Mathematics or Physics?

Abstract

Carslaw and Jaeger have produced an interve esting book, different parts of which will meet the needs of mathematical physicists, experimental physicists, university teachers and design engineers. It is didactic rather than exploratory. In plan it owes much to Carslaw's “Introduction to the Mathematical Theory of the Conduction of Heat in Solids” which appeared in 1921; but the volume now under review differs so much from the earlier one that it must be considered as a new work rather than a revised version of the older one. It embodies many advances that have been made during the past twenty-five years, as can be seen from the numerous references to mathematical, physical and engineering publications, many of which have been published since 1921. The references also indicate that while attempting to give the book a pronounced mathematical flavour, the authors have also tried to make it useful to engineers and physicists. In addition, some essentially ‘practical’ topics are treated briefly in the text; of these some of the more interesting ones are: cooling fins, the conduction of heat in a thin wire heated by an electric current, automatic temperature control, heat regenerators and heat exchangers, the heating of a chain of radiating slabs, etc. No attempt has been made to treat these topics in great detail, but references are given to the relevant further literature. Conduction of Heat in Solids By Prof. H. S. Carslaw J. C. Jaeger. Pp. viii + 386. (Oxford: Clarendon Press; London: Oxford University Press, 1947.) 30s. net.