How structures work : design and behaviour from bridges to buildings /
by David Yeomans
- Chichester, U.K. ; Ames, Iowa : Wiley-Blackwell, 2009
- xv, 248 pages : illustrations, plans ; 25 cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Brackets and bridges -- Stiffening a beam : girder bridges -- Arches and suspension bridges -- Bringing the loads to the ground : the structural scheme -- Safe as houses? : walls -- Frames : a problem of stability -- Floors and beams : deflections and bending moments -- Providing shelter : roofs -- Structures in a three-dimensional world.
The alliance between architecture and structural engineering is fundamental to the design of the buildings and bridges around us. Anyone who needs or wants to “understand” a building must have a good understanding of the structural concepts involved. Yet “structure” is often cloaked in mathematics – which many find difficult to get to grips with. How Structures Work has been written to explain the behaviour of structures in a clear way without resorting to complex mathematics. Using the minimum of mathematics it explains the structural concepts clearly, illustrated by many historical and contemporary examples, allowing readers to build up a general understanding of structures. In this way they can easily comprehend the structural aspects of buildings for themselves.
Primarily aimed at students who require a good qualitative understanding of the behaviour of structures and their materials, it will be of particular interest to students of architecture and building surveying, plus architectural historians and conservationists. The straightforward, non-mathematical approach ensures it will also be suitable for a wider audience including building administrators, archaeologists and the interested layman.