Broad, up-to-date coverage of advanced vibration analysis by the market-leading author Successful vibration analysis of continuous structural elements and systems requires a knowledge of material mechanics, structural mechanics, ordinary and partial differential equations, matrix methods, variational calculus, and integral equations. Fortunately, leading author Singiresu Rao has created Vibration of Continuous Systems, a new book that provides engineers, researchers, and students with everything they need to know about analytical methods of vibration analysis of continuous structural systems. Featuring coverage of strings, bars, shafts, beams, circular rings and curved beams, membranes, plates, and shells-as well as an introduction to the propagation of elastic waves in structures and solid bodies-Vibration of Continuous Systems presents: * Methodical and comprehensive coverage of the vibration of different types of structural elements * The exact analytical and approximate analytical methods of analysis * Fundamental concepts in a straightforward manner, complete with illustrative examples With chapters that are independent and self-contained, Vibration of Continuous Systems is the perfect book that works as a one-semester course, self-study tool, and convenient reference.