Theo.& Num. Meth.Soil Mech.

Geotechnical practice employs computer programs that incorporate numerical methods to address problems of stability, settlement, deformation, and seepage. These methods are based on theoretical understanding of the behavior of soils, and correct use of commercial software requires that the engineer understand theoretical bases of the numerical algorithms and how they work. This course addresses the description of stress and strain in the context of geotechnical engineering and the basic concepts of numerical and computational methods, including discretization errors, computational procedures appropriate to different classes of problem, and numerical instability. It will then apply the insights to the three major problems of geotechnical analysis: settlement, stability, and fluid flow.