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PAUL M. NAGHDI
1 924-1 994
BY RONALD P. NORDGREN
PAUL M. NAGHDI, professor of engineering science at the
University of California, Berkeley, died on July 9, 1994, at the
age of seventy.
Paul was elected to the National Academy of Engineering
in 1984 in recognition of his "pioneering contributions to re-
search in continuum mechanics, especially in the areas of shell
theory and inelastic behavior of materials." His research en-
compassed nearly all areas of the mechanical behavior of solids
and fluids. He was strongly attracted by fundamental theoreti-
cal questions, which he strived to treat at the highest possible
level of generality. Paul is best known for his work on the
theory of thin elastic shells and the behavior of elastic-plastic
materials. In both areas he developed and refined systematic
general theories and applied them to significant problems of
engineering interest. In his forty-five-year career as an educa-
tor, Paul developed a comprehensive series of courses on
continuum mechanics, first at the University of Michigan and
then at the University of California. At these universities he
guided many graduate students in their initial research en-
deavors. In addition, he was a leader in several professional
. . .
engineering organizations.
Born on March 29, 1924, in Teheran, Paul Naghdi made a
perilous crossing to the United States in 1943 seeking free-
dom and education. He graduated from Cornell University in
155
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156
MEMORIAL TRIBUTES
1946 with a B.S. degree in mechanical engineering. Following
a brief period of service in the U.S. Army, Paul continued his
studies in engineering mechanics at the University of Michi-
gan, earning his M.S. degree in 1948 and his Ph.D. clegree in
1951. He was granted U.S. citizenship in 194S.
At Michigan, Paul served as an instructor in engineering me-
chanics from 1949 to 1951. After graduation he was appointed
assistant professor and rose rapidly to the rank of full professor
in 1954. In 1958 Paulmoved to the University of California.
Berkeley, as professor of engineering science. There he led in
the establishment of the division of applied mechanics in the
Department of Mechanical Engineering and was chairman of
this division from 1964 to 1969. In 1991 he was appointed to the
Roscoe and Elizabeth Hughes Chair in Mechanical Engineering.
In 1994 he advanced to the newly instituted position of professor
in the graduate school. As an educator, Paul found the cliscove~y
and transmission of knowledge to be very satisfying complemen-
tary activities. He was highly devoted to the democratic ideals
and processes of the Berkelev facials And he n~rticin~ter1 vis'~r-
ously in academic life.
- r~-~r ~^~^
Paul Naghcti's research interest in the theory of plates and
shells was stimulated by a series of summer lectures in 1949 by
the legendary applied mechanician Stephen Timoshenko
(who immigrated to the United States in 1922~. Subsequently
Paul cleveloped and refined basic equations for small
deformations of thin elastic shells, an effort that culminated
in the 1963 publication of a major research article entitled
"Foundations of Elastic Shell Theory." During this same
period, he and his coworkers also solved a number of static
and dynamic shell problems of engineering interest.
Continued research on the large deformations of elastic shells
led Paul to formulate a strictly two-dimensional nonlinear
theory of shells called the Cosserat Surface theory (after the
French brothers who originated this idea early in the twentieth
century). This approach to shell theory and the classical three-
ctimensional approach are both contained in Naghcti's
definitive article entitled "The Theory of Shells and Plates" in
the 1972 Handbuch der Physik. Further, Paul extendecl the
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PAUL M. NAGHDI
157
Cosserat surface approach to describe the behavior of fluid
sheets and jets. He applied this new theory to solve a number
of engineering problems.
The second main thrust of Paul NaghUi's research through-
out his career was directed! toward characterizing the
elastic-plastic deformation of engineering materials. His early
research in the 1950s included experiments and solutions to
boundary-vaTue problems (with coworkers) as well as contribu
tions to the general theory of
small elastic-plastic
deformations. Subsequent research in collaboration with his
longtime friend A. E. Green led in 1965 to the first systematic
theory of elastic-plastic materials undergoing large deforma-
tions, published as A General Theory of an Elastic-Plastic Continuum.
Paul continued to develop en cl refine this theory and gave a
critical review of the subject in 1990. Over the years, he also
macle important contributions to linear and nonlinear elastic-
ity, viscoelasticity, continuum thermodynamics, and mixture
theory. Paul's most recent research focused on the microme-
chanical aspects of plasticity theory.
Paul Naghcli's educational activities constitute an impor-
tant contribution to the engineering
profession. His
comprehensive lecture courses in many areas of the mechan-
ics of continuous media enabled a large number of engineers
to gain a fundamental understanding of this subject, at both
the graduate and the undergraduate level. These lectures in-
spired many students to begin research under Paul's guidance
and follow productive careers in applied mechanics.
Naghdi was an active member of many professional commit-
tees, including the Executive Committee of the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Applied Mechanics Division
(1967 to 1972; chairman, 1972~; the National Research Council,
Division of Physical Sciences, U.S. National Committee on Theo-
retical and Applied Mechanics (1972 to 1984; chairman, 1979 to
1980~; the General Assembly of the International Union of The
oretical and Applied Mechanics (1978 to 1984~; and the ASME
Committee on Honors (1986 to 1994; chairman, 1991 to 1994~.
In 1977, for the fiftieth anniversary of the ASME Applied Me-
chanics Division, Paul prepared a comprehensive history of the
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158
MEMORIAL TRIBUTES
division. In April 1994, at great personal hardship, he flew to
Denver to chair the last meeting of the ASME Honors Commit-
tee uncler his leadership.
Paul NaghUi received a number of prestigious awards in
recognition of his achievements. He was awarded ASME's Ti-
moshenko Medal in 1980 for his fundamental contributions
to plasticity and shell theory. This award placed him in the top
echelon of engineering scientists of this century. Paul was
made an honorary member of the ASME in 1983, and he was
elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1984. Paul
received the Eringen Medal of the Society of Engineering Sci-
ence in 1986. He held honorary doctoral degrees from the
National University of Ireland ~1987) and the Universite
Catholique de Louvain (1992~. In 1994 he was honored with
the Berkeley Citation, the equivalent of an honorary doctoral
degree at the University of California. A collection of research
papers by his former students and colleagues was published in
celebration of Paul's seventieth birthday.)
Paul NaghUi's activities in research, education, and profes-
sional leadership have greatly enhanced the field of applied
mechanics in particular and engineering in general. In addi-
tion to his specific accomplishments, Paul will be rememberer!
for his inspirational enthusiasm for the research work that so
filled his life.
i']heoretical, Experimental and Numerical Contributions to the Mechanics
of Fluids and Solids," Special Issue of Journal of Applied Mechanics and Physics
(ZAMP), J. Casey and M. J. Crochet, eds., 1994. This issue also contains a list
of Naghdi's papers (numbering over 200) and an essay on his work.
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Representative terms from entire chapter:
shell theory
