Mechanics of materials (also called strength of materials) is an area of engineering that describes the deformation of bodies and the distribution of forces within those bodies. Introductory courses in this discipline normally consider three types of simple deformations – the stretching or compression of axially loaded bars, the bending (flexure) of laterally loaded beams, and the torsion (twisting) of circular shafts. Many complex structures are composed of members that have these simple types of behavior. This chapter will outline the analysis of these three types of problems and review the basic assumptions made so that those assumptions can be later examined and, in some cases, relaxed.
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