This book is based on lectures delivered over the years by the author at the
Universit´ Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, at the University of Stuttgart, and at
e
City University of Hong Kong. Its two-fold aim is to give thorough introduc-
tions to the basic theorems of differential geometry and to elasticity theory in
curvilinear coordinates.
The treatment is essentially self-contained and proofs are complete. The
prerequisites essentially consist in a working knowledge of basic notions of anal-
ysis and functional analysis, such as differential calculus, integration theory
and Sobolev spaces, and some familiarity with ordinary and partial differential
equations.
In particular, no a priori knowledge of differential geometry or of elasticity
theory is assumed.