book reviews little material is presented. Only a small section on Lewis structures is presented, followed bv a small section on formal charm and theoxldat~amnumhmot rarhon A mow thmrugh treatment of r h mnterlal ~ wems mandatory t o this reviewer; i t is one of the few areas in this text that could he improved considerably. Nomenclature, conformation, and configuration are approached with clarity and a good deal of wholesome rigor. Chapter 4 provides a solid discussion of the use of R and S,d and 1, and the symbols (+) and (-). Also presented are excellent three-dimensional drawings and accompanying planar representations which should enable students to draw Fischer projections with a feeling of surety. O'Leary feels that an understanding of basic organic mechanisms is essential for non-majors if they are t o be able to use and understand organic chemistry. Many chapters, therefore, include detailed mechanisms of representative reactions. For example, Chapter 7 includes an excellent two-page oresentation of the mechanism of formation of an acetal frmn sn aldehyde and alrohd. In addition, mechanisms of w r w u i oxidations and reductions are shown: ~trs uf merest to note that the mechamim of the pcrmanga"ate oxidation of aldehydes is dpalt with in "sim. dptnil (nn. .. lY6-1971. Such nuuarentlv .. ple" and frequently encountered reactions are often neglected even in major teatbooks. The author presents the majority of his material t o the reader in a simple functional group format. Chapters on hydrocarbons, alcohols, amines, and aldehydes and ketones serve as a preface to a brief twelve-page chaoter (Chaoter 8) dealins with oreanic matics, amino acids, peptides, proteins and carbohydrates. Each chapter is made quite palatable by the inclusion of biologically interesting examples. Double bond (cis-trans) isomerism is illustrated bv, the conversion of l l - c i s rrtinnl toall tmns-retinal. 'l'lw studrnt thus srrs ~ o n w~i the chrmistry u i ws~onat rhe same time the importance of geometrical isomerism is presented. Even the Introduction (Chapter 1)uses the discovery and elucidation of the structure of vitamin BIZto whet the student's appetite. O'Leary makes the somewhat uniaue and excitine comment the same subject.. . ";his chapter organization and development certainly demonstrate the application of this beliet: Although examples of vitamins, enzymes, drugs, and natural products ahound in the text, O'Leary's philosophy of the oneness of biochemistry and organic chemistry has kept him from succumbing t o the lure of "contrived relevance". Illustrations are carefully chosen and inserted with care into the text. Only Chapters 12 and 13, which deal with amino acids and carbohydrates, respectively, seem to attempt to cover too much material in too little space. It is also worth noting that O'Leary wisely has not attempted t o include any spectroscopy in this textbook. A244 / Journal of Chemical Education
"Contemporary Organic Chemistry" should prove to be a useful and interesting hook for instructors who are faced with teaching a one-semester course. The text is well-written and accompanied by very good oroblems and auestions hoth within the bodv of nt the ends of chaoters. A-' ..the ....text .. ...n -n-i swers t o selected questions may be found a t the hack of the text. Students should find this book interesting, useful and informative. Ronald S. Lenox Wabash Coilege Crswfordsviiie. Indiana 47933
John Nicholas, University of London, King's College, Halsted Press a division of John Wiley, New York, 1976,240 pp., Figs. and Tables 25 X 19 cm, $19.95 This is a n easily readable and well-organized textbook covering a wide range of subjects. The level is such that it can be used for part of an undergraduate physical chemistry sequence or as a text for a beginning graduate course if supplemental reading and more rigorous mathematical treatment of some tonics is orovided. There are 64 chanter end oroblems Af vvanine demees of difficiltv. ~ o sofi them have numerical answers g~vei. There are references to most of the current kinetics texts and applicable monographs and to many reviews on special topics. There are few references to original research papers. The book does a good job of covering both theow and exoeriment. hut the user should he aware of the suhtitle: "A .\lodrm Survey oi(;as Kinetics." Soluuon chemistry with its special problems and many beautiful examples of kinetic phenomena is ignored, and very little is said ahaut heterogeneous reactions. In discussing many recent developments in molecular dvnamics. ion-molecule reactima, molerulnr henms, nnd thr useotlasers in kinetic*, the book i$ up rudntp. One large gap is that there is no mmrwn of thc usc of computers t o solve sets of simultaneous equations, a practice that is mandatory for describing most kinetic systems in real-life applications. The generally attractive layout of the hook is marred by a large black line around three sides of each page.
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Halbert Carmichael North Camlira State Universily
Raleigh. 27607
Laboratory Manual of Physical Chemistry. Second Edition
HoroceD. Crockford, John W Nowell, H. Wallace Boird, and Forrest W Getzen. John Wilev & Sons.,Inc.. New York. 1975. vi 352 pages. Figures and tables: 22 X 28 cm. $9.95
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This edition is long overdue. The first edition omitted consideration of all quantum effects and light absorption techniques. The prrbcnt edition results from the deletion of allout twenty percent of the old edition and the addition of about a dozen new experiments. The authors did not go far enough in either deleting or adding, hut this edition
contains a more than acceptable collection of experiments for the junior level Physical Chemistry Laboratory. Unstated by the authors but nonetheless evident is the fact that this text is intended for departments with limited equipment holdings. All spectrophotometric experiments are described for use with a Spect r o n i e 20. Certainly most institutions do not have a C a r p 15 for undergraduate use, hut a Spectronie 20 seems to be carrying things too far. The book has about 50 pages of introductory material, about 250 pages con,taining 40 experiments, and 50 pages of appendices. The text, with the exceptions of titles, figures, etc., is areproduction of an 8% X 11 in. typewritten manuscript. The result is quite readable, and the subsequent reduction in price will be appreciated by students. The intraductorv material includes acceptabls dis
