Dr. Emmanuel E. Gdoutos is a member of the Academy of Athens, the most prestigious academic institute in Greece; a Professor Emeritus of the Democritus University of Thrace, Greece; Adjunct Professor at Northwestern University, USA; and Distinguished Clark Millikan Visiting Professor at California Institute of Technology, USA. He is member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, of Academia Europaea, and of the European Academy of Sciences. He is a foreign member of the Russian Academy of Engineering, the International Academy of Engineering, and the Russian and Bulgarian Academies of Sciences. He is a fellow and honorary member of various international societies. He was awarded a Doctorate Honoris Causa from the Russian Academy of Sciences and from the University of Nis, Serbia, and has received numerous international awards. He is an honorary citizen of the prefecture of Lesvos, Greece. He was the President of the European Structural Integrity Society, the European Society for Experimental Mechanics, and the Society for Experimental Mechanics. He has taught in several universities in Greece and USA. His research interests include experimental mechanics, fracture mechanics, advanced composite materials, sandwich construction, and nanotechnology. He has authored/co-authored more than 300 papers in refereed journals and conference proceedings and 40 books.

Chapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Linear Elastic Stress Field in Cracked Bodies.- Chapter 3. Elastic-Plastic Stress Field in Cracked Bodies.- Chapter 4. Crack Growth Based on Energy Balance.- Chapter 5. Critical Stress Intensity Factor Fracture Criterion.- Chapter 6. J-Integral and Crack Opening Displacement Fracture Criteria.- Chapter 7. Strain Energy Density Failure Criterion: Mixed-Mode Crack Growth.- Chapter 8. Dynamic Fracture.- Chapter 9. Fatigue and Environment-Assisted Fracture.- Chapter 10. Micromechanics of Fracture.- Chapter 11. Composite Materials.- Chapter 12. Thin Films.- Chapter 13. Nanoindentation.- Chapter 14. Cementitious Materials.- Chapter 15. Experimental Methods.- Chapter 16. Numerical Methods.