328 BOOK NOTES
physiologic responses were not compatible
with the absence of a g field.
On the whole, this companion volume to
"Physics and Medicine of the Upper Atmos-
phere" is a most welcome addition for the
serious student and worker in the space flight
sciences. The Arrangements Committee and
Editors are to be congratulated on the uni-
form excellence of this volume.
I. M. LEVITT
The Fels Planetarium
of The Franklin Institute
CLASSICAL DYNAMICS, by R. H. Atkin. 273
pages, diagrams, 5½ × 8½ in. New York,
John Wiley &Sons, Inc., 1959. Price, $5.25.
Classical dynamics and electrodynamics
constitute the essential basis of classical
physics. Yet the relative time alloted them
in academic curricula has been progressively
reduced, in view of the rapid growth of many
modern branches of physics (atomic, nuclear
and solid state physics, for example). Hence
the need for well written and concise presenta-
tions. To the excellent treatises of Goldstein,
Synge and Griffith, etc., Atkin has added a
new one which, in a sense, is more old fash-
ioned and more elementary.
The vector notation is used throughout,
and the mathematical preliminaries are intro-
duced in the first two chapters. The central
BOOK
THEORY OF THERMAL STRESSES, by Bruno A.
Boley and Jerome H. Weiner. 586 pages,
diagrams, 6 × 9 in. New York, John Wiley
& Sons, Inc., 1960. Price, $15.50.
This volume gives a comprehensive account
of all the presently available theoretical tech-
niques for determination of stresses produced
in a solid object when it is subjected to spec-
ified heating conditions. Thermal stress is
explained through the basic subjects of ther-
modynamics, heat-transfer theory, elasticity
and inelasticity. Realizing that many persons
involved in thermal-stress analysis have little
familiarity with heat-transfer theory, a self-
contained review of the subject--together
with a discussion of methods of problem form-
ulation and methods of their solution--has
been included. In addition to the presenta-
[J. F. I.
force problem is presented with clarity and
completeness, and so are the topics of rigid
body dynamics, and normal coordinates. The
examples solved are well chosen and illustrate
directly the principles. The numerous prob-
lems proposed at the end of the chapters,
taken mostly from recent English examina-
tions, are rather traditional and narrow in
scope. They will nevertheless contribute to
give a good working knowledge to the
students.
It is however regrettable that some topics
of considerable importance in modern physics
have been omitted. Let us mention the
scattering problem, the Hamilton-Jacobi
Theory and relativistic dynamics among
others. The rich illustrations provided by
electrodynamics have been neglected. Re-
grettable also and rather surprising is the lack
of an index.
Despite these omissions, which can be rem-
edied by an instructor, the topics considered
are treated with an unusual skill. The work-
ing knowledge has been emphasized at the
expense of the philosophical foundations. As
it stands this little book is eminently teach-
able and could constitute an excellent text
at the junior-senior level.
HENRI AMAR
The Franklin Institute Laboratories
and Temple University
NOTES
tion of the theoretical foundations, methods
of practical thermal-stress analysis, utilizing
strength of materials approximations, are
treated fully in both the elastic and inelastic
domains.
SELF-SATURATINGMAGNETICAMPLIFIERS, by
Gordon E. Lynn, Thaddeus J. Pula, John
F. Ringelman and Frederick G. Timmel.
217 pages, diagrams, 6 X 9 in. New York,
McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., 1960. Price,
$8.00.
This thorough treatise on self-saturatiug
magnetic amplifiers, on facts of their operation
and on precise accurate design techniques,
shows the reader how to design complex mag-
netic amplifier circuits with a minimmn of
cut-and-try experimentation, Clearly ex-