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Contemporary Physics
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Introduction to Medical Imaging – Physics, Engineering

and Clinical Applications, by Nicholas Dimakis
a
Nicholas Dimakis
a
University of Texas-Pan American
Published online: 01 Jun 2012.

To cite this article: Nicholas Dimakis (2012) Introduction to Medical Imaging – Physics, Engineering and Clinical Applications,
by Nicholas Dimakis, Contemporary Physics, 53:4, 382-383, DOI: 10.1080/00107514.2012.689340

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00107514.2012.689340

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 382 Book reviews
engineers but also to theoretical fluid dynamicists and
mathematicians who would like to relate the theore-
tical results to real life examples.
More than two thirds of the book is devoted to a
discussion of one-dimensional shocks and applications
to the study of steady and unsteady flows. There is also
a discussion of the method of characteristics and
application to steady two-dimensional supersonic
flows. One chapter gives a brief discussion of transonic
flows. The strengths of the book lie in the description
of discontinuities and shock wave physics and the
explanations which link the theory with concrete
examples taken from real flight situations. The sections
on oblique shocks, shock polars, and shock–shock
interactions are very informative, although concise
mathematically. There are some very nice and possibly
unique photographs in a book of this type, for instance
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the wonderful photographs showing different inter-
ference patterns for a flow at Mach 10. The depiction
of streaklines with a helicopter rotor blade movement
is fantastic and quite different from examples that one
would find in other books. The author’s expertise
clearly shines in these sections.
The one danger in labelling this book as a
handbook on compressible aerodynamics is the im-
pression that could possibly be created that the
phenomena being discussed are the ones which are
the most important and relevant in this subject area.
The whole text is focused on inviscid flows and there is
scant discussion of viscous effects. There is no proper
discussion of boundary layers and its importance to
many of the flows being discussed. The discussion on
shock wave interactions near ramps and over curved
surfaces is incomplete without a proper discussion of
flow separation and shock wave boundary layer
interactions. There is no discussion of flow instabilities.
The title of the book in my opinion is misleading and
should have included the word inviscid somewhere.
The word handbook implies some kind of reference
text and whilst the book does contain lots of useful
reference type of material particularly in the appen-
dices, it is not a reference text that one would
immediately jump to find out about a topic in this
area. For instance the transonic small disturbance
equation is written down in Appendix 4, but nowhere
can one find any links to Kárman and Guderlay.
There are many other very good books covering
this type of material but geared more towards the
undergraduate market.
This book is different in this respect and is not one
that one would recommend to an undergraduate. The
style of writing may not appeal to some people. For
instance there is no historical perspective present in
many of the discussions. The books by Anderson give
an excellent account of how the subject has developed,
but none of this is present here. There is a decent
bibliography given at the end of the book, but no
citations to any of the texts in many body. The style of
writing would suit a more mature student and someone
with a good introductory grasp of the subject, but not
one who is learning about the subject for the first time.
Nevertheless, there is a place for this book. The author
has pitched it at engineers and written it in a style
which will appeal to engineers. As a mathematician, I
certainly enjoyed the wonderful photographs and
examples, but I would have to use the handbook in
conjunction with other more mathematically descrip-
tive texts for this book to be useful.
Jitesh S.B. Gajjar
University of Manchester
j.gajjar@manchester.ac.uk
Ó 2012, Jitesh S.B. Gajjar
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00107514.2012.689339
Introduction to Medical Imaging – Physics, Engineering
and Clinical Applications, by Nicholas Dimakis,
Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2010, 296
pp., £45.00 (hardback), ISBN 978-0-521-19065-7.
Scope: medical imaging. Level: advanced undergradu-
ates and graduate students in medical imaging and
related disciplines.
Medical Imaging is a set of techniques and procedures
for image generation and analysis related to the
visualisation of internal structures for humans and
animals. This visualisation is of significant assistance to
the medical doctors and appropriate specialists, such as
radiologists, for diagnosis and disease treatment. The
number of images that have been obtained up to now is
at the order of a few billions, which emphasises and
supports the significance of medical imaging. Imagining
is obtained by using a source such as X-rays,
ultrasound, sub atomic particles and magnetic fields.
Nowadays, image reconstruction (which could be in
3D) is achieved by the use of sophisticated mathema-
tical algorithms, which are based on the well-known
Fourier transform method. Currently, there is tremen-
dous effort to improve these algorithms, thus suppres-
sing image artefacts and increase image resolution.
Radiography, computed tomography (CT), mag-
netic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound are
among the few new terminologies that are already a
part of everybody’s life. There are no words to express
the happiness that prospective mothers feel when they
see a 3D picture in real time of their baby to be born.
Obtaining a movie of the fetus just a decade ago would
seem unrealistic. Moreover, ultrasound can be used for
needle guidance if amniocentesis is necessary to detect
 Contemporary Physics
fetus disorders. Recently, advanced nuclear medicine
imaging techniques such as the positron emission
tomography (PET) opened new horizons in cancer
detection. PET and CT imaging helped oncologists to
detect cancer at an earlier stage, thus significantly
increasing life expectancy for cancer patients. In some
cases, cancer detection at a very early stage may
completely eliminate its re-occurrence for the life of the
patient. Additionally, cardiac CT provides high-resolu-
tion 3D images of the heart, which can be used for
prevention or evaluation of serious heart diseases such
as the coronary heart disease and aneurysms.
A question that mostly arises is related to the safety
of these techniques. It must be mentioned, that not all
of the above techniques expose patients to ionising
radiation. For instance, MRI can provide high-quality
images comparable to CT without using harmful
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radiation. However, in case of whole body CT scan,
where radiation levels are about two to three orders of
magnitude greater than conventional radiography, the
possible risk of cancer due to radiation exposure
cannot be neglected. In these cases, the CT image
resolution may be reduced, thus reducing radiation
exposure. Low-resolution CT scans are necessary when
a child is the patient. Alternatively, MRI or ultrasound
may be employed. Research on low-radiation high-
quality CT imaging is underway.
The Introduction to Medical Imaging is more than
simply a textbook used by undergraduates and first-
year graduates: It contains important information that
would be used also as a reference by specialists. The
book is written in a form that is easy to follow: It
consists of five chapters and covers the basics of image
reconstruction, radiography and CT, nuclear medicine,
and MRI. Additionally, it includes the necessary
theory in physics, which is behind the imaging
techniques presented here. The authors did an excellent
job by including the recent developments in the area:
4D ultrasound, cardiac CT and PET/CT are covered
here. Solved examples and end-of-chapter problems
are included, which help students to test their knowl-
edge and master the theory behind these techniques.
The solutions to these problems and the colour version
of the figures that appear as black and white in the
book reside in a complementary website. In the future,
this website may include additional material such as
copies of the code that is used for image reconstruction
of CT scans.
Clinical applications are included in the book; they
serve as a bridge between theory and practicality to the
medical field. A bibliography list at the end of each
chapter may be used as a source for additional reading
and in search for specialised knowledge. Overall, the work
by Smith and Webb here is of outstanding quality: Their
impressive and dedicated work deserves a strong
383
recommendation. I am optimistic that in the future we
may see another book by the authors in a closely related
field.
Nicholas Dimakis
University of Texas-Pan American
dimakis@utpa.edu
Ó 2012, Nicholas Dimakis
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00107514.2012.689340
Their Arrows Will Darken the Sun – The Evolution and
Science of Ballistics, by Mark Denny, Baltimore, The
Johns Hopkins Press, 2011, x þ 234 pp., £15.50
(paperback), ISBN 978-0-801-89857-0. Scope: general
interest, guide. Level: general readership, non-specia-
lists, undergraduate, teacher, specialist, scientist.
The aim of this book is to provide an extensive and
detailed exposition of the science of ballistics through
the ages. Of course warfare is one of the very oldest of
pursuits, at least in its practical effect, and its
development has largely occurred via empirical meth-
ods – at least until fairly modern times. Except in
hand-to-hand combat, the design drive has been to
promote action at a distance via projectiles of
increasing sophistication and accuracy. Naturally the
aim (!) has been to cause damage/death and destruc-
tion with minimal risk to one’s own side.
Projectile motion under gravity, with or without
resistance, features in all beginning courses in Me-
chanics – at School and at University – with the detail
given largely dependent on the level of mathematical
maturity of the students. In such courses, motivations
in warfare (or for that matter in sport) are frequently
not emphasised – that is if given at all. This is surely
mistaken, since Physics/Applied Mathematics – while
often beautiful in their own right – have as a main
selling point the understanding of our World or all
possible worlds (!), as they are and have been.
There is a division into three main sections –
labelled BANG!, WHIZZ!, THUD!.
The BANG! Section deals with ‘internal’ ballistics,
which describes the generation of a desired speed of
projectile propulsion. The historical development
starts before gunpowder – with rock, bow and arrow
(and with the archer’s paradox), the Roman onager,
and the trebuchet of the Middle Ages. Then things
progress through gunpowder to bullet and cannonball,
and then on to the sophisticated modern weaponry of
today.
The WHIZZ! Section deals with ‘external’ ballistics
and describes how the projectile of choice flies through
the air on a trajectory towards its target. Again there is
discussion of the historical development through the