The Essence of Geotechnical Engineering commemorates the diamond jubilee of the journal Géotechnique. Following an introduction from the honorary editor, John Atkinson, the book is split into three parts: Géotechnique, past, present and future; Contributions to Géotechnique 1948–2008; and Seminal papers and discussion 1950–1990.
The first section provides three papers charting the history of the journal, its founders, and geotechnical publications prior to Géotechnique. For those not familiar with the history and development of geotechnical engineering, these papers provide an excellent historical account. The paper by Burland, in particular, provides an interesting insight into the characters and personalities of the journal's founders. The Chrimes paper charts the development of the profession. It is interesting to compare this paper with an account of the geotechnical challenges faced by engineers in the early 20th century described by Burland.1 The fourth paper, by Simpson and Tatsuoka, speculates on what developments will take place in geotechnical engineering (and in Géotechnique) over the forthcoming 60 years. This paper is thought-provoking, and presents a perspective on future trends and an insight into where research opportunities may lie in the future.
The second section provides 13 papers covering different areas of geotechnical engineering and related disciplines. The papers provide a historical account of the contributions that Géotechnique papers have made to the development of theory and practice in each discipline considered. Many of the papers have adhered to the title of identifying papers published solely in Géotechnique. Other papers, for example those covering retaining walls, ground improvement, groundwater, engineering geology rock mechanics and rock engineering, are more wide-ranging in their citation. These papers, in particular, provide a context for the role that Géotechnique has played in the development of these areas of ground engineering related disciplines.
The final section of the book includes nine seminal papers published in Géotechnique during the period 1950–1990. Rankine Lecture papers were excluded from selection on the basis that they are rarely seminal, and those up to 1990 have been published separately as collections. The inclusion of only nine papers must have presented a difficult selection challenge for the review panel. It is of note that five of the papers derive from the 1950s, identifying the significant contribution that Géotechnique played during this era. The discussion relating to these papers, particularly Roscoe et al. ‘On the yielding of clays', is illuminating, and serves as a reminder of the importance that discussion articles should play in journals.
