Manowitz; High Vecuum Technology by G. A. Sofer and H. C. Weingartner; Separation by Adsorption by T . Vormeulen; and Mixing of Solids by S. S. Weidenbaum. As before, all are excellently written reviews; figures and tables are used generously; and t h e review is concluded with a table of nomenclature and a lengthy list of references. We hope t h a t these volumes can appear annually t o t r y t o cover more ~ompletelythe hroed field of chemical engineering. KENNETH A. KOBE
UNIVER~ITY 08 TEXAS Ans~m.T e n s
FILM FORMATION, FILM PROPERTIES AND FILM DETERIORATION Edited by Charles R. Bragdon. Interscience Publishers, Inc., New York, 1958. xv 422 pp. Many figs. and tables. 16 X 23.5 cm. $9.75.
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WHAThappens during the lifetime of a paint film? This book, written for the scientists of the organic protective eoatings' industry by members of the Research Committee of the Federation of Paint and Varnish Production Clubs, gives answers which reflect the present status of knowledge. There is a great deal of data, description of experiment, discussion of ~ s u l t s ,but little definitive knowledge t o pass on to the non-specialist in summary form. W. F. K.
ADVANCES IN PROTEIN CHEMISTRY. VOLUME 12 Edited by C. B. Anfinsen, Jr., National Heart Institute, Bethesda; M. L. Anson, Cambridge, Massachusetts: Kenneth Bailey, Cambridge, England; and John T. Edsall, Cambridge. Massachusetts. Academic Press. Inc., New York, 1957. x 687 pp. Many figs. and tables. 1 6 X 23.5 cm. $14.
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THE current volume in this well-known series is equal to the high standards of preceding volumes. As usud, each article is written by one or more of the outstanding research workers in the field, and consists of a summary of early work rand a. thorough, detailed presentation and analysis of the recent developments. I n many cases, modern techniques are described, and the results and significance of the use of these techniques arc discussed in cansidera.bl.ble detail. Sufficient eaperimental data are presented t o allow the reader t o evaluate for himself the validity of eonelusions and interpretations. An extensive bibliography is given at. t h e end of each article. The volume concludes with thorough author and subject indexes. (Cmlinued on page A5701
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
The first article by Harold A. Seheraga and Michael Laskowski, Jr., ia a detailed and critical presentation of the physicochemical processes involved in the canversion of fibrinogen t o fibrin under the influence of thrombin. \Iethods for the purification of prothrombin, of thrombin, and of fibrinogen are presented, and the precise nature of the steps involved in the interaction oi highly purified thromhin and fibrinogen t o form fibrin is discussed. Considerable attention is given t o the physiral chemistry oi the polymerization reactions and t o the factors influencing them. Recent developments in the applications of X-ray diffraction techniques to the elucidation of protein ~ t r u c t u r eand canfiguration are summarized by F. H. C. Crick and J. C. Kendrew in the second review. The recent discoveries made by using these techniques with fihrous prat,eins such as silk and krlmtin and with crystalline proteina such as h~moglobin and advances in the eluridation of the
&th special attention t o their pro&rtie~ and to genctio control of these properties. The p h y ~ i e dand genetic harcs far distinguishing among varioos typps of hernoglobin are presented, and the methods used in establishing identity are summarized. The ioorth article is a continuation of a summary of work on the hormones of the anterior pituitary gland by Choh H s o Li; i t reviews recent work on the melanooyte-stimolating and lactogenic principles. The activation of aymogms is diacr~ssrd h y Hans Nenreth. Stndiw on the kinetics and mechanics of thp eonv~rsianof trypainogen and chymotrypsinogpn to their active forms are s u m m s r i z d Differences hetween rapid and s l o ~activation are presented, and some attention is given t o the strnrtures,of these enzymes and their precursors. The chemical nilt,ure of antihodies is discussed hy Henry C. Isliker in the sixth review, presenting in some- det,ail the purification of antihodies by phyriroehemical and hy immunoehemieal methods. Under the heading He-terogeneity of Antibodies and Related Compounds, the methods of scpnmtinr: and eharaeterizing various types of antihodies and blood protein8 having sntihmly-like properties are diaeusaed. The last article, on the synthesis of peptides, present,s eaneise and lr~ridsummaries of praet.ically all the ndl-established methods ior cnmhinine- amino acids with one another. Conaidprahle attention is given to special aspects of peptide sl-nthesis, chiefly the problems pwulinr t o the formation of peptidcs of amino acids having reactive groups in the side chain. More than 100 pages are devat,ed t o tables of the physical propertics of various peptider. G O R D O S H. P R I T H A M STATEUXIVERBITI UNIYERSITP P*R., PENNSILV*NI* PENNBTLVANIA
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
