Introduction to MATLAB, 4th edition

For first-year or introductory Engineering courses.

Illustrating MATLAB best practices through practical engineering examples 

Best-selling author Delores Etter provides an up-to-date survey of MATLAB^® in her 4th Edition of Introduction to MATLAB. Using a consistent five-step methodology for solving engineering problems, Etter demonstrates the exceptional computational and visualization capabilities of MATLAB and integrates real-world engineering and scientific examples with solutions and usable code. The discussions, screen captures, examples, and problem solutions have been updated to reflect MATLAB Version 8.2, R2013b. This book is suitable as a primary text for an introductory engineering course or as a supplemental text for an intermediate or advanced course. No prior experience with computers is needed. The text is also useful as a professional reference. 

Written to introduce engineering problem-solving with three main objectives

• Present a consistent methodology for solving engineering problems.
• A five-step process: Developed by the author, this process is introduced in Chapter 1 and is used to consistently solve engineering problems throughout the text.
• State the problem clearly.
• Describe the input and output information.
• Work a simple example by hand.
• Develop an algorithm and convert it to MATLAB^®.
• Test the solution with a variety of data.
• Describe the exceptional computational and visualization capabilities of MATLAB.
• Student aids: Each chapter ends with a summarythat reviews the topics covered and includes a list of key terms. A MATLAB summary lists the symbols, commands, and functions defined in the chapter. Hintsare provided to help students avoid common errors.
• Visualization: Students learn to generate plots in a variety of formats they can use to analyze, interpret, and evaluate data. This draws on a key advantage of MATLAB — to visualize information related to a problem.
• Software engineering concepts: Through MATLAB, users can write portable code that can be transferred from one computer platform to another. The text also addresses software life cycle, maintenance, and prototypes.
• UPDATED! MATLAB functions: The book covers a range of new MATLAB functions and options.
• Illustrate the problem-solving process through a variety of engineering examples and applications.
• Practical applications: Numerous problems promote simple, readable solutions to help develop and reinforce problem-solving skills. Each topic is presented in clear problem statements that draw on practical examples.
• Discipline-specific focus: Each chapter is organized around a specific application from a range of engineering disciplines to demonstrate the MATLAB capabilities.
• Engineering Grand Challenges: The beginning of each chapter presents real-world engineering and scientific examples, including prediction of weather, climate, and global change, mapping of the human genome, and improvements in vehicle performance.
• EXPANDED! Problem sets with data sets: New problems have been added to the end-of-chapter problems. These problems relate to a variety of engineering applications and allow students to practice at different levels of difficulty.
• UPDATED! New MATLAB version: The discussions, screen captures, examples, and problem solutions have been updated to reflect MATLAB Version 9.1, R2016b.
• UPDATED! Data imports and exports: The text includes updated discussions and examples of how to import and export data to other applications, such as Excel.

• UPDATED! MATLAB^® functions: The book covers a range of new MATLAB functions and options.
• EXPANDED! Problem sets with data sets: New problems have been added to the end-of-chapter problems. These problems relate to a variety of engineering applications and allow students to practice at different levels of difficulty.
• UPDATED! New MATLAB version: The discussions, screen captures, examples, and problem solutions have been updated to reflect MATLAB Version 9.1, R2016b.
• UPDATED! Data imports and exports: The text includes updated discussions and examples of how to import and export data to other applications, such as Excel.