Engineering Mechanics: Volume 1: Equilibrium (Solid Mechanics & Its Applications, 1) - Hardcover

From the reviews:

"The book provides a well-organized and comprehensive treatment of static analysis in various topics ... . The concepts and applications are well presented; applications include both basic and advanced levels. Worked out examples nicely illustrate concepts; figures and tables are clear and help with understanding the concepts. ... Each chapter has a large number of assigned problems, helping readers to understand the material. ... very well written work and a welcome addition to the literature of engineering mechanics. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through professionals." (M. G. Prasad, CHOICE, Vol. 44 (10), June, 2007)

This is the first of two volumes introducing structural and continuum mechanics in a comprehensive and consistent way. The current book presents all theoretical developments both in text and by means of an extensive set of figures. This same approach is used in the many examples, drawings and problems. Both formal and intuitive (engineering) arguments are used in parallel to derive the principles used, for instance in bending moment diagrams and shear force diagrams. A very important aspect of this book is the straightforward and consistent sign convention, based on the stress definitions of continuum mechanics. The book is suitable for self-education.