Book excerpt: Building on the success of five previous editions, this new sixth edition continues to present a unified approach to the study of the behavior of structural members and the development of design and failure criteria. The text treats each type of structural member in sufficient detail so that the resulting solutions are directly applicable to real-world problems. New examples for various types of member and a large number of new problems are included. To facilitate the transition from elementary mechanics of materials to advanced topics, a review of the elements of mechanics of materials is presented along with appropriate examples and problems.