One of the most important branches of continuum mechanics is the classical theory of elasticity, which is concerned with the systematic study of the response of elastic bodies to the action of forces which deform it. This response in characterized by the stress and strain distributions inside a body that are developed because of the applied tractions or change in temperature. A body is said to be elastic if it regains its original shape when the forces causing deformation are removed. The elastic property of the material is shared by all substances provided that the deformations do not exceed certain limits determined by the constitutive characteristics of the body. The elastic property is characterized mathematically by certain functional relationships connecting forces and deformations.

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