Nonsmooth mechanics and nonconvex optimization have experienced significant
development in the last decade. Many problems arising in finite deformation
theory, hysteresis and phase transitions, composite and smart materials,
frictional contact mechanics, constrained variational problems, post-bifurcation
and stability analysis, optimal control and design of nonlinear systems,
..., require the consideration of nonconvexity and nondifferentiablity
for their total potentials and mechanical modelings. The field of nonconvex/nonsmooth
mechanics involves a powerful combination of theoretical analysis in mathematical
modelling of natural systems, nonlinear optimization and variational principles,
numerical methods and algorithms, software development and scientific computing.
The application of this field to engineering mechanics has proven to be
an exciting and fruitful endeavor. The practical scope and utility of nonsmooth/nonconvex
mechanics continues to grow.
The International Symposium on Nonsmooth/Nonconvex Mechanics will address
the most important recent advances in theoretical mechanics and computational
mechanics. It will feature the latest research in constitutive modeling,
primal-dual variational principles, nonlinear optimization and algorithms,
numerical methods and software for the solution of engineering problems.
The meeting will bring together the theoretical analysts who build the
theory and the scientists who use it. The gathering will provide an excellent
opportunity for sharing ideas and problems and increase communication between
the applied mathematicians and engineers.
The symposium is dedicated to the memory of Professor P.D. Panagiotopoulos,
a pioneer researcher who made many fundamental contributions to the nonsmooth/nonconvex
mechanics. The symposium will be held jointly with the 1999 ASME Mechanics
\& Materials Conference, with overlapping sessions planned to encourage
interaction among participants of both meetings.
The themes of the 1999 symposium include, but are no limited to:
1 Recent advances in the theory and modelling of nonsmooth/nonconvex mechanics
2 Variational techniques and primal-dual methods
3 Numerical methods and algorithms
1 Finite deformation elastoplasticity, hysteresis and phase transitions,
frecture and penetrations
2 Nonlinear/nonsmooth dynamical systems, structural optimization and control
3 Stability and post-buckling analysis, composite materials and contact
mechanics.
Abstracts should be typed, single spaced on 8.5 X 11 white sheet with 1
inch margin on all four sides. The title (16 point, bold) should be followed
by a single space, authors names (12 point, bold), their affiliations (12
point) (complete address should be included so that interested persons
can contact the authors by mail, or e-mail), a single space and then the
text of the abstract in single space and 12 point. It will be preferable
to include line drawings rather than complex or more involved figures in
the abstract.
Department of Mathematics
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA24061, USA
Tel: 540-231-2768;
Fax: 540-231-5960
e-mail: gao@math.vt.edu
Department of Mathematics
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QW, UK
Tel: 0141-330-4550;
Fax: 0141-330-4111
e-mail: rwo@maths.ac.uk
Institute for Applied Mechanics
Tech. Univ. Braunschweig
Braunschweig, Germany
Tel: ++ 49 531 391 7107
Fax: ++ (49)531-391-5843
e-mail: g.stavroulakis@tu-bs.de