A research project entitled Biomechanics of Structure and Function of Living Cells, Tissues, and Organs was launched in Japan in 1992. This data book presents the original, up-to-date information resulting from the research project, supplemented by some of the important basic data published previously. The aim of collecting the information is to offer accurate and useful data on the mechanical properties of living materials to biomechanical scientists, biomedical engineers, medical scientists, and clinicians. The data are presented in graphs and tables (one type of data per page) arranged in an easily accessible manner, along with details of the origin of the material and the experimental method. Together with its two companion volumes, "Biomechanics: " "Functional Adaptation and Remodeling" and "Computational" "Biomechanics," the Data Book on Mechanical Properties of Living Cells, Tissues, and Organs is a timely and valuable contribution to the rapidly growing field of biomechanics.

"Function dictates structure" is a classic paradigm reaffirmed in Wolff's law of the skeletal system. A major question being addressed by current research in biomechanics is whether this doctrine also holds true for the cardiovascular system and connective tissues. Taking a multidisciplinary approach to this question has produced new insights into the sensors, signals, and activators that produce remodeling and functional adaptation in cardiac muscle, blood vessels, and bone, including important new findings on the response of vascular endothelial cells to shear stress. Other work focuses on the extent of remodeling and adaptation processes in tendons, ligaments, and intervertebral discs. Together with two companion volumes, "Computational Biomechanics" and the "Data Book on Mechanical Properties of Living Cells, Tissues, " "and Organs," this monograph will prove invaluable to those working in fields ranging from medical science and clinical medicine to biomedical engineering and applied mechanics.

It is widely recognized that numerical analysis is a useful ta al common ta the fields of engineering, applied mathematics and mechanics, and medical science. Computer simulation and modeling have contributed much ta the understanding of a wide variety of biomedical phenomena. In particular the use of numerical techniques is essential for solving problems involving extremely complex geom- etry and physical properties that arise in a wide range of biomechanics. The increased speed and expanded storage capacity of modern computers, together with newly advanced numerical and programming techniques, have greatly im- proved the potential for studying complicated biomedical processes. Computer modeling techniques and their applications in the field of biome- chanics have shown remarkable development in J apan in the past few years. This book focuses an these advances and shows how computer modeling and simula- tion are being utilized ta aid and assist researchers, scientists, and clinicians in their understanding of biomedical systems from the biomechanical point of view. The papers included in this book falI within three main areas of interest: orthopedic, orthodontic, and skeletal mechanics; circulatory mechanics; and bio- logical and living systems. This book contains highly original papers that have been carefulIy selected from the studies financialIy supported by a 3-year Grant- in-Aid for Scientific Research an Priority Areas (Biomechanics, Nas.