Background
ALEXANDER, Robert was born on July 7, 1934 in Lisburn, N. Ireland. Son of Robert Priestley Alexander and Janet (nee McNeill) Alexander.
(Originally published in 1988, this book is about the uses...)
Originally published in 1988, this book is about the uses and implications of elastic properties in various aspects of animal biology. After a brief study of the properties of elastic materials, the book considers the functions of springs in the bodies of animals. Drawing on specific examples, the uses of elastic structures as, amongst other things, muscle antagonists, energy stores, catapults and suspension springs are described. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in animal mechanics.
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(Examines how prehistoric animals lived, moved, and finall...)
Examines how prehistoric animals lived, moved, and finally died out by using drawings and charts to make comparisons with large modern animals such as elephants.
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( How did the larger dinosaurs run? How and why did they ...)
How did the larger dinosaurs run? How and why did they fight? The author applies laws of physics, mechanical engineering and aerodynamics to answer these and other questions.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0231066678/?tag=2022091-20
(The book examines the entire range of animal movements. B...)
The book examines the entire range of animal movements. Beginning with humans and other complex animals and ending with single-celled organisms, the book describes and illustrates how animals walk, run and jump; crawl and climb; soar and fly; float and swim. Are insects crawling on the underside of leaves defying gravity? Are fleas really nature's premier jumpers? Can a running cheetah reach 70 miles per hour? Do flying squirrels and lizards actually fly? The answers to these and other related questions are in this volume. The range and speed of movement in all complex animals are governed by muscles. This book begins with an overview of muscle physiology that explains the relation between energy costs and the ability to do work and exert force. Subsequent chapters examine in detail the specific ways animals travel, as the author demonstrates how body structure and patterns of movement are adapted to produce the most energy-efficient performance possible. The book offers dozens of examples of animals in motion, describing experiments that reveal among other things-how human walking differs from all other forms of animal walking; how insects adhere to surfaces; how the flight of birds is analogous to that of helicopters rather than airplanes; how ducks, penguins, squid, dolphins, trout, and eels exemplify different forms of swimming; and how amoebas "walk" by extending their pseudopods.
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( How can geckoes walk on the ceiling and basilisk lizard...)
How can geckoes walk on the ceiling and basilisk lizards run over water? What are the aerodynamic effects that enable small insects to fly? What are the relative merits of squids' jet-propelled swimming and fishes' tail-powered swimming? Why do horses change gait as they increase speed? What determines our own vertical leap? Recent technical advances have greatly increased researchers' ability to answer these questions with certainty and in detail. This text provides an up-to-date overview of how animals run, walk, jump, crawl, swim, soar, hover, and fly. Excluding only the tiny creatures that use cilia, it covers all animals that power their movements with muscle--from roundworms to whales, clams to elephants, and gnats to albatrosses. The introduction sets out the general rules governing all modes of animal locomotion and considers the performance criteria--such as speed, endurance, and economy--that have shaped their selection. It introduces energetics and optimality as basic principles. The text then tackles each of the major modes by which animals move on land, in water, and through air. It explains the mechanisms involved and the physical and biological forces shaping those mechanisms, paying particular attention to energy costs. Focusing on general principles but extensively discussing a wide variety of individual cases, this is a superb synthesis of current knowledge about animal locomotion. It will be enormously useful to advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and a range of professional biologists, physicists, and engineers.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691126348/?tag=2022091-20
(Principles of Animal Locomotion by Alexander, R. McNeill ...)
Principles of Animal Locomotion by Alexander, R. McNeill [Princeton Universit...
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ALEXANDER, Robert was born on July 7, 1934 in Lisburn, N. Ireland. Son of Robert Priestley Alexander and Janet (nee McNeill) Alexander.
Bachelor, Cambridge University, England, 1955. Doctor of Philosophy, Cambridge University, England, 1958. Master of Arts, Cambridge University, England, 1959.
Doctor of Science, University Wales, 1969. Doctor of Science (honorary), University Aberdeen, 2002. Doctor of Science (honorary), University Wageningen, Netherlands, 2003.
Assistant lecturer University College North Wales, Bangor, 1958-1961, lecturer, 1961-1968, senior lecturer, 1968-1969. Professor University Leeds, England, 1969-1999. Professor emeritus, since 1999.
( How can geckoes walk on the ceiling and basilisk lizard...)
( How did the larger dinosaurs run? How and why did they ...)
(Examines how prehistoric animals lived, moved, and finall...)
(Originally published in 1988, this book is about the uses...)
(The book examines the entire range of animal movements. B...)
(Principles of Animal Locomotion by Alexander, R. McNeill ...)
(1977 346 pages with illustrations. Hardbound, xlib with u...)
Author: Animal Mechanics, 1968, 83, The Chordates, 1975, Elastic Mechanisms in Animal Movement, 1988, Dynamics of Dinosaurs, 1989, Exploring Biomechanics, 1992, Principles of Animal Locomotion, 2003, numerous other books. Editor Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 1998-2004. Contributor articles on biomechanics to professional publications.
Fellow Royal Society, Institute Biology, Zoological Society London (honorary, secretary 1992-1999, science medal 1969), Society for Experimental Biology (president 1995-1997), American Academy Arts and Sciences, Academia Europaea, Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (honorary), International Society Vertebrate Morphologists (president 1997-2001), European Academy Scis.
Son of Robert Priestley and Janet (McNeill) A. Ann Elizabeth Coulton, July 29, 1961. Children: Jane Coulton Dearden, Robert Gordon.