"This report is a first attempt to devise a calculation method for representing the buckling behavior of cylindrical shells of variable curvature. The problem occurs, for instance, in dimensioning wing noses, the stability of which is decisively influenced by the variability of curvature. The calculation is made possible by simplifying the stability equations (permissible for the shell of small curvature) and by assuming that the curvature 1/R as a function of the arc lengths can be represented by a very few Fourier terms" (p. 1).

In solving two-dimensional problems using Airy's stress function for multiply connected regions, the form of the function depends on the dislocations and boundary forces present. The structure of Airy's function is shown to consist of a part expressible in terms of boundary forces and a part expressible in the manner of Poincare. Meanings of the constants occurring in Poincare's expression are discussed.