Applied mechanics
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{{Classical mechanics|cTopic=Branches}}
'''Applied mechanics''' is a branch of the [[physical science]]s and the practical application of [[mechanics]]. Applied mechanics examines the ''response of bodies (solids and fluids) or systems of bodies to external [[force]]s''. Some examples of ''mechanical systems'' include the flow of a [[liquid]] under [[pressure]], the fracture of a [[solid]] from an applied [[force]], or the vibration of an ear in response to [[sound]]. A practitioner of the discipline is known as a '''[[mechanician]]'''.
Applied mechanics, as its name suggests, bridges the gap between physical theory and its application to [[technology]]. As such, applied mechanics is used in many fields of [[engineering]], especially [[mechanical engineering]]. In this context, it is commonly referred to as '''engineering mechanics'''. Much of modern engineering mechanics is based on [[Isaac Newton]]'s [[Newton's laws of motion|laws of motion]] while the modern practice of their application can be traced back to [[Stephen Timoshenko|Timoshenko]], who is said to be the father of modern engineering mechanics.
Within the theoretical sciences, applied mechanics is useful in formulating new ideas and theories, discovering and interpreting phenomena, and developing experimental and computational tools. In the application of the [[natural science]]s, mechanics was said by the American Nobel Prize-winning chemist [[Gilbert N. Lewis]] and the American physical chemist [[Merle Randall]] to be complemented by [[thermodynamics]], the study of heat and more generally [[energy]], and [[electromechanics]], the study of [[electricity]] and [[magnetism]].<ref>''Thermodynamics - and the Free Energy of Chemical Substances''. Lewis, G. and M. Randall (1923)</ref>
==Mechanics in practice==
'''As a scientific discipline''', applied mechanics derives many of its principles and methods from the [[Physical sciences]] (in particular, [[Mechanics]] and [[Classical Mechanics]]), from [[Mathematics]] and, increasingly, from [[Computer Science]]. As such, Applied Mechanics shares similar methods, theories, and topics with [[Applied Physics]], [[Applied Mathematics]], and [[Computational Science]].
'''As an enabling discipline''', applied mechanics has received impetus from the study of natural phenomena such as orbits of planets, circulation of blood, [[animal locomotion|locomotion of animals]], crawling of cells, formation of mountains, and propagation of [[seismic waves]]. Such studies have resulted in disciplines such as [[celestial mechanics]], [[biomechanics]] and [[geomechanics]].
'''A a practical discipline''', applied mechanics has also advanced by participating in major inventions throuhout history, such as buildings, ships, [[automobiles]], [[railways]], [[petroleum refineries]], [[engines]], [[airplanes]], [[nuclear reactors]], [[composite materials]], [[computers]], and [[medical implants]]. In such connections, the discipline is also known as ''Engineering Mechanics'', often practiced within [[Civil Engineering]], [[Mechanical Engineering]], [[Construction Engineering]], [[Materials Science and Engineering]], [[Aerospace Engineering]], [[Chemical Engineering]], [[Electrical Engineering]], [[Nuclear Engineering]], [[Structural engineering]] and [[Bioengineering]].
==Applied mechanics in engineering==
Typically, engineering mechanics is used to analyze and predict the acceleration and deformation (both [[Elastic Deformation|elastic]] and [[Plastic Deformation|plastic]]) of objects under known '''forces''' (also called '''loads''') or [[Stress (physics)|stresses]].
When treated as an area of study within a larger engineering curriculum, engineering mechanics can be subdivided into
*'''[[Statics]]''', the study of non-moving bodies under known loads
*'''[[dynamics (mechanics)|Dynamics]]''' (or '''kinetics'''), the study of how forces affect moving bodies
*'''[[Mechanics of materials]]''' or '''[[strength of materials]]''', the study of how different [[materials]] deform under various types of stress
*'''[[deformable bodies|Deformation mechanics]]''', the study of deformations typically in the [[elastic deformation|elastic]] range
*'''[[Fluid Mechanics]]''', the study of how fluids react to forces. Note that fluid mechanics can be further split into '''fluid statics''' and '''fluid dynamics''', and is itself a subdiscipline of '''continuum mechanics'''. The application of fluid mechanics in engineering is called '''[[hydraulics]]'''.
*'''[[Continuum mechanics]]''' is a method of applying mechanics that assumes that all objects are continuous. It is contrasted by '''[[wikt:discrete|discrete]] mechanics''' and the [[finite element method]].
==Major topics of applied mechanics==
<div style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;">
* [[Acoustics]]
* [[Analytical mechanics]]
* [[Computational mechanics]]
* Contact mechanics
* [[Continuum mechanics]]
* [[Dynamics (mechanics)]]
* [[Elasticity (physics)]]
* Experimental mechanics
* [[Finite element method]]
* [[Fluid mechanics]]
* [[Fracture mechanics]]
* [[Mechanics of materials]]
* [[Mechanics of structures]]
* [[Plasticity (physics)|Plasticity]]
* [[Rotordynamics]]
* [[Solid mechanics]]
* Stress waves
* [[Viscoelasticity]]
</div>
==Examples of applications==
*[[Earthquake engineering]]
==See also==
<div style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;">
* [[Biomechanics]]
* [[Geomechanics]]
* [[Materials Science and Engineering]]
* [[Mechanical engineering]]
* [[Mechanicians]]
* [[Mechanics]]
* [[Physics]]
* [[Principle of moments]]
* [[Structural analysis]]
*[[Engineering]]
*[[Kinetics (physics)]]
*[[Kinematics]]
*[[Analytical mechanics]]
*[[Dynamics (physics)]]
</div>
==Further reading==
* S.P. Timoshenko, "History of Strength of Materials", Dover, New York, 1953.
* J.E. Gordon, "The New Science of Strong Materials", Princeton, 1984.
* H. Petroski, "To Engineer Is Human", St. Martins, 1985.
* T.A. McMahon and J.T. Bonner, "On Size and Life", Scientific American Library, W.H. Freeman, 1983.
* M.F. Ashby, "Materials Selection in Design", Pergamon, 1992.
* A.H. Cottrell, "Mechanical Properties of Matter", Wiley, New York, 1964.
* S.A. Wainwright, W.D. Biggs, J.D. Currey, J.M. Gosline, "Mechanical Design in Organisms", Edward Arnold, 1976.
* S. Vogel, "Comparative Biomechanics", Princeton, 2003.
* J. Howard, "Mechanics of Motor Proteins and the Cytoskeleton", Sinauer Associates, 2001.
* J.L. Meriam, L.G. Kraige. "Engineering Mechanics Volume 2: Dynamics", John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1986.
* J.L. Meriam, L.G. Kraige. "Engineering Mechanics Volume 1: Statics", John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1986.
==External links==
*[http://imechanica.org/ iMechanica], the web of mechanics and mechanicians.
===Accredited academic programs===
*[http://www.am.caltech.edu Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics at California Institute of Technology]
*[http://www.tam.cornell.edu/ Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at Cornell University]
*[http://www.tam.uiuc.edu/curriculum/BS/index.html Engineering Mechanics at University of Illinois]
*[http://apm.iitm.ac.in/ Applied Mechanics at Indian Institute of Technology Chennai (Madras)]
*[http://www.aem.umn.edu Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics at University of Minnesota]
*[http://www.esm.psu.edu Engineering Mechanics at Pennsylvania State University]
*[http://www.ae.utexas.edu/ Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at University of Texas at Austin]
*[http://www.esm.vt.edu/ Engineering Mechanics at Virginia Tech]
*[http://www.engr.wisc.edu/ep/ema/ Engineering Mechanics and Astronautics at University of Wisconsin, Madison]
*[http://www.nmt.edu/~mecheng Mechanical Engineering at New Mexico Tech]
*[http://web.iitd.ac.in/~am/ Applied Mechanics at Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,India]
===Professional organizations===
* [http://coewww.rutgers.edu/aam/ American Academy of Mechanics]
* [[Applied Mechanics Division]], [[American Society of Mechanical Engineers]]
* [http://www.engmechinstitute.org/index.html Engineering Mechanics Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers]
* [http://www.iutam.net/iutam/Organization/ International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics]
* [http://www7.nationalacademies.org/usnctam/index.html US National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics]
*[http://web.iitd.ac.in/~am/],[Department of Applied Mechanics,at Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,India]
===Professional publications===
* [http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/bookdescription.cws_home/704246/description#description Advances in Applied Mechanics]
* [http://scitation.aip.org/ASMEJournals/AMR/ Applied Mechanics Reviews]
* [http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/297/description?navopenmenu=-2 International Journal of Solids and Structures]
* [http://pubs.asce.org/journals/engineeringmechanics/ Journal of Engineering Mechanics]
* [http://jfm-www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/ Journal of Fluid Mechanics]
* [http://www.jomms.org Journal of Mechanics of Materials and Structures]
* [http://scitation.aip.org/ASMEJournals/AppliedMechanics/ Journal of Applied Mechanics]
* [http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/220/description#description Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids]
* [http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/505659/description#description Mechanics of Materials]
* [http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/374/description#description Mechanics Research Communications]
* [http://qjmam.oxfordjournals.org/ Quarterly Journal of Mechanics and Applied Mathematics]
* [http://www.springer.com/west/home?SGWID=4-102-70-35759614-0&changeHeader=true&SHORTCUT=www.springer.com/journal/11071 Nonlinear Dynamics]
* [http://www.sagepub.com/journalsProdEditBoards.nav?prodId=Journal201401 Journal of Vibration and Control]
==References==
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[[Category:Mechanics]]
[[Category:Structural engineering]]
[[az:Nəzəri mexanika]]
[[cv:Теориллĕ механика]]
[[de:Technische Mechanik]]
[[el:Εφαρμοσμένη μηχανική (φυσική)]]
[[hr:Tehnička mehanika]]
[[ja:応用力学]]
[[ru:Теоретическая механика]]
[[simple:Applied mechanics]]
[[zh:工程力学]]