Computer science distilled

 

Geotechnical Engineering: Principles and Practices of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering (Civil and Environmental Engineering)

FOREWORD Geotechnical Engineering: Principles and Practices of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering i s a long titl e befitting a major work. I am pleased t o introduc e this super b volume destined fo r a readership o f students, professors, an d consultants. What make s thi s text differen t from othe r books o n these subjects that appear each year and why am I recommending i t to you? I have been workin g and teaching in the area o f geotechnical engineering for 2 5 years. I have rea d and use d score s o f textbook s i n m y classe s an d practice . Dr . Murthy's tex t i s b y fa r th e mos t comprehensive tex t I have found. You will find tha t his organization of the subjec t matter follows a logical progression. His example problems are numerous and, like the text, start from fundamenta l principles an d progressivel y develo p int o mor e challengin g material . The y ar e th e bes t se t of example problems I have seen i n a textbook. Dr. Murthy has included ample homework problem s with a rang e o f difficult y mean t t o hel p th e studen t ne w t o th e subjec t t o develo p his/he r confidence an d t o assis t th e experience d enginee r i n his/he r revie w o f th e subjec t an d i n professional development . As the technical editor I have read the entire manuscript three times. I have been impressed by the coverage , th e clarit y o f the presentation, and the insights into the hows an d why s of soil an d foundation behavior. Often I have been astonished at Dr. Murthy's near-conversational approac h t o sharing helpfu l insights . You ge t th e impressio n he' s righ t ther e wit h yo u guidin g yo u along , anticipating your questions, and providing instruction and necessary informatio n as the next step s in the learning process. I believe you will enjoy this book and that it will receive a warm welcom e wherever it is used. I thank Dr. Murthy for his commitment to write this textbook an d for sharing his professional experience wit h us. I thank him for his patience in making corrections and considering suggestions. I thank Mr. B. J. Clark, Senior Acquisitions Editor at Marcel Dekker Inc. , for the opportunity to be associated wit h such a good book. I likewise express my appreciation to Professor Pierr e Foray of 1'Ecole National e Superieur e d'Hydrauliqu e e t d e Mecaniqu e d e Grenoble , Institu t Nationa l Polytechnique de Grenoble, Franc e for his enthusiastic and unflagging 

support while I edited the manuscript.