Professor Mike Ashby is well known for producing readily understandable materials education texts, and for the innovative use of graphical representation for material properties. This book, now in its second edition, is no exception and explains materials engineering from a design-led approach, as opposed to the more traditional science-led approach.
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Useful for reinforcing student learning is the inclusion of over 50 new worked examples, distributed throughout the book. Completely new are the self-contained Guided Learning Units or sections at the end of the book on crystallography, and phase diagrams and phase transformations, including exercises (and unlike the rest of the book with answers). There are also useful links to interactive ‘online’ tutorials and assessment, reinforcing the strong selfteaching aspects of the book.
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[T]he book is aimed primarily at students and teachers of materials science and engineering, although engineering practitioners involved with materials and their selection will also find the extensive use of applications both useful and relevant.
-Engineering Designer, (Reviewed by Professor Kevin Edwards)