Examples in Mechanics

  1. Typical examples provide pictorial meanings.
        Rotation, its eigenvector [Gol, p.118, l.−6-p.119, l.5], and its trace [Gol, p.124, (4-84)].

  2. Physical phenomena raise questions that lead to a theory's development.
    1. Theory: Linear algebra. Example: Euler's theorem on the motion of a rigid body [Gol, p.119, l.13-p.123, l.18].
    2. Theory: Stoke's theorem. Example: Maxwell's equations.

  3. A typical example may make the meaning of a definition complete.
        [Coh, p.95, (A-14)] explains why we require [Coh, p.96, (A-7)] in the definition of scalar product.

  4. Examples eliminate confusion.
        Suppose two concept A and B (e.g. Equilibrium & steady state: [Lev1, p.4, l.-3-p.5, l.9]) are so similar that they are easily confused with each other. For example, A requires conditions I and II; B requires condition I only. To truly understand the subtle distinction between A and B, we must find an example that satisfies condition I but does not satisfy condition II.

  5. Examples allow us to check the consistency among theories [Jack, p.123, l.-8-l.-7].

  6. Other links {1}.