istry make this general chemistry text mare specialized than most. I do not recommend it for courses with a large component of engineering students, and I have reservations about its appropriateness for chemistry majars. But those teaching courses primarily far biologically and medically oriented students and willing to modify the usual emphases should consider this hook carefully. Hearst and Ifft have written a gaod one. Contemporary Chernlstry
John E. Heorst. University of CaliforniaBerkeley, and James B. Ifft, University of Redlands. W. H. Freeman & Co., San Francisco, 1976. xi 753 pp. 17 X 24 cm.
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$14.95. Figs. and tables. "Contemporary Chemistry" is intended for a fairly specific student client-the premedilife science major who enters college well prepared, with high school math through trigonometry and high school chemistry. One might add that concurrent college math is desirable, for calculus notation is used oceasinnally. Thus, considerable student sophistication is presupposed. One hesitates to describe something as traditional, because of pejorative implications, but the progression of topics in this text is traditional, in a pleasing and (to me) logical way. The text is organized into 11 large chaoters: with the elimination of artificial
attention to material covered earlier. A pedagogical standoff appears to result. After a brief introduction, the authors launch directly into a rather rigorous discussion of matter and atomic theorv. A chapter on periodicity and chemical properties follows. In Chapter 4, the Chemical Bond, considerable time is spent discussing hybridization, and there is a brief introduction t o complex ions. The next two chapters consider molecular properties and the states of matter. The latter tonic is es~eciallvwell presented. Chaoter 7 oresents an in-deoth treatment r r n d n w n i , * ,w t h ~ t v r n l p;tyec drwred I , ,~ ~ d l ~ p a tproperties i\,r Enzyme kinetics and some optional material on the theory of chemical reactions are featured
in Chapter 8. Not until page 383 in this chapter are concentration units defined; there is almost none of the usual solution stoichiometry in the book. At 84 pages, Chapter 9, Chemical Equilibrium is the second longest in the book. A great deal of emphasis is placed on acid-base equilibria. The tenth chapter considers oxidation-reduction reactions with an interesting treatment of redox in living systems. The final chapter is entitled "The Chemistry of Life," and is 89 pages long. The bulk of its attention is given to protein and nucleic acid chemistry. Since many of the earlier descriptive examples are from biological systems, this largely biochemical "capstone" chapter, along with the relative dearth of descriptive inorganic chemistry, gives the entire text a distinctively biophysical perspective. Two special features deserve note. After eaeh chapter there is an "interlude" which explores a topic of contemporary importance and which is germane to the preceding chader. These are successful and interesting. thobgh I am not convinced that suchmaterial should be so segregated. In addition, eaeh interlude is introduced by a vintage cartoon (mostly from New Yorker). These alone may be worth the price of the book! Each chapter is followed by e carefully chosen and annotated bibliography. A gaod variety of problems is also provided. There are no problem answers in the text. The text is well written. The language is clear, direct, and quite spritely; it will not tend to put students to sleep. The internal organization is sound, and follows directly from the premises established by the authors. I did not note any important typographical errors, and in only a few spots is the book misleading (but see the line following Eq. 2-1 on page 11 and the implication on pp. 178179 that there are 102:'atoms/mole). Its deemphasis of certain time-honored topics like stoichiometry and descriptive chemistry, and its focus on biological chem-
W. C. Langwonhy, Dean S c b i of Science and Mathematics Caiif Poiytechnic State University San Luis Obispo. California 93407
Bask lnorganlc Chemistry
F. Albert Cotton, Texas A&M University and Geoffrey Wilkinson, University of London. John Wiley & Sans, New York, 1975. viii 579 pp. Figs. and tables. 18 X 26 em. $14.95.
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Prior t o 1972 only afew texts designed for use in undergraduate inorganic chemistry courses were available. Within the last few years, however, hooks of this type have been written by several authors, including Huheey (19721, Demitras, e t al. (19721, Lagowski (19731, and Jolly (1976). These texts tend to fall in one of two categories-those which include a systematic treatment of the chemistry of the elements by group and those which lareelv emnhasize fundamentals of
favorably by those who believe that an undergraduate inorganic chemistry course should include a healthy dose of descriptive chemistry. The hook is divided into four parts. Part 1 (chapters 1-81 covers basic principles such as atomic structure, covalent and ionic bonding, cwrdination chemistry, acid-base chemistry, and general periodic relationships. In addition, there is a good chapter dealing with the structures, properties, and modes of coordination of a variety of anions. Part 2 (chapters 9-22) and Part 3 (chanters 23-27) cover the . chemistry of the main group elements and the (Continued on page A421
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-Reviewed in this Issue John E. Hearst and James R I f f t , Contemporary Chemistry F. Albert Cotton and Geoffrej Wilkinson, Basic Inorganic Chemistry R. T. Sanderson, Chemical Bonds and Bond Energy. Second Edition Thomas H . Lowry and Kathleen Sehueller Richardson, Mechanism and Theory in Organic
Reviewer W. C . Langworthy Wayne P. Anderson George D. Sturgeon Richard M. Pagni
A37 A37 A42 A44
Patrick S. Cnllery Lawrence H. Bowen Reed M. lzatt Stephen B. W. Roeder
A46 A46 A48 A48
Charles E. Carraher
A52
George B. Kauffman Aaron J. Ihde
A52 A54
Chemistry
D.MocLean D.Evans and John Bowen Jones, Introduction to Medical Chemistry T. C. Gibb,Principles of Mossbauer Spectroscopy. Studies in Chemical Physics J Rarthel and R. Wochter, Thermometric Titrations Nugent F. Chamberlain, The Practice of NMR Spectroscopy with Spectra-Structure Correlations for Hydrogen-]
Herman F. Mark and Norbert M. Biholes, editors, Encyclopedia of Polymer Science and Technology. Plastics, Resins, Rubbers, Fibers. Supplement Volume 1: Aerylonitrile Polymers, Degradation of Vinyl Chloride
O w n Hannawo,: The Chemists and the Word: The Didactic Origins of Chemistry Wyndham Miles, editor, American Chemists and Chemical Engineers
Vo'olume 55. Number 1. January 1978 / A37
book reviews transition elements, respectively. Part 4 (chanters 28-31) covers more snecialized tupirs such as metal mrhonyl and related ronlplexes, organometnllrc chemistry, homogeneous catalysis, and bioinorganie chemistry. Many of the descriptive chemistry chapters are condensed versions of similar chapters in "Advanced Inorganic Chemistry," 3rd edition. hv the same authors. Several of the tables. &~mnles. . and firmres are identical, and much uf the disruxiim is token al. most wrhatim lrom this enrlier book. Houever, in contrastto the more advanced text, "Basic Inorganic Chemistry" contains no information on symmetry and point groups and few references t o the original literature. Also. there is no discussion of Russell-Saun-
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There are 2&35 ntudv ouestions a t the end of must chapters. Thwe are d ~ r d e dinto I U O pet.+. Set A emphasizi the major poinu of the chapter, and Set B includes more thoughtprovoking questions. There is also a section entitled "Study Guide" a t the end of each chapter. Unfortunately, this is somewhat of a misnomer since i t consists of little more than a one-paragraph summary ofthe chapter and a list of supplementary readings. The text is relatively free of errors. However, there is reference to electrophilic attack by OH- (p. 148, line 9). Also, the sulfite ion is shown with a -1 charxe in figure 5-XVII (p. 113). If a student can master the material in this teat, he will have a thorough overview of inorganic chemistry. However, given the constraints of a one-semester course, I question whether most students will be able to absorb such a large volume of material. The book could he impraved by including some unifying themes for the descriptive chemistry section. Neither the theoretical nor the nractical sienificance of several of the included com~~ounds and reactions IS giwn. Furthermorr, there is little atrempt to interrelate propprtrer of compounds ~nvolving central atoms fram different groups. As a result the student may view each chapter as a new set of isolated facts. Finally, I believe a section on symmetry and point groups should be included. In spite of these criticisms, the text provides a sound introduction to inorganic chemistry and deserves careful consideration for use in an undergraduate inorganic course. ~~~~~~
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(e.g. CdClz versus CdIz structural types) are admitted to be beyond the current scope of the author's approach. Aiming a t the "average practicing chemist," the author, R. T. Sanderson, disavows claims to ultimate truth: "In a sense, electronegativity is a relatively crude makeshift, an oversimplifyingconcept that operates best in the realm of the practical." Clearly, the intent is to convince the reader of the warthiness of this approach, which is unahashedly simplistic and involves not a single quantum mechanical operator nor integration. The author candidly admits the limitations and shortmmings of his approach but insists that i t is more useful than other approaches because of its mathematical simplicity, its breadth of applicability, and its consonance with experimental data. As Professor Sanderson tenaciously espouses his individualistic, albeit eclectic, view of chemical honding, he has reeast, expanded, and altered much of the content of the first edition of t h n bmk. In fact, a comparatw rtadinc of the tuueditions will show the author's ingenuitv and flexibility in lnwrpretin~ data as he attempts to systematize and rationalize chemical behavior. In the first chapter, theauthor outlines his method for calculating hand energies and related narameters bv demonstratine their applmt;m to KC1 and CO.. In dmn.ao, he in~okesrqulunticms(E= CrJl and wrmq 2.08 \ S fur the clrcrronegativity change undrrgone by a n atom acquiring a unit charge) without defining symbols or explaining the basis on which the terms are developed. This will cause no problem for those persons who are familiar with the first editionor whofollow the author's publications, but other readers may be discouraged fram penetrating into later chapters where the concepts are explicitly detailed. Chapters 2 4 present the author's principal tenets including such concepts as nonpolar covalent radii, electronegativity equalization, nartial charges on atoms in chemical combination, and the coordinated polymer model of nnn.molecular solids. None uf these eoncepts is truly far afieldfrom themainstream of chemical bonding theory, hut the author's specific application of these concepts is certainly non-traditional. In the opinion of this reviewer the hook could he strengthened by more frequent and direct connections and comparisons between the author's approach and mare familiar treatments. However, such comparisons, if drawn, ought to be fair and should not pretend to identify a current theory with that theory's presentation in a general chemistry text. Thus it seems to me that a "straw man" ionic theory has been set forth for demolishing by the author. For example, "although it is convenient to imagine the charges on cations and anions to be centered a t their nuclei and the attractions t o be electrostatic attractions between the opposite charges a t the distance of the internuclear separation, it is certainly not realistic" evokes a false picture of cuirent ionic theory. The last chapters deal in detail with the elements hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and the halogens. These invite the question: "To whom will this book be of use or interest?" Because it presents novel and challenging concepts, this book would serve very well as a basis for a provocative seminar for ad-
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Wayne P. Anderson Bloombwg State College Blmmsburg. Pennsylvania 17815
khernlcal Bonds and Bond Energy. Second Ednion.
R. T. Sanderson, Arizona State University. Academic Press,New York, 1916. xii 218
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pp. Tables. 15.5 X 23.5 em. $19.50. This h w k contains much that is stimulating. Imambiti~mis wpresent the broadest pcs4ble chrmirnl honding theory and 18) this end the author cites n numlwr uf diverse PXamples, always making comparison with experimental data. However, several impartant classes are omitted (e.g. almost all eompounds of inner and outer transition elements) and many contemporary questions A42 / ~ournalof Chemical ~ d u c i f i o n
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(Continued a n page A44)
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