Pythonic Geodynamics: Implementations for Fast Computing (Lecture Notes in Earth System Sciences)

This book addresses students and young researchers who want to learn to use numerical modeling to solve problems in geodynamics. Intended as an easy-to-use and self-learning guide, readers only need a basic background in calculus to approach most of the material. The book difficulty increases very gradually, through four distinct parts. The first is an introduction to the Python techniques necessary to visualize and run vectorial calculations. The second is an overview with several examples on classical Mechanics with examples taken from standard introductory physics books. The third part is a detailed description of how to write Lagrangian, Eulerian and Particles in Cell codes for solving linear and non-linear continuum mechanics problems. Finally the last one address advanced techniques like tree-codes, Boundary Elements, and illustrates several applications to Geodynamics. The entire book is organized around numerous examples in Python, aiming at encouraging the reader to le arn by experimenting and experiencing, not by theory. Front Matter ....Pages i-xvi Front Matter ....Pages 1-1 Bird’s Eye View (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 3-14 Visualization (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 15-33 Fast Python: NumPy and Cython (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 35-60 Front Matter ....Pages 61-61 Mechanics I: Kinematics (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 63-75 Mechanics II: Newtonian Dynamics (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 77-91 Insights on the Physics of Stokes Flow (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 93-104 Front Matter ....Pages 105-105 Lagrangian Transport (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 107-128 Operator Formulation (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 129-141 Laplacian Operator and Diffusion (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 143-160 Beyond Linearity (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 161-177 Front Matter ....Pages 179-179 Trees, Particles, and Boundaries (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 181-200 Applications to Geodynamics (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 201-207 The Future (Gabriele Morra)....Pages 209-216 Back Matter ....Pages 217-227