viii Preface to the Second Edition ties and applications of metals,alloys,ceramics,plastics,and electronic materials by means of easily understandable explana- tions and entertaining historical facts.It is also intended to raise the readers'awareness of their obligations to society as practic- ing engineers and scientists. What has been changed compared to the first edition?Natu- rally,there is always room for improvement.Accordingly,a large number of additions,corrections,and clarifications have been made on almost each page.Furthermore,the treatment of "high- tech ceramics"has been substantially expanded(mostly at the suggestions of my colleagues)by including topics such as silicon nitride ceramics,transformation-toughened zirconia,alumina, ultra-hard ceramics,and bioceramics.A separate section on com- posite materials has been added,including fiber-reinforced composites,particular composites,and laminar composites.A section on advanced fabrics seemed to be of interest to the read- ers.Most of all,however,Chapter 18 (Economic and Environ- mental Considerations)has been rewritten and expanded in many places by updating the statistical information on prices of materials,production figures,world reserves,consumption(par- ticularly oil),recycling (particularly plastics,paper,household batteries,electronic scrap,automobiles),the possible use of "bio- diesel"(rape plant oil),waste prevention,lead-free solder,energy savings through recycling,efficient design,and stability of ma- terials.The iron and steel production statistics were updated in Chapter 7,and new figures on gold production and consumption were included in Chapter 17.Finally,considerations on new trends such as "nanomaterials by severe plastic deformation,"a rendition of Moore's law,and more philosophical remarks on the expected ethical behavior of engineers have been incorporated into Chapter 19. A few readers have suggested that I should provide the com- plete solutions for the homework problems.I am against this. The exercises should be challenges(some more,some less).Giv- ing the detailed solution of the problems (rather than just the numerical results)would tempt many students not to work the problems and in turn would deprive them of an important learn- ing experience and the satisfaction of having succeeded through perseverance.I can assure the readers,however,from my own experience that all problems are solvable. Those readers who like interactive communication and ani- mated visualizations by using the computer are directed to the post scriptum of the Preface to the First Edition that follows. My thanks go to many of my students who,through their kind words of praise and their challenging questions,helped me toties and applications of metals, alloys, ceramics, plastics, and electronic materials by means of easily understandable explana￾tions and entertaining historical facts. It is also intended to raise the readers’ awareness of their obligations to society as practic￾ing engineers and scientists. What has been changed compared to the first edition? Natu￾rally, there is always room for improvement. Accordingly, a large number of additions, corrections, and clarifications have been made on almost each page. Furthermore, the treatment of “high￾tech ceramics” has been substantially expanded (mostly at the suggestions of my colleagues) by including topics such as silicon nitride ceramics, transformation-toughened zirconia, alumina, ultra-hard ceramics, and bioceramics. A separate section on com￾posite materials has been added, including fiber-reinforced composites, particular composites, and laminar composites. A section on advanced fabrics seemed to be of interest to the read￾ers. Most of all, however, Chapter 18 (Economic and Environ￾mental Considerations) has been rewritten and expanded in many places by updating the statistical information on prices of materials, production figures, world reserves, consumption (par￾ticularly oil), recycling (particularly plastics, paper, household batteries, electronic scrap, automobiles), the possible use of “bio￾diesel” (rape plant oil), waste prevention, lead-free solder, energy savings through recycling, efficient design, and stability of ma￾terials. The iron and steel production statistics were updated in Chapter 7, and new figures on gold production and consumption were included in Chapter 17. Finally, considerations on new trends such as “nanomaterials by severe plastic deformation,” a rendition of Moore’s law, and more philosophical remarks on the expected ethical behavior of engineers have been incorporated into Chapter 19. A few readers have suggested that I should provide the com￾plete solutions for the homework problems. I am against this. The exercises should be challenges (some more, some less). Giv￾ing the detailed solution of the problems (rather than just the numerical results) would tempt many students not to work the problems and in turn would deprive them of an important learn￾ing experience and the satisfaction of having succeeded through perseverance. I can assure the readers, however, from my own experience that all problems are solvable. Those readers who like interactive communication and ani￾mated visualizations by using the computer are directed to the post scriptum of the Preface to the First Edition that follows. My thanks go to many of my students who, through their kind words of praise and their challenging questions, helped me to viii Preface to the Second Edition