sides of the plane of II. \vklITh HOPKINSCNIVERSITY BALTIMORE18, MARYLASD STERLIXG CHEMISTRY LABORATORY YALE UNIVERSITY CARLA. AUFDERMSRSH, JR. X ~ l vHAVES, C ~ N ~ E C T ~ C ~ T RECEIVED MARCH6, 1958 REMSEs
HALL
THETOHSS
BOOK REVIEWS The Carbohydrates. Chemistry, Biochemistry, Physiology. Edited by \YARD PIGMAN,Department of Biochemistry, University of Alabama Medical Center, Birmingham, Alabama. Academic Press, Inc., 111 Fifth Avenue, Yew York 3, N. Y. 195i. xvii 902 pp. 16 X 23.5 cm. Price, $80.00. T h e present text and reference book represents an exceptionally extensive revision and expansion of “Chemistry of the Carbohydrates,” first published in 1948 by Professor Pigman and Dr. R . h1. Goepp, Jr. T h e earlier edition, which was the first extensive general treatise on carbohydrate chemistry in the English language, and which was received enthusiastically by carbohydrate chemists and biochemists, has been brought up t o date through 1956 in the current first revision. In contrast to its predecessor, the present text is written b>-Professor Pigman, also its editor, with the aid of some twenti- contributing authors, all active research specialists in some branch of carbohydrate science. In view of the tremendous and rapidly growing literature in this field, this departure gives the present volume greater breadth of scholarship than would be conceivably possible under single authorship. T o the editor’s credit the divided authorship is completel>-unobtrusive, atid the reader receives a pleasant impression o f uniformity and homogeneit>- on continuing from chapter to chapter through the book, a feeling augmeuted, perhaps, bl- the editor’s adoption of tlie neiv official rules of nomenclature wherever applicable throughout. The chapter headings in the present volume indicate a geuerally similar organization t o t h a t employed in the earlier edition. The first ten chapters, treating mainly the chemistry of the simple sugars and their derivatives, are revised mainly b y expansion to include more recent material. This expansion averages an approximately 237;. iiicrease iu the number of pages in each of these chapters. The later chapters of the earlier edition, dealing with polysaccharides, have been more extensively changed, and the detailed treatment of starch and cellulose has been abbreviated in favor o f more general information regarding plant, bacterial, fungal and animal polysaccharides. 111 addition, ne\v chapters covering the Identification and Quantitative Determinatioii o f Carbohydrates, Photosyllthesis and Metabolisin ,if Carbohh-drates,ant1 Carbohydrates iii Sutritioii have beeti iticlutlcd. Those subjects which 110~1. more cursory ci)nsideration are :tdequatcly covered ’r inonographs, to which referencc is always g i w i i l l tlic present trcati>c. 111 general, frequent references to iiinre detailed treatments help to increase the coverage of the test. The expantled informatiou and scope of the present volume over its predecessor is reflected in an increase in the nuiiiber of t11v t c s t x i l pages from t i 4 i to 817, the pages ( I f ciiitlior itides f i n l i n 20 t t l :%Ia i i i l the iiuiiiI)cr of f ( ~ t ) t i i r ) t c fsr o i i i
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For a text of its size the present volume appears reniarkably free from tjpographical errors. In view of the considerable selection of material froin tlic literature which such a treatise requires, the reader mal- perhaps disagree occasionally and trivially n-ith the various authors on their emphasis. Similarly, such points as this reviewer found a t all objectionable on first reading proved rather unimportant 011 re-examination in the light of the over-all mvriuniental task of the revision. Designed as both a textbook and a referencc book, tliis volume fulfills both functions aclmirablh-. Thc geiierul excellence arid coverage will ensure its purcliase bh- every practiciug organic chemist, biochemist and medical rcscarcli worker concerned with the c1ieniistr)- of carbohydrates for :I long time to come. DEPARTMEST OF CHEMISTRS STANFORD USIVERSITY \VILLIAM A. BCJSNER STANFORD UNIVERSITY, CALIF.
Advances in Catalysis and Related Subjects. Volume IX. Edited by D. L). ELET, Sottingham, England; FRASKESBURG, Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and KOMARETVSKY, Chicago, I h O Proceedings of tlie 3, Philadelphia, PennInternational Congress 011 Cata sylvania, 1956. Edited by AD E R T FARKAS, Houdry Process Corporation, Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania. Academic Press, Inc., Pul>lisliers, 111 Fifth AvenueL S e w Tork 3 , S.Y., 1957. xviii 84i pp. 16 X 23.0 cin. Price, $16.00. The ninth volunie of “.kivaiices in Catalysis” series consists essentially of the papers presented a t the Internatioiial Congress on Catall-sis a t Philadelphia in 1956. It is thus different in format and content from the preceding eight volumes ivliich consist of reviews and interpretations o f selected scctiocs of tlic massive literature of catalysis. There is 110 doubt t h a t t h e material of \-olunie I>; belongs in this distinguished series, because thc sum total of these papers represe,its a thorough and modern review of catalysis as the subject was conceived in 1956. This is indeed a wortlij- climax to the efforts of the late \Y.G. Frankenburg arid 1.. I. Komareivsky toward bringing together from world wide source? the best thought oii catal!-tic clleniistry. I )r. H e y and I l r . Iiarkas arc to lie comnirntlec! for ci~iii~)letiiig this task \\-it11 1111 cicln>- d t e r thc d e a t h o f tlieir editorial collaborators. Mati,- outstxiitliug scientists spccializing iii catalysis ha\ e coiitributed to this rolunie. T h e orgaiiizers of the International Congress on Catalb-sis are to be coiigratulated nrrt ~IIIIJfor :is.;eiiil)liiig this wiirthwhile program but for ci,nsolit1:itiitg tlic :~~liici-ct~iciits of t h e Ciitigrcss b! securitig ~ ) t t I ~ l i c a to if ~tlic ~ i ~i)aj)crs i i i tliis urcful fi~rtii. f v i - t ~ i i v ct ~I a1)iiut GIII)i r i t l i t itlual ‘1‘11~’(1 Ii:tpei.s 3114tlic iiiii-i~iIucti~~i~* iiy l i ~ y l iS . ‘ J ’ i t ~1131I i i i ~ I c ~i \\ S ~ I I I ~ V W ~ I : ~ ~ tli~kiiletl, :iii,l k ‘ i i c . L . l < i ( i c , i l w i w i ~ ~ i t ~ t r i l i a t c11) ~ c l1 4 7 x , i v t i t i < t \ ~ I O ~ I I i i c Y ~ 1 e : l s f~~~- , l l l l‘SI, 1 4 , ;I2 ILIgl’.. (1
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May 20, 1938
BOOKREVIEWS
the countries of Xustralia, Austria, Canada, Eliglalid, France, Germany, Holland, Hungary, India, Japan, Korthern Ireland, Russia and the United States of America. T h e papers are classified into five chapters entitled: I, Chemistry and Physics of Solid Catalysts; 11, Homogeneous Catalysis and Related Effects; 111, Surface ChemistrSand Its Relation t o Catalysis; I V , Techniques and Technology of Catalysis; and V, Special Topics in Catalysis. Most of the modern techniques of catalytic chemistry are represented, including infrared spectroscopy as applied to the adsorbed complex, catalytic reactions confined t o single crystallographic faces, surface area measurement, differential thermal d a t a on solid state reactions, magnetic measurements t3 determine the duration of electron transfer during chemisorption, tracer techniques in mechanism determination, and X-ray and electron diffraction methods for catalyst structure determination. Systems described include the chrornia-alumina cyclization catalysts, silica-alumina cracking catalysts, platinum reforming cata1)-sts, ruthenium, rhodium, palladium and platinum hydrogenation catalysts, alumina and silica-aluniina catalysts f x the dehydrogenation of alcohols, cobalt carbonyl catalj-sts for oxonation, molybdena reforming catalysts, and metal chelate hydrogenation catalysts. Fifty-seven pages of critical discussion from the original conference meetings are included. Well organized author and subject indices (16 pages a n d 4 pages, respectively) provide a reference system t o the contents. BUREAU O F MISES, REGIONv DIVISIONOF SOLID FUELS TECHNOLOGYL. J. E. HOFER BEANCHOF COAL-TO-OIL RESEARCH PITTSBURGH, PESNA. T h e Relativistic Gas. Bj- J. L. SYNGE, School of Theoretical Physics, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. Interscience Publishers, Inc., 250 Fifth Avenue, New York 1, S . Y. 1957. xi 108 pp. 15.5 X 23 cm. Price, $4.50. “This little book may be regarded as a supplement t o a recent book (by the same author, “Relativity: T h e Special Theory” (1936)) with t h e same notation and the same emphasis on Alinkomskian geometry. . . . T h e purpose of this book is t o develop in a simple way some formulae for a relativistic gas. . . . It is written for t h e relativist who wants t o know about the behavior of a relativistic gas,rather than for t h e expert in statistical mechanics” (mho wants t o know about relativitj-). This quotation from the preface fairly statcs this book’s prerequisites, intended audience and aim. Synge limits himself t o consideration of classical gases of point particles interacting with zero mean free path (physically contradictory as he notes). T h e formulae which are derived are not new, b u t they are derived in a direct and relativistically covariant wa>-. I n addition t o the distribution function of t h e ideal relativistic gas, the book treats shock waves with proofs of their causality and irreversibility. I n a n appendix, Synge shows how his methods can be applied t o a more physical system, namely, radiation plus moving matter. rln idealized model is used (2 level “atoms,” which have no relative motion) and the formulae for the stress tensor which are derived are equated t o those of L . H. Thomas. DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS USIVERSITPOF ROCHESTER C. GOEBEL ROCHESTER 20, S.T.
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1952). However some new iiiatcrial is iiicludcd to describe recent cievelopxnents, and the bibliographies at the ends of t h e chapters include a large number of recent publications which have appeared since the pra-ious volume went t o press. T h e first chapter, occupying slightly more than half of the book, deals with the differeritial equations of diffusion arid their solutions subject t o various iliitial and boundary conditions. This chapter oniits a few topics considered in the corresponding chapter of the author’s 1952 book and introduces some iiew niaterial; examples of the latter include further consideration of concentration-dependent Tiff usion coefficients and a brief discussiou of diffusion in sterns containing more tlian t\vo components. T h e reairiiiig four cliitpters are shorter, and deal with the specific cases of diffusion in solids, diffusion in gases, diffusion iii liquids, and thermal diffusion. Brief descriptions of experimental procedures for studj-ing these cases of diffusion are given, and tables containing some representative d a t a are included which illustrate the results. Even a reztder ~vliom a y prefer reading the author’s 1952 treatise in English t o obtain n siirvey of tlie subject of diffusion will find t h e list of iefererices in t h e present volume very helpful as a guide t o recent literature. CHEMISTRY DEPARTMENT USIVERSITPOF VV~ISCOSSIS MADISON 6,~YISCOSSIN
LOCISJ . GOSTING
Volumetric Analysis. Volume 111. Titration Methods : Oxidation-Reduction Reactions. I. M. KOLTHOFF, Professor and Head, Division of Analytical Chemistry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn., and R . BELCHER,Reader in Analytical Chemistry, t h e University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, with t h e cocperation of V. A . STENGER,Analytical Research Chemist, T h e Dow Chemical Co., Midland, Mich., and G. MATSUYAMA, Senior Research Chemist, Rcsearcii Department, Union Oil Co. of California, Brea, Calif. Interscience Publishers, Inc., 250 Fifth Avenue, S e w York I , S.Y. 1957. i s 714 pp. 15.5 X 23.5 cm. Price, $15.00.
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Because thirty years have elapscd since the last edition of this book, and since no equivalent monograph has appeared in tlie interim, we can heartily agree with the opening sentence in the Preface, “This third and last volume of “S’olunietric Analysis,” dealing with oxidation-reductio11 titrations, is long overdue.” T h e long wait is rewarded because the present volume perpetuates the high standard set b y its progenitor, Massnnalyse. Following an introductory chapter on general techniques in redox titrations, separate chapters are devoted t o applications of the important titrants permanganate ion, ceric ion and dichromate ion. S e x t follow three chapters on iodornetric methods, and separate chapters seiiatiiiz on the Karl Fischer water titration, potassium iodate titrations, determination of organic compounds with periodate, potassium bromate titrations and titrinietrb- rvith hypohalites. Reductometric titrations are then discussed in a separate chapter, and the text concludes with a chapter on miscellaneous titrants. This arrangement emphasizes the applications of various titrants, rather than the various methods t h a t are :tvailable for the determination of a particular element or substance. T h e latter must hc located ria the Subject Index. T h e coverage is riot rcstricted to inorganic analyses, and includes the determination of organic substances anti functional groups. Fortschritte der Physikalischen Chemie. Band 1. DifT h e treatment is comprehensive anti critical, :tiid, in fusion. Methoden der Messung und Auswertung. By general, sufficient procedural detail is given so t h a t the niethProf. DR. LV. JOST, Direktor des Institutes fur Physikalods can be applied 11-ithoutrecourse ti) tlic original literaturc. ische Chemie der Univcrsitat Gottingen. Verlag Dr. S o t the least of this book’s virtues is t h a t tlie literature lias Dietrich Steinkopff, Holzhofallee 35, Darnistadt, Gcrbccn made a real, living part of t h e text, as it should be, by many. 1957. x 177 pp. 15.5 X 23 cm. Price, placing the citations as footnotes on the pages, where they D M 25, -. can be most effectively used. T h e comprehensiveness of This volume considers both theoretical and experimental the literature coverage is reflected b y the .luthor Index of more than 2700 names. However t h e essence of the book’s aspects of the measurement of diffusion. I n his selection of topics, the autlior has achievcti it compnct presentation of excellence stems not from inere coinprehensiveness, but rather basic inrtterixl. l‘hc contents of thi.; volume p:ir:Lllcl closely f r t m the :iuthoritative iii:uiner in \vliicli this huge literature the correspmtliiig: liart5 1 ) f the author’s a:trlit.r :tiit1 iri~lre has Iwen criticxll>- r t s w i s c ( l arid corrclateil. Every pnge corripreheusivc trt.:itiw ( “ I )iffu,ii)ii i i i Solids, T . i q u i t l ~ , reflcctq tlie high ortlcr o f :irialyticnl 5:tg:icity \vtiicli cli:ir:tc.tc’rC h e i , ” b y I\.. J o , t , .\
