302 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXI. Xo. 530. 



Minneapolis ; R. A. Harris, Wa.shington ; 

 A. Heilprin, Philadelphia; R. T. Hill, 

 Washington; E. Huntington, Milton, 

 Mass. ; M. S. W. Jefferson, Ypsilanti ; 

 Emory R. Johnson, Philadelphia; Wm. 

 Libbey, Princeton; G. W. Littlehales, 

 Washington ; C. F. IMarbut, Columbia, Mo. ; 

 F. E. :\Iatthes, Washington (Camb.) ; W J 

 McGee, AVashingtou ; R. Pumpelly, New- 

 port, R. I.; H. F. Reid, Baltimore; W. W. 

 Rockhill, Washington ; R. D. Salisbury, 

 Chicago; E. C. Semple, Louisville; G. H. 

 Shattuck, Baltimore ; L. Stejneger, Wash- 

 ington; R. S. Tarr, Ithaca; R. DeC. Ward, 

 Cambridge; B. Willis, Washington. 



Albert Perry Brigitam, 



Secretary. 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS. 

 Technical Mechanics. By Edward R. Maurer, 

 professor of mechanics in the University of 

 Wisconsin. New York, J ohn Wiley & Sons. 

 1903. 



Elements of Theoretical Mechanics. By Alex- 

 ander ZiwET, junior professor of mathe- 

 matics in the University of Michigan. Re- 

 vised edition of ' An Elementary Treatise 

 on Theoretical Mechanics,' especially de- 

 signed for students of engineering. New 

 York, The Macmillan Company. 1904. 



Die Technische Mechanik. Elcmentares Lehr- 

 buch fiir Mittlere Maschinentechnische 

 Fachschulen und Ililfsbuch fiir Studiefende 

 Hoherer Technischer Lehranstalten. Von 

 P. Stepiian, Regierungsbaumeister, Lehrer 

 an der Kgl. Hoheren Maschinenbauschule 

 in Posen. Erster Teil: Mechanik Starrer 

 Korper. Leipzig und Berlin, B. G. Teub- 

 ner. 1904. 



The teacher of mechanics who undertakes 

 to write a text-book for students of engineer- 

 ing is confronted with a difficult problem: 

 He is compelled to recognize the justice of 

 the demand that the course shall be practical, 

 while resisting the tendency to interpret the 

 practical too narrowly. While a rather ex- 

 tensive course seems to be demanded by the 

 manifold applications of mechanics in engi- 



neering, his experience in the class-room em- 

 phasizes strongly the limitations imposed by 

 restricted time and lack of maturity of stu- 

 dents. It will scarcely be questioned that the 

 matter of first importance to the student is a 

 clear understanding of principles rather than 

 an assortment of special rules for solving par- 

 ticular problems. The presentation of prin- 

 ciples in a sound and intelligible manner 

 should, therefore, be the chief aim of a text- 

 book, and methods of presentation and illus- 

 trative examples should be chosen primarily 

 with reference to this aim. 



The success with which this requirement is 

 met by the three books under review will be 

 differently estimated by diflFerent teachers. 

 Each possesses merit of a high order, and 

 there is little room for adverse criticism ex- 

 cept such as implies a fair difference of opin- 

 ion as to what methods of treatment are to be 

 regarded as best. It will here be attempted 

 only to indicate the character and scope of 

 each of the books, and to make some general 

 observations regarding methods of presenting 

 the principles of mechanics in an elementary 

 text-book. 



As a sound and practical text-book for the 

 use of students of engineering Professor 

 Maurer's book possesses high merit. The ex- 

 position is nearly always concise — indeed, this 

 is perhaps often carried to a fault — but the 

 soundness of the logic is rarely open to ques- 

 tion. The author shows close sympathy with 

 the point of view of the beginner, and appre- 

 ciation of the fact that at certain points the 

 conventional treatment of fundamental prin- 

 ciples fails to meet the needs of the ordinary 

 student. 



Professor Ziwet's book is an excellent in- 

 troduction to the science of analytical me- 

 chanics. His exposition is in general sound 

 and logical, and the book will be read with 

 pleasure and profit by a student of mathe- 

 matical tastes and ability who has the requisite 

 mathematical training. The maturity and 

 mathematical equipment required for reading 

 it at all easily appear to be greater than are 

 possessed by most of those who take up the 

 subject in the second or third year of the 

 ordinary four-year course in engineering, but 



