Foreword

This is a time when hardback books are disappearing from university libraries and the gathering of knowledge becomes quick and flashy through Internet tools. But although hardback encyclopedias might be obsolete, there is still a need for thorough summaries that are well organized and well balanced and contain concentrated information in an accessible format. Such is the book you are reading now.

The books written by Landau and Lifshitz have always been some of my favorite learning books. Although they are overconcise, these books cover many topics in a thorough way. However, it is difficult to imagine that two authors would write a series of books like that in modern times. Two authors simply would not have the time anymore. That is also why the present book is written by several authors, each of them contributing in a particular field of expertise. The book is focused on flow with heat transfer in small-diameter tubes, but this topic is dealt with in an extensive way, summarizing most of the work of the past decades in this area. This makes the book a good read for both beginners and more experienced researchers in this area.

The topic has been very popular and was elaborated on all over the world, in famous laboratories in Israel, Switzerland, Germany, Brazil, China, and many other countries. It therefore stands to reason that the authors of this book also originate from various countries. We must admire them for their ability to conceive and realize a book with nine chapters without doubling certain aspects. The editor, Sujoy Kamar Saha, must have had a great hand in organizing in the endeavor.

This is a book that is bound to last for a long time in our libraries and on our laptops.