COLOURFUL VIEWS OF STABILITY AND CHAOS

This book provides a glimpse of the author JMT Thompson's lifetime work on the buckling of thin shell structures, the general theory of elastic stability, chaos theory and some aspects of nonlinear dynamics relevant to the escape from a potential well.

Besides the traditional topics that will be useful to readers who are engineers and researchers, the compilation also includes a paper on climate predictions, showcasing the prolific interest of the author who has published more than 200 research papers throughout his scientific career. The introductory chapter includes the biographical details. Well-illustrated by many colourful figures and photographs, the reader will find a lively introduction to topics in the fields of physics, engineering and nonlinear dynamics.

Contents:

• Biographical Foreword (Early Life)
• Scientific Career (J Michael T Thompson)
• Shell Buckling (J Michael T Thompson)
• Stability Theory (J Michael T Thompson)
• Chaos Theory (J Michael T Thompson)
• Climate Predictions (J Michael T Thompson and Jan Sieber)
• Tutorial Glossary (J M T Thompson and H B Stewart)
• Appendix of Some Related Short Papers:
  • Challenging Question that my Audience Cannot Answer (J Michael T Thompson)
  • Surprising Outcome of Newtonian Dynamics (Friedrich Pfeiffer and J Michael T Thompson)
  • Phase-Space and Dissipation Studies of the Dancing Wing Nut (J Michael T Thompson)
  • Mathematical Modeling of Bird Murmurations (J Michael T Thompson)

Readership: Advanced undergraduate and graduate students, researchers and practitioners in the fields of physics, engineering, nonlinear dynamics, chaos and fractals. People who want to see and be introduced to what is going on in these fields in a readable, attractive and visual manner.