Concepts

These volumes constitute the Proceedings of a Symposium on the Fracture Mechanics of Ceramics, held at the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, July 11, 12, and 13, 1973. The theme of the symposium focussed on the mechanical behavior of brittle ceramics in terms of the characteristics of cracks. The 52 contributed papers by 87 authors, present an overview of the cur- rent understanding of the theory and application of fracture mechan- ics to brittle ceramics. The program chairmen gratefully acknowledge the financial assistance for the Symposium provided by the Office of Naval Re- search, the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences of the Pennsyl- vania State University, the Materials Research Center of Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvana and Westinghouse Research Laboratories, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Special appreciation is extended to the expert organization provided by the J. Orvis Keller Conference Center of the Pennsyl- vania State Conference Center of the Pennsylvania State University. In particular, Mrs. Patricia Ewing should be acknowledged for the excellent program organization and planning. Dean Harold J. OBrien, who was featured as the after-dinner speaker and who presented a most stimulating talk on the communication between people, also contrib- uted to the success of the meeting. Finally, we also wish to thank our joint secretaries for the patience and help in bringing these Proceedings to press. University Park R. C. Bradt Bethlehem D. P. H. Hasselman Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania F. F. Lange July, 1973 v CONTENTS OF VOLUME 1 Contents of Volume 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .