Book excerpt: Massey has long been a best-selling textbook. This extensively revised and updated eighth edition, like its predecessors, presents the basic principles of the mechanics of fluids in a thorough and clear manner. It provides the essential material for an honours degree course in civil or mechanical engineering, in addition to providing much relevant material for undergraduate courses in aeronautical and chemical engineering. Emphasis is given to a sound physical understanding of fluid flow and its engineering applications, rather than to mathematical techniques. Students are introduced systematically to the subject, with the text moving from the simple to the complex, and from the familiar to the unfamiliar. SI units are used throughout and there are many worked examples. The book is essentially self-contained. The opening chapter has been expanded to provide a broader introduction to fluid mechanics. New topics for this edition include basic applications of complex variable theory, the physics of tsunamis, procedures for the selection of pumps and fans, and the losses for flow through nozzles, orifice meters, perforated plates and gauzes. For lecturers, an accompanying solutions manual is available.