Chemistry Explained Robert L. Wolke, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1980, vii 550 pp. Figs. and tables. 27 X 22 cm. $17.95.
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A textbook that offers the choice of something different to the professor whois interested in the pedagogy of chemistry is now available. The hook successfully meets the author's objectives of showing "that chemistry is alive, involved, and relevant to everyone's life, that it makes perfectly good sense, and that chemical knowledge is created by real people in areal world." Many of us who teach chemistry are feeling the pressures of the larger classes as a greater numher of students reeister for colleee chemistrv. Manv secondary school preparation in science and mathematics often because they are now technically inclined and have delayed an experience in the natural sciences until required to complete a distribution requirement in their college curriculum. "Chemistry Explained" has been written primarily for the one-semester or two-quarter course. There is sufficient material that selectivity will he required for the shorter courses. The shortest courses will probably not include the last five chapters: Chapter 14, "Materials, Part One: Some Natural Materials;" Chapter 15, "Organic Compounds and Their Reactions:" Chanter 16. "Materials.
represent approximately one hundred pages or twenty percent of the text. A minimum of supplementary material in addition to the above chapters would be required for an academic year offering. The author has been very helpful with suggestions far the longer course and suggests that student, interests be allowed to dictate the selections. This reviewer believes that the text has sufficient
outstanding features that many teachers will consider the text for students who wish to he science majors but who have not had adequate secondary school preparation in mathematics and the sciences in addition t o the "liberal arts" students for which it was primarily written. The course for the unprepared science majors would probably require a weekly "problems session" using a supplementarv list of oroblems and he accomoanied by a sirang laboratory syllabus &sing "discovery" and quantitative experiences. The text indudes a minimum number of problems but is not deficient in the types of problems included and explained. The first thirteen chapters include aspects of general chemistry, nuclear, and physical chemistry. The text, therefore, presents a complete mini-curriculum in chemistry. The author has described his approach in The Preface: "Ideally, if the textbook could satisfactorily fulfill the role of explaining-of instilling understanding, rather than compiling facts-the instructor might not have to spend so much time paraphrasing the text in lectures and explaining again to individuals in the office. Instead. he or she would be
act as a facilitator, a human resource, rather than as a translator and rehasher of the material that the student has already read."To successfully implement this approach the author has kept the organizational thread of the text chemical, rather than societal or applied, although the text discusses as many if not more applications than the average textbook. A nondogmatic attitude and a light conversational writing style has been adopted. This style created a doubt the first time that I read the text. Upon rereading the text, and having my wife, a nonscientist, read oortions. the imoression became one of "it
chemistry course must he missing. However, after checking the text chapter hy chapter, I found that all relevant topics are presented. The book is written as if the reader is pragressing sequentially through its pages. It is, in fact, similar to a PSI (Personalized System of Instruction) teachine method. I t is arranged for the sequentid mastery of a carefullv worked-out series of conceotual hits.
the concept under discussion. The narrative flow of the text should not offer difficult problems for the instructor who wishes to omit a topic or to rearrange the topics to fit a particular syllabus. Although different in style, which may require a second or third reading to overcome habits formed in reviewing texts, "Chemistry Explained" offers too many possibilities for student instruction to ignore the text beesuse it is different. Several readings by the pro^ fessor. reading if oossihle as throueh the eves of a student Ghdhas minimum p k p a r a t k for a mllege chemistry course, may result in many pleasant hours in the classroom as we discuss examples of current interests to both the students and ourselves with "prepared students." The University of Alabama In Huntsville Huntsville. AL 35807
Basic Mafhematics for Beginning Chemistry Dorofhy M. Goidish, California State University, Long Beach. Macmillan Publishing Company, Inc.. New York. 2nd Ed. 1979. x 208 pp. Figs. and tables. 15.3 X 23.3 cm. $5.95.
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This short paperback is intended for stu (Continued on page A66)
Reviewed in this Issue Reviewer W. F. Arendale
Robert L Wolke, Chemistry Explained Dorothy M. Goldlsh, Basic Mathematics for Beginning Chemistry Richard A. Y. Jones, Physical and Mechanistic Organic Chemistry Royston M. Roberts, John C. Gilbert, Lynn 6.Rodewaldand Alan S. Wingrove, Modern Experimental Organic Chemistry
Herbert R. Ellison
Frank J. Welcher and Irwin Boschmann, Organic Reagents for Copper
L. B. Church
John C. Stowell, Carbanions in Organic Synthesis D. J. Boud, J. G. Dunn, T. Kennedy, and M. G. Walker, Laboratory Teaching in Tertiary Science (A Review of Some Recent Developments)
Shelton Bank
Nomenclature Committee of the International Union of Biochemistry, Enzyme Nomenclature J. C. Johnson, Immobilizing Enzymes, Preparation and Engineering Recent Advances
Richard Pagni Margaret-Ann Aromour
M. Larry Peck and Joseph A. Marcelio Collis R. Geren Rodney F. Boyer
Volume 58
Number 2
February 1981
A65
