the introduction of ergodic hypotheses and, in the case of the ideal gas, of "a priori" probabilities, which are difficult to justify and serves only to obscure the exposition. The book is complete and contains chapters not usually found in other similar books, such as the chapter on second-order phase transitions. The clarity of exposition and rigour is notorious in this book. A magnific book!

This is the most beautiful book on statistical mechanics
This is the first volume of the Statistical Physics of Landau, Lifshitz. It's, of course, an extraordinary book, coming from these authors. The book starts with a chapter which defines entropy and derives its main properties. Then comes a masterly chapter on Thermodynamics where the criterion for equillibrium is that the entropy be maximum. The things they derive from that! Now and then I like to reread this chapter just for fun! After that statistical mechanics of equillibrium is constructed along the lines of Gibbs, starting from the microcanonical distribution, wherefrom the others are derived. Applications then start. Thermodynamical equillibrium in General Relativity is treated, as is gravitational collapse of stars. Chemical equillibrium is wonderfully done, being applied also for relativistic reactions among elementary particles, as neutrinos. There is no other book even close to this, as physics is concerned. ... Read more

Book Description

This book offers a fresh, readable approach to the analysis of mechanical systems. It is written as an introduction to analytical dynamics, with an emphasis on fundamental concepts in mechanics.The book begins with a description of the motion of a particle subjected to constraints, and presents explicit equations of motion that govern large classes of constrained mechanical systems with refreshingly simple results. The authors provide examples throughout the book, as well as carefully formulated end-of-chapter problems that reinforce the material covered. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

A Remarkable Book on Analytical Dynamics
This is possibly the most remarkable text that has appeared in the last 30-40 years on the fundamentals of analytical dynamics. I think it will soon find its place on the bookshelf of every engineer, physicist, and mathematician who is interested in this subject. Engineers, researchers, and experts in areas like robotics, mutibody dynamics, spacecraft dynamics and control, and motion-tracking (and many other application areas that I am not directly familiar with) will have a 'field day' with the results that the authors have provided here.

I very strongly recommend this book to the community at large, and especially to students. It is an excellent text. It is simple enough for a novice to read and understand; it provides numerous new insights and new results that will most certainly surprise the expert. It has all the makings of a classic.

To my astonishment, I found the book to be totally original, something very rare for a book in this field. The authors present a fundamentally new approach. They tie together linear algebra and mechanics in a new and delightfully imaginative way. But in a mature field like analytical dynamics, originality is not enough; the results generated must be useful. And it is here that the book, in my opinion, far exceeds any that I have so far read. The authors develop numerous remarkable and new fundamental results. Every chapter has several of them.

There is no book that I have come across in analytical dynamics that is comparable to this short book. For me, its uniqueness lies in three key elements: usefulness of results, originality of approach, and simplicity in presentation.

I have now read the book several times, and each time the results that it contains seem to get more and more exciting. But, for me, reading it the first time around was indeed an unforgettable treat! Looking at some of the previous reviews of this book, I am sure many first-time readers must have also felt that way.

A Superb Book On Analytical Dynamics
This is an excellent book on the fundamentals of Analytical Dynamics. It deals with the essentials of Lagrangian mechanics in an altogether new and imaginative way. It is a 'must read' for beginners as well as experts, for it contains a wealth of new information and new results. Though short (only about 250 pages), it sparkles with brilliance and promises to become, like Goldstein's book, a classic text in the field.

Far from a dry re-hash of material taken from other books, as is commonly the case with books on this subject, this book takes a truly novel and exciting tack--just like its title says. It explains the basic concepts in Analytical Dynamics in a new, thorough, yet simple, way. The material is extremely well-crafted and carefully presented in a systematic manner; the power of the new results provided by the authors is astounding, as illustrated by the numerous examples in the book.

The authors show their mastery of the subject by leading the reader on, with unusual clarity, into deeper and deeper realms of the subject with each successive chapter. The book provides amazing insights into Lagrangian mechanics, constrained motion, multi-body dynamics, Gauss's Principle, etc., along with an incredible economy of words, and a stunning level of simplicity.

The material in especially the later chapters that deals with elimination methods and the Gibbs-Appell equations, to the best of my knowledge, is all new. The problems at the end of each chapter appear to be carefully chosen and instructive for students. Each chaper ends with a section entitled "For Further Reading," that I found interesting. The format of the book is such that it could be easily used as a text for a course on the subject.

The authors have written a truly outstanding text that can be read and enjoyed by an advanced university junior or senior, a graduate student, or an expert in the field. It is one of the VERY FEW technical books that I have come across that I just could not put down, once I started reading it.

I heartily recommend this book to the science and engineering community.

Udwadia's Course on Analytical Dynamics
I just took the course taught by Professor Udwadia on Analytical Dynamics at USC this semmester. Wow! This guy is not just good, he is TOPS! From the very first lecture I was in amazement with the facility he has in teaching this subject.

I can now see why the book he has written is fantastic. He used it as a text, and then went well beyond it.

He is definitely the best teacher I have ever had. He is a delight to listen to, and was an inspiration to every student in the class. His lectures sparkle, they concentrate on ideas not algebra, and he seemed to have something to say in every lecture that touched me and went well beyond dynamics. The thing that impressed me most is that despite his enormous knowledge of the subject, he is a really humble fellow, a superb listener, a great guy.

For those of you who think the book is superb, you haven't seen nothin' yet until you get to hear this guy speak. Take a ride on his course, he takes you on an incredible journey. It was more than worth my time; and I assure you, you will also find it so.

A Super Book!
I recommend that everyone dealing with mechanics get a copy of this gem, and read it! It is the most amazing technical book I have read! I don't want to repeat what others have said in their reviews, and so there is not much more for me to say other than that this book has got to be a classic.

An Excellent Book
I found this book to be truly exceptional. It is THE best book on Analytical Dynamics on the market. I recommend it highly. The authors have taken all the high-fangled wonder out of analytical dynamics and brought it down to a level that any senior or graduate student can follow. And yet the book is far deeper than any that I have read so far including Whittaker and Watson's book! There is a plethora of new results.
The authors need to be congratulated on this book. This is an example of book that shows that good authors can deal with complex and deep topics and yet be simple and straightforward in their explanations.
Some time in the future I'd like to make a special trip to the University of Southern California just to meet these two gentlemen. As one of the previous reviews says: They show great brilliance! ... Read more

Book Description

Thermodynamics of Membrane Receptors and Channels synthesizes a wealth of new information regarding the biophysics of membrane proteins. New insights provided by molecular genetics, single channel recording, and high resolution structural techniques are discussed from a conceptual perspective. Basic theoretical topics are introduced, developed, and then extensively illustrated with recent results from the literature or data from the authors' own laboratories.Theoretical and experimental information is incorporated into in-depth discussions of ion permeation mechanisms, ion channel and receptor conformational changes, aggregate activity of complexes of lipids and proteins, and how coupling is achieved between different energy modes in the many transduction systems residing in biomembranes. Thermodynamics of Membrane Receptors and Channels will be valuable both as a learning aid and a reference for biophysicists, neuroscientists, cell biologists, physiologists, and other researchers investigating any aspects of biomembranes. ... Read more

Book Description

The magnetocaloric effect describes the change in temperature of a magnetic material under adiabatic conditions through the application or removal of an external magnetic field. This effect is particularly pronounced at temperatures and fields corresponding to magnetic phase transitions, and it is a powerful and widely used tool for investigation of the magnetic state and mechanisms of these transitions. More recently there has been significant interest in its possible exploitation in magnetic refrigeration and cryocooling systems.

The Magnetocaloric Effect and its Applications presents a complete overview of theoretical and experimental research results surrounding the magnetocaloric effect, and a comprehensive discussion of current and potential applications of the phenomenon. The book reviews those materials with magnetic moment of both band and localized nature and various types of magnetic ordering, and materials with more exotic magnetic structures are also considered. A detailed discussion of experimental and theoretical studies of a great number of rare earth magnetic materials is given, with emphasis on the physical interpretation of observed phenomena. ... Read more

Book Description

For students in engineering, physics, and chemistry. Comprehensive problems are included in pressure, work and heat, energy, entropy, first and second laws, ideal gas processes, vapor refrigeration cycles, mixtures, and solutions. ... Read more

Book Description

This book provides a self-contained comprehensive exposition of the theory of dynamical systems. The book begins with a discussion of several elementary but crucial examples.These are used to formulate a program for the general study of asymptotic properties and to introduce the principal theoretical concepts and methods.The main theme of the second part of the book is the interplay between local analysis near individual orbits and the global complexity of the orbit structure. The third and fourth parts develop the theories of low-dimensional dynamical systems and hyperbolic dynamical systems in depth.The book is aimed at students and researchers in mathematics at all levels from advanced undergraduate and up. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Great, advanced intro to dynamical systems
This is really one of the very best books on dynamical systems available today. Nearly every topic in modern dynamical systems is treated in detail. The authors have provided many important comments and historical notes on the material presented in the main text. The writing is clear and the many topics discussed are given appropriate motivation and background.

There are only two potential drawbacks. First, the prerequisites for this book are quite high. The read should be familiar with real and functional analysis, differential geometry, topology, and measure theory, for starters. Fortunately a well-organized appendix collects the key results of each of the branches of math for the reader's reference. Second, many dynamical systems of interest to applied mathematicians, scientists, and engineers arise from differential equations. This book does not discuss in much detail the connection between ODEs and continuous dynamical systems. Other books (e.g. Perko) treat this connection more thoroughly.

For completeness, clarity, and rigor, Katok and Hasselblatt is without equal. If you work in dynamical systems, you should definitely have this excellent text on your bookshelf. Highly recommended.

Great book with lots of detail
This book is a comprehensive overview of modern dynamical systems that covers the major areas. The authors begin with an overview of the main areas of dynamics: ergodic theory, where the emphasis is on measure and information theory; topological dynamics, where the phase space is a topological space and the "flows" are continuous transformations on these spaces; differentiable dynamics where the phase space is a smooth manifold and the flows are one-parameter groups of diffeomorphisms; and Hamiltonian dynamics, which is the most physical and generalizes classical mechanics. Noticeably missing in the list of references for individuals contributing to these areas are Churchill, Pecelli, and Rod, who have done interesting work in the area of both topological and Hamiltonian mechanics. No doubt size and time constraints forced the authors to make major omissions in an already sizable book.

Some elementary examples of dynamical systems are given in the first chapter, including definitions of the more important concepts such as topological transitivity and gradient flows. The authors are careful to distinguish between topologically mixing and topological transitivity. This (subtle) difference is sometimes not clear in other books. Symbolic dynamics, so important in the study of dynamical systems, is also treated in detail.

The classification of dynamical systems is begun in Chapter 2, with equivalence under conjugacy and semi-conjugacy defined and characterized. The very important Smale horseshoe map and the construction of Markov partitions are discussed. The authors are careful to distinguish the orbit structure of flows from the case in discrete-time systems.

Chapter 3 moves on to the characterization of the asymptotic behavior of smooth dynamical systems. This is done with a detailed introduction to the zeta-function and topological entropy. In symbolic dynamics, the topological entropy is known to be uncomputable for some dynamical systems (such as cellular automata), but this is not discussed here. The discussion of the algebraic entropy of the fundamental group is particularly illuminating.

Measure and ergodic theory are introduced in the following chapter. Detailed proofs are given of most of the results, and it is good to see that the authors have chosen to include a discussion of Hamiltonian systems, so important to physical applications.

The existence of invariant measures for smooth dynamical systems follows in the next chapter with a good introduction to Lagrangian mechanics.

Part 2 of the book is a rigorous overview of hyperbolicity with a very insightful discussion of stable and unstable manifolds. Homoclinicity and the horseshoe map are also discussed, and even though these constructions are not useful in practical applications, an in-depth understanding of them is important for gaining insight as to the behavior of chaotic dynamical systems. Also, a very good discussion of Morse theory is given in this part in the context of the variational theory of dynamics.

The third part of the book covers the important area of low dimensional dynamics. The authors motivate the subject well, explaining the need for using low dimensional dynamics to gain an intuition in higher dimensions. The examples given are helpful to those who might be interested in the quantization of dynamical systems, as the number-theoretic constructions employed by the author are similar to those used in "quantum chaos" studies. Knot theorists will appreciate the discussion on kneading theory.

The authors return to the subject of hyperbolic dynamical systems in the last part of the book. The discussion is very rigorous and very well-written, especially the sections on shadowing and equilibrium states. The shadowing results have been misused in the literature, with many false statements about their applicability. The shadowing theorem is proved along with the structural stability theorem.

The authors give a supplement to the book on Pesin theory. The details of Pesin theory are usually time-consuming to get through, but the authors do a good job of explaining the main ideas. The multiplicative ergodic theorem is proved, and this is nice since the proof in the literature is difficult.

Excellent rigorous introduction to chaotic dynamical system
This remarkable book is by far the best rigorous introduction to many facets of the modern theory of (chaotic) dynamical systems. It introduces and rigorously develops the central concepts and methods in dynamical systems in a hands-on and highly insightful fashion. The authors are world experts in smooth dynamical systems and have played a major role in the development of the modern theory and this shows througout the book.

The book starts with a comprehensive discussion of a series of elementary but fundamental examples. These examples are used to formulate the general program of the study of asymptotic properties as well as to introduce the principal notions (differentiable and topological equivalence, moduli, asymptotic orbit growth, entropies, ergodicity, etc.) and, in a simplified way, a number of important methods (fixed point methods, coding, KAM-type Newton method, local normal forms, etc.). This chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

The main theme of the second part is the interplay between local analysis near individual (e.g., periodic) orbits and the global complexity of the orbit structure. This is achieved by exploring hyperbolicity, transversality, global topological invariants, and variational methods. The methods include study of stable and unstable manifolds, bifurcations, index and degree, and construction of orbits as minima and minimaxes of action functionals.

In the third and fourth part the general program is carried out for low-dimensional and hyperbolic dynamical systems which are particularly amenable to such analysis. In addition these systems have interesting particular properties. For hyperbolic systems there are structural stability, theory of equilibrium (Gibbs) measures, and asymptotic distribution of periodic orbits, in low-dimensional dynamical systems classical Poincare-Denjoy theory, and Poincare-Bendixson theories are presented as well as more recent developments, including the theory of twist maps, interval exchange transformations and noninvertible interval maps.

This book should be on the desk (not bookshelf!) of any serious student of dynamical systems or any mathematically sophisticated scientist or engineer interested in using tools and paradigms of dynamical systems to model or study nonlinear systems.

Excellent rigorous introduction to chaotic dynamical systems
This remarkable book is by far the best rigorous introduction to many facets of the modern theory of (chaotic) dynamical systems. It introduces and rigorously develops the central concepts and methods in dynamical systems in a hands-on and highly insightful fashion. The authors are world experts in smooth dynamical systems and have played a major role in the development of the modern theory and this shows througout the book.

The book starts with a comprehensive discussion of a series of elementary but fundamental examples. These examples are used to formulate the general program of the study of asymptotic properties as well as to introduce the principal notions (differentiable and topological equivalence, moduli, asymptotic orbit growth, entropies, ergodicity, etc.) and, in a simplified way, a number of important methods (fixed point methods, coding, KAM-type Newton method, local normal forms, etc.). This chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

The main theme of the second part is the interplay between local analysis near individual (e.g., periodic) orbits and the global complexity of the orbit structure. This is achieved by exploring hyperbolicity, transversality, global topological invariants, and variational methods. The methods include study of stable and unstable manifolds, bifurcations, index and degree, and construction of orbits as minima and minimaxes of action functionals.

In the third and fourth part the general program is carried out for low-dimensional and hyperbolic dynamical systems which are particularly amenable to such analysis. In addition these systems have interesting particular properties. For hyperbolic systems there are structural stability, theory of equilibrium (Gibbs) measures, and asymptotic distribution of periodic orbits, in low-dimensional dynamical systems classical Poincare-Denjoy theory, and Poincare-Bendixson theories are presented as well as more recent developments, including the theory of twist maps, interval exchange transformations and noninvertible interval maps.

This book should be on the desk (not bookshelf!) of any serious student of dynamical systems or any mathematically sophisticated scientist or engineer interested in using tools and paradigms of dynamical systems to model or study nonlinear systems. ... Read more

Book Description

This edition of "Thermodynamics" continues the tradition of providinga fundamentally sound, well-written, technically accurate text. This new edition addresses the needs of today's marketplace through the following enhancements: a greater emphasis on thermoeconomics and current real world applications, more design problems, more real world and visual problems, a re-vamped design and a stronger pedagogical program. The book will also be available with or without EES (Engineering Equation Solver) Problems Disk. Professor Donald E. Richards of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology has been added as a co-author for this edition. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Thermodynamics
I agree that the book, Thermodynamics by J.P. Holman is an
excellent book to study the aspects of Thermodynamics. I am
employed with an aircraft company and I am tasked to provide
instructions to certain employees to study Thermodynamics. It
would be much easier if the book was published with answers to
the homework questions. The book deserves a five star rating
but it is compromised, in my opinion to four stars.

A must for mechanical engineers
Studying thermodynamics is, mainly because of the second law,not an easy task so having a good reference text is obligatory. I believe the author succeeded in translating his experience on the subject in a magnificent way by giving many realistic examples. It is also nice to have worked out examples in Metric units so the reader gets familiar with the order of magnitude of the results in both systems. For mechanical engineers, it is a must. For others interested in the field of thermodynamics, it is good reference although the emphasis clearly lies on the thermodynamical aspects in mechanical engineering.

Excellent content, no answers to review problems!
A very thorough book which doesn't feel dated, despite being published over 12 years ago.Holman published his 1st edition in 1968 and has improved it with each edition.

I WILL PAY ANYONE $100 (in addition to mebuying the book) if they can find me the SOLUTIONS MANUAL for this book,(which does exist).There are no answers to the review problmes, whichkeeps me from giving it 5 stars.

dplibby@earthlink.net

Lots of Examples, No HW Solutions
I am usisng this book for a course in thermo at NJIT.The book is full of examples.There are two major drawbacks.Firts is the fact that it is overpriced.There is no reason a book published over 10 years ago shouldcost over $100.The second drawback is that this book does not giveanswers to selected homework problems.

this is avery nice book . It conveys lots of message to us
this is avery meritorious book but the only dis advantage is that it is very costl y .which all of them would be able to afford so kindly give thisbook to me free and i will do all the research and give it back to youthanking you thomsan ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Introductory? Says who?
I bought this book a few weeks ago thinking that it will give me a good base to begin my first thermo course next year. I was so lost and confused by the book that I immediately sought help, and my tutor told me that I had completely wasted my money. If you are someone who has never done thermo before, like myself, save your money for something more useful: there is nothing introductory about this text. Try checking out Thermodynamics: An Engineering Approach by Boles (a MUCH better introductory text-book).

Makes you work!
I think the text was pretty good; it made you consult references frequently, and that is a necessary skill to have as an engineer. As an engineer you have to know how to pick up theory and put it to use quickly. The problems were rough and time consuming, but that's because no problems in engineering are easy! When completed, though, you are satisfied. To the last guy: "physics" is the one major that can do anything! Everything in science is either physics or bug collecting, whether you like it or not :) But, engineering is more marketable.

This is an INTRODUCTORY to thermodynamics text
How do you write a textbook explaining everything in detail? You can't and this is why students have instructors. This book is an INTRODUCTORY text for thermodynamics. For example, you can't derive departure functions for every equation of state. There are just too many of them. The book did have many useful example problems. Still it wasn't enough. I just completed my thermodynamics course at the University of Akron and I had to develop my own comprehensive view of the ideas stated in the book. It was very useful as a tool, but don't expect to teach yourself thermodynamics from it. That's what your instructor is for. You can understand concepts by concentrating on the many useful analogies given in the book. For example, the parking lot analogy which explains radial distribution. I have some advice when going through this book. You are chemical engineer majors; the one major that can do anything. At this stage of the game, you should start thinking like an engineer thinks. For example, the guy who wanted to know why dh=0 for throttles. He should be try to figure out that on his own. That is what engineers are supposed to do. Instructors explain this in class, as well. I agree that Chapter 4 was very vague, but again, this is an introductory course. We have two more years of learning. In conclusion, don't expect to learn everything about thermodynamics from this book. You won't. But do expect to learn the basic principles about thermodynamics. That is the strong point of this book.

Review of Elliott'sThermo book
Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics is a very abstract course with very tough concepts to master. The book Introductory Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics by J. Richard Elliott was the book that got me through the course. In my opinion this book was the best book on thermodynamics for an introductory course. I'am comparing his book to two other books on thermodynamics; Chemical Thermodynamics by Peter A. Rock and, An Introduction to Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics fourth edition by Smith and Van Ness. Elliott's book had a better steam table and more worked out example problems that were easy to find, compared to the two other books. The only hangup I had with the book were the concepts introduced in the section labled Unit III. The first concepts such as Bubble Pressure and Temperature were easy to follow but later concepts such as derivations of fugacity coefficientfrom different equations of state could be explained more clearly. Overall the book was better than the other two and I would recommend Dr. Elloitt's book to any of my peers.

THERMO REVIEW
I AM JUST ABOUT TO COMPLETE AN INTRODUCTORY COURSE INTHERMODYNAMICS TAUGHT BY DR. ELLIOT. I THOUGHT THAT THIS BOOK REALLYMADE YOU WORK TO UNDERSTAND THE VARIOUS PROCESSES AND EQUATIONS. THAT IS A GOOD THING CONSIDERING THAT WE ARE NOT JUST LESSON LEARNERS BUT ENGINEERS. AND THAT BEGS THE QUESTION WHAT ARE ENGINEERS? THEY ARE PROBLEM SOLVERS THAT SHOULD NOT BE SPOON FED. IF YOU NEED TO BE SPOON FED ENGINEERING IS NOT FOR YOU. WHICH IS FINE. THE BOOK OVERALL HAD A GOOD PACE TO IT AND SHOWED A LOT OF SAMPLE PROBLEMS RELATED TO ACTUAL PROCESSES. OVERALL IT IS A GOOD REFERENCE BOOK THAT I WILL USE IN MY FUTURE CAREER I AM SURE. ... Read more

Book Description

Fire Safety Engineering, identified in the original edition as ‘a relatively new discipline, has since grown significantly in stature, as Fire Safety Engineers around the world begin to apply their skills to complex issues that defy solution by the old ‘prescriptive approach to fire safety. This second edition has the same structure as the first highly successful text, but has been updated with the latest research results. Fire processes are discussed and quantified in terms of the mechanisms of heat transfer and fluid flow. Problems addressed include:

• The conditions necessary for ignition and steady burning of combustible materials to occur
• How large a fire has to become before fire detectors and sprinkler heads will operate
• The circumstances that can lead to flashover in a compartment

Reviews (1)

an introduction to fire dynamics . this is for you
fire is one of the most dangeris enamess that we have it can burn all that you have down to the ground and so'' an this saftey tip from me dont play with fire''' thank you... chris j coombes... ... Read more

Book Description

Fluid Mechanics, understanding and applying the principles of how motions and forces act upon fluids such as gases and liquids, is introduced and comprehensively covered in this widely adopted text.New to this third edition are expanded coverage of such important topics as surface boundary interfaces, improved discussions of such physical and mathematical laws as the Law of Biot and Savart and the Euler Momentum Integral.A very important new section on Computational Fluid Dynamics has been added for the very first time to this edition. Expanded and improved end-of-chapter problems will facilitate the teaching experience for students and instrutors alike.This book remains one of the most comprehensive and useful texts on fluid mechanics available today, with applications going from engineering to geophysics, and beyond to biology and general science.

* Ample, useful end-of-chapter problems.
* Excellent Coverage of Computational Fluid Dynamics.
* Coverage of Turbulent Flows.
* Solutions Manual available. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

From an engineering student's view: Spare it!
This 730pages-book is a very popular basic introduction to GENERAL fluid mechanics and is intended for 1st-year graduate students of science OR engineering. No previous knowledge of the subject is assumed, and much of the text is suitable in a first (undergrad!) course. Since there is enough material for at least two courses a selection of the advanced, currently relevant topics could be used in a second course.

The presentation, a balanced view between GEOPHYSICAL and ENGINEERING fluid dynamics --generally separated in different chapters--, is clear and accurate and at the same time easy enough for students. Clearly, the book includes topics of special interest to GEOPHYSICISTS (Gravity Waves, Geophysical Fluid Dynamics) and to ENGINEERS (Aerodynamics, Compressible Flow), and also detailed, *advanced* treatments of standard topics of common interest, usually not found in Purely-Intro-Texts (Vorticity Dynamics, Turbulence, Instability, Boundary Layers, Computational Fluid Dynamics). The choice of the latter topics is standard and you should have seen some subject intro's in Munson5, Shames3, White5, etc. but it is the *level* of treatment which makes Kundu3's a Not-An-Intro-Only, although mathematically rigorous approaches have been avoided in favor of the physically revealing ones. So I like the shallow flow of narration, the easy-to-grasp physical explanations, the view of the physics behind the equations and flow phenomena, and the elegant manner of mathematical derivations: Throughout the book the convenience of cartesian tensor algebra has been exploited freely, using boldface, indicial and mixed notation. But what I strikingly miss is a clear, forced didactic structure and conception within each chapter. Instead, chapter subsections are simply stringed together, losing any didactic thread and making the entire work look like a collection of fine lecture notes of a *physicist* and not of an *engineering* professor or professional *teacher*.

You will be looking in vain for examples (~0Ex/Ch); and number and type of end-of-chapter problems are way different from what a pampered engineering student loves and is accustomed to: the few problems (~10Pr/Ch) are rather *exercises* and most often some easy, straight forward theoretical derivations (=no use of numbers/numerics/computations, which I prefer!) of little practical value; difficult problems have been deliberately omitted! In a first course, undergrad engineering students will need more practice and help than offered in the book; in that case the instructor may select additional problems from other books.

"This is the most comprehensive introductory graduate or advanced undergraduate text in fluid mechanics available.", and I am sure that most 'science' students will like it for its comprehensive topical coverage, prose and easy readability. Only those will actually read it and then, of course, like it: It *is* truely a nice book, popular especially among its readers, and maybe the only top-selling engineering title published by Academic Press. But the 'engineering' student, grad or undergrad, is likely to choose one of the competitors, with more pics, colours, examples, problems, words, didactics, features, videos, CDs, resources at book companion sites and entertainment. Even an engineering freshman could tell within seconds that Munson5 looks like the 'better' book (=nicer, more attractive), for him to buy. Without reading this boring review (So, have you read my other Fluid Mech intro-texts reviews at AMAZON.COM yet?). Rated 3 stars to respect its unbelievable selling success and to honour Kundu's attempt to compose a balanced yet simplistic treatment of a wide topical coverage. 1 missing star for missing examples and missing abundance and quality of problems, another missing star for the missing overall quality of presentation. Have a look at the modern PEARSON's Douglas5, MCGRAW-HILL's Cengel1 or WILEY's Munson5 and you ll be thrilled!

Finally a good fluids book
I like this book much more than Fay or White or Batchelor.
I used it in a graduate course on fluid mechanics - I wish I had used it in my undergrad classes - I would have understood the material much better.

Comprehensive Book, but very sloppy editing with mistakes
This book is very comprehensive and covers all of the major aspects of fluid mechanics. However, there are several mistakes in this book. Some of the problem solutions are wrong, but above all, the equations are often referenced incorrectly. This can make it quite frustrating for students, especially when they haven't figured out that they are being misled.

Excellent book, but the new edition lacks in graphical style
Kundu's book is an excellent textbook for fluid mechanics at an intermediate level. However, this new eddition has a lot of graphical problems which, if doens't make you regret of buying it, will keep you always remembering of it...I hope the publishers correct those as soon as possible.

An excellent read for scientists
Pijush Kundu's textbook has established itself as the standard in introductory fluid mechanics. While most fluid dynamics texts are based around engineering, this book is an excellent cross section for scientists hoping to gain a thorough intuition about the subject.In addition, the first few chapters offer intuitive explanations of such vector operators as div and curl. The idea of curl was a complete mystery to me until I read Kundu's explanation of vorticity. This book is a must have for any applied scientist working in the physical world. ... Read more

Book Description

In a wonderful synthesis of science, history, and imagination, Gino Segr&egrave, an internationally renowned theoretical physicist, embarks on a wide-ranging exploration of how the fundamental scientific concept of temperature is bound up with the very essence of both life and matter. Why is the internal temperature of most mammals fixed near 98.6š? How do geologists use temperature to track the history of our planet? Why is the quest for absolute zero and its quantum mechanical significance the key to understanding superconductivity? And what can we learn from neutrinos, the subatomic "messages from the sun" that may hold the key to understanding the birth-and death-of our solar system? In answering these and hundreds of other temperature-sensitive questions, Segr&egrave presents an uncanny view of the world around us. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A "segre" book...
Outstandingly excellent, a distillatgion of the "segre family quality" in the sciences.

a good philosophy/physics read...
The author is a natural teacher who explains that this work is a reflection of his observation over time that phenomena seem to have common bases. That is, the experience of an individual may be seen to have a uniformity and/or homogenity that reflects the substrata of physical processes. Thus the sub-theme of the work is human connectedness.

I find this observation valid and comforting. Experience extends naturally from physical causes that manifest underlying order. Temperature is simply one dimension of uniformity that we can find evident everywhere we look in Nature.

This is such a nice counter-balance for the chaos that seems increasingly inescapable. The language is reader-friendly and I recommend this book to all readers.

Any reminder of just how natural humans really are can be very helpful. Routine concerns about something as mundane as the relatively stable temperature of one's own body keeps reminding us how deeply natural we really are.

Thanks to Gino Segre. I look forward to the next book.

clear explanations of complex subjects
This book is subtitled 'What temperature reveals about the past and future of our species, planet, and universe' and when I picked it up I imagined it was going to be about global warming and all that terrible stuff. Fortunately, while he does mention that dire subject, it's far from the only thing Mr Segrè has to offer. Instead his book is a consideration of the effect of temperature in all sorts of things, from the human body--warm-bloodedness and fever--to quantum mechanics. In between it takes in black smoker ecosystems, the birth and death of stars and the big bang. Segrè divides his efforts between explaining the science itself and giving us the history behind its original discoveries and does both rather well, showing a brisk pace and an engaging sense of humor the whole time.

Obviously, given the amount of material covered, some things are described in rather less detail than one might wish, and the transitions sometimes left me wondering if the author was going to come back and say more about a subject; but all that does is encourage the reader to pursue one bit or other further in other books, which is a reasonable thing for a general-audience book like this is. There were also sections--most notably the bits about extra dimensions, conditions at the time of the big bang, and multiple universes interacting like sheets (something like that..)--that lost me pretty completely. But Segrè is a good enough writer that instead of giving up I plowed ahead, and soon enough I was back on firm ground. And the end of the book, about the effects of very low temperatures on the behavior of molecules, was one of the clearest explanations of quantum mechanics I've ever read.

Degrees of Excellence
It is hard to say which is more compelling: A Matter of Degrees' strength as a book of science history or its strength as a work of literature. Segre writes with such elegance, clarity and charm that it is easy to forget that this is a work we read for self-improvement rather than self-indulgence.

In a step-by-logical-step fashion, Segre leads the reader first to appreciate the importance of temperature and its regulation in living things into an understanding of thermo dynamics generally. We see things from the standpoint of giants like Newton, Davey, Rumford, Carnot and Kelvin, through moderns like Einstein, Bohr, Heizenberg, et al.--all the way up to discoveries circa 2001. We also see how even the great ones have stumbled and struggled with their misapprehensions, and will doubtless continue to do so.

From the warmth of mammalian bodies to the warmth of the greehouse effect, from the shriek of the first steam engines to the flickering near-nothingness of the neutrino, Segre ties the first to the last to show how an understanding of temperature leads to an understanding of origin. And by that I do not mean the origin of life--I mean the origin of everything.

This book is for people who--
A) Did not take any science courses in college but wish they had;
B) Did take science courses in college but wish they hadn't;
C) Want to see how a master teacher teaches his area of mastery; or
D)Are even passingly curious about How It All Began and How It All Might End.

Plenty of history and science in an intriguing survey
A few degrees temperature difference can make or break species, change environments completely, and affects both life and inert matter. A Matter Of Degrees explores how temperatures operate both physiologically and on a global level. From thermal ocean vents to the measurement of temperature changes over eons, this blends plenty of history and science in an intriguing survey. ... Read more

Book Description

In this vivid and comprehensible introduction to materials science, the author expands the modern concepts of metal physics to formulate basic theory applicable to other engineering materials, such as ceramics and polymers. Written for engineering students and working engineers with little previous knowledge of solid-state physics, this textbook enables the reader to study more specialized and fundamental literature of materials science. Dozens of illustrative photographs, many of them transmission electron microscopy images, plus line drawings, aid developing a firm appreciation of this complex topic. Hard-to-grasp terms such as "textures" are lucidly explained - not only the phenomenon itself, but also its consequences for the material properties. This excellent book makes materials science more transparent. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is designed as a text for an undergraduate course on vibrations and waves.The overall objectives of the book are to lead the student through the basic physical concepts of vibrations and waves and to demonstrate how these concepts unify a wide variety of familiar physics. This new edition contains an elementary, descriptive introduction to the important ideas of chaos.The author has also taken pains to update the applications.As with previous editions, the book contains numerous problems with hints and numerical solutions. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Vibrations and Waves for Non-physics majors.
Pros: Good subject matter (very interesting), Pace of material is slow at first and builds at a good rate.
Cons: Needs worked problems, lacks in-depth derivation, low readability, some sections of certain chapters lack all substance entirely.
If you have a good teacher, this book is helpful...if not, sorry, you won't get much.

Interesting subject area but very modestly successful book
In addition to the comments of the previous two readers who have not been very impressed with the book, I would like to say that the mathematical treatment is very vague as well.
Hence, the book neither gives a rigorous mathematical treatment of the subject, nor does it succeed in presenting the underlying physics.

How not to write a Physics Book
I found this text extremely hard to follow due to the abstract mathmatical derivations with little to no explanation of where things are coming from and no examples. Being a physics major, this is an important class for me, and I feel that my learning could be aided by use of a clearer text with examples on how to use the math we are given. For example, in chapter 4, question 5c asks us to find the sticking friction. Looking just above to the section on sticking friction is no help because it tells you nothing on how to find it.

Examples?
As a physics and math major, I was EXTREMELY disappointed in the lack of examples in this text. Learning physics involves more than abstract mathematical knowledge, it involves examining the material in many real world situations.

If you are considering assigning this text for your course, I beg you to reconsider. Your students will thank you! ... Read more