Target Audience‎.‎ This text is designed for the first course in Statics offered in the sophomore year‎.‎ Overview ‎- The main objective of a first course in mechanics should be to develop in the engineering student the ability to analyze any problem in a simple and logical manner and to apply to its solution a few‎,‎ well‎-understood‎,‎ basic principles‎.‎ This text is designed to help the instructor achieve this goal‎.‎ Vector analysis is introduced early in the text and is used in the presentation and discussion of the fundamental principles of mechanics‎.‎ Vector methods are also used to solve many problems‎,‎ particularly three‎-dimensional problems where these techniques result in a simpler and more concise solution‎.‎ The emphasis in this text‎,‎ however‎,‎ remains on the correct understanding of the principles of mechanics and on their application to the solution of engineering problems‎,‎ and vector analysis is presented chiefly as a convenient tool‎.‎ In order to achieve the goal of being able to analyze mechanics problems‎,‎ the text employs the following pedagogical strategy‎:‎ practical applications are introduced early‎;‎ new concepts are introduced simply‎;‎ and fundamental principles are placed in simple contexts‎.‎ Students are given extensive practice through‎:‎ sample problems‎,‎ special sections entitled Solving Problems on Your Own‎,‎ extensive homework problem sets‎,‎ review problems at the end of each chapter‎,‎ and computer problems designed to be solved with computational software‎.‎ Resources Supporting This Textbook ‎- Instructor‎'‎s and Solutions Manual features typeset‎,‎ one‎-per‎-page solutions to the end of chapter problems‎.‎ It also features a number of tables designed to assist instructors in creating a schedule of assignments for their course‎.‎ The various topics covered in the text have been listed in Table I and a suggested number of periods to be spent on each topic has been indicated‎.‎ Table II prepares a brief description of all groups of problems‎.‎ Sample lesson schedules are shown in Tables III‎,‎ IV‎,‎ and V‎,‎ together with various alternative lists of assigned homework problems‎.‎ Hands‎-on Mechanics is a website designed for instructors who are interested in incorporating three‎-dimensional‎,‎ hands‎-on teaching aids into their lectures‎.‎ Developed through a partnership between the McGraw‎-Hill Engineering Team and the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at the United States Military Academy at West Point‎,‎ this website not only provides detailed instructions for how to build 3‎-D teaching tools using materials found in any lab or local hardware store‎,‎ but also provides a community where educators can share ideas‎,‎ trade best practices‎,‎ and submit their own original demonstrations for posting on the site‎.‎