FIRST COURSE FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
SOLUTION GUIDE LOGAN 2026 COMPLETE
PROBLEM COVERAGE GRADED A+
⩥ What common characteristic did Hrennikoff and Courant share in
their work? Answer: The discretization of a continuous domain into
several elements
⩥ What type of discretization did Hrennikoff propose? Answer: Lattice
discretization
⩥ What approach did Courant use for discretization? Answer: Constant
strain triangular elements
⩥ Name one of the universities where significant FEM development
occurred. Answer: UC Berkeley, University of Stuttgart, University of
Swansea, Cornell University
⩥ What are some engineering disciplines that utilize FEM? Answer:
Structural analysis, electromagnetism, heat transfer, fluid dynamics
⩥ What was the main focus of Hrennikoff's 1941 paper? Answer:
Discretization of a continuous domain into several elements using the
lattice analogy
,⩥ What was Richard Courant's contribution in 1943? Answer: He
presented his approach based on constant strain triangular elements
using the Ritz method.
⩥ What significant development did Ray Clough and John Turner work
on in the early 1950s? Answer: Calculation of bending and torsional
flexibility influence coefficients on low aspect wings.
⩥ What was the outcome of Clough and Turner's work presented in
1956? Answer: They published 'Stiffness and Deflection Analysis of
Complex Structures,' one of the first articles on FEM.
⩥ What term did Ray Clough coin in 1960? Answer: Finite Element
Method
⩥ What was the purpose of the automated finite element program
developed by Ed Wilson? Answer: To reduce the workload required to
solve finite element problems.
⩥ What was a limitation of Hrennikoff's lattice analogy? Answer: It
could not be applied to nonrectangular areas.
,⩥ What did John Argyris contribute to FEM? Answer: He unified
different approximate methods for continuous and one-dimensional
frame structures.
⩥ What was the significance of the IBM 701 computer in the
development of FEM? Answer: It allowed for the solving of structural
analysis problems using matrix algebra.
⩥ What was the main focus of Clough's 1960 paper? Answer: The
application of the finite element method in plane stress analysis.
⩥ What advancement did Wilson's program introduce in 1960? Answer:
A two-dimensional frame analysis program with a nonlinear moment-
curvature relationship.
⩥ What was the impact of the Finite Element Method on engineering
education? Answer: It became very popular in universities due to its
wide range of applications.
⩥ How has the number of papers published on FEM changed over time?
Answer: The number of papers has increased exponentially.
⩥ What was the maximum number of equations the IBM 701 could
solve? Answer: Approximately 40 equations.
, ⩥ What did the constant strain triangular membrane element avoid?
Answer: Shear locking.
⩥ What was the significance of the 2nd ASCE Conference on Electronic
Computation in 1960? Answer: It was where Clough presented his paper
on the Finite Element Method.
⩥ What was the primary input for the automated finite element program
developed by Clough and Wilson? Answer: The location of the nodes
and the node numbers for triangular plane stress elements.
⩥ What type of analysis did Wilson's program allow for? Answer:
Pushover type analysis with incremental loads.
⩥ What is the significance of the term 'Finite Element Analysis' (FEA)?
Answer: It refers to the numerical modeling of physical systems using
the finite element method.
⩥ What was a major limitation of Courant's approach in the early days
of FEM? Answer: It was not pursued due to the lack of high-speed
computers.
⩥ What year did significant research on earthquake engineering begin at
UC Berkeley? Answer: 1960
SOLUTION GUIDE LOGAN 2026 COMPLETE
PROBLEM COVERAGE GRADED A+
⩥ What common characteristic did Hrennikoff and Courant share in
their work? Answer: The discretization of a continuous domain into
several elements
⩥ What type of discretization did Hrennikoff propose? Answer: Lattice
discretization
⩥ What approach did Courant use for discretization? Answer: Constant
strain triangular elements
⩥ Name one of the universities where significant FEM development
occurred. Answer: UC Berkeley, University of Stuttgart, University of
Swansea, Cornell University
⩥ What are some engineering disciplines that utilize FEM? Answer:
Structural analysis, electromagnetism, heat transfer, fluid dynamics
⩥ What was the main focus of Hrennikoff's 1941 paper? Answer:
Discretization of a continuous domain into several elements using the
lattice analogy
,⩥ What was Richard Courant's contribution in 1943? Answer: He
presented his approach based on constant strain triangular elements
using the Ritz method.
⩥ What significant development did Ray Clough and John Turner work
on in the early 1950s? Answer: Calculation of bending and torsional
flexibility influence coefficients on low aspect wings.
⩥ What was the outcome of Clough and Turner's work presented in
1956? Answer: They published 'Stiffness and Deflection Analysis of
Complex Structures,' one of the first articles on FEM.
⩥ What term did Ray Clough coin in 1960? Answer: Finite Element
Method
⩥ What was the purpose of the automated finite element program
developed by Ed Wilson? Answer: To reduce the workload required to
solve finite element problems.
⩥ What was a limitation of Hrennikoff's lattice analogy? Answer: It
could not be applied to nonrectangular areas.
,⩥ What did John Argyris contribute to FEM? Answer: He unified
different approximate methods for continuous and one-dimensional
frame structures.
⩥ What was the significance of the IBM 701 computer in the
development of FEM? Answer: It allowed for the solving of structural
analysis problems using matrix algebra.
⩥ What was the main focus of Clough's 1960 paper? Answer: The
application of the finite element method in plane stress analysis.
⩥ What advancement did Wilson's program introduce in 1960? Answer:
A two-dimensional frame analysis program with a nonlinear moment-
curvature relationship.
⩥ What was the impact of the Finite Element Method on engineering
education? Answer: It became very popular in universities due to its
wide range of applications.
⩥ How has the number of papers published on FEM changed over time?
Answer: The number of papers has increased exponentially.
⩥ What was the maximum number of equations the IBM 701 could
solve? Answer: Approximately 40 equations.
, ⩥ What did the constant strain triangular membrane element avoid?
Answer: Shear locking.
⩥ What was the significance of the 2nd ASCE Conference on Electronic
Computation in 1960? Answer: It was where Clough presented his paper
on the Finite Element Method.
⩥ What was the primary input for the automated finite element program
developed by Clough and Wilson? Answer: The location of the nodes
and the node numbers for triangular plane stress elements.
⩥ What type of analysis did Wilson's program allow for? Answer:
Pushover type analysis with incremental loads.
⩥ What is the significance of the term 'Finite Element Analysis' (FEA)?
Answer: It refers to the numerical modeling of physical systems using
the finite element method.
⩥ What was a major limitation of Courant's approach in the early days
of FEM? Answer: It was not pursued due to the lack of high-speed
computers.
⩥ What year did significant research on earthquake engineering begin at
UC Berkeley? Answer: 1960
