Shear strain begins as a visible displacement-height ratio. Exact arithmetic here means exact results for the stated model inputs; measured inputs still carry uncertainty and significant-figure limits.

highlighted = computed this step

Measure displacement and height

The top layer moves 2 m while the layer height is 4 m.

2 m4 m2\ \text{m}\quad4\ \text{m}
Shear strain ledgerTop displacement over layer height is checked exactly.heightdisplacement

Divide displacement by height

The shear strain is 1/2, an exact dimensionless ratio.

2/4=122/4=\frac{1}{2}
Shear strain ledgerTop displacement over layer height is checked exactly.heightdisplacement