Engineering Analysis via Symbolic Computation — A Breakthrough

Abstract

Since the early fifties, when the first codes for symbolic manipulations became available, their development and use have evolved into a scientific discipline. Besides the indisputable gain in efforts and higher reliability, the well-known methods of engineering analysis may acquire new dimensions, when performed via symbolic computation. There is a habitual aspect too. These days it may be more convenient for a researcher to work with a keyboard than with a pencil. The paper presents an overview of the main software available for symbolic computation and its applications to engineering analysis from the user’s viewpoint.