JULY. 1950
413
istry, the antibiotics being discussed under the topics: aspergillic acid, gliotoxin, phenazine compounds, lactones, and quinones. The variety of configurations demonstrated by known antibiotics counled with the multinlicity of bacterial enevme systems are takin to argue against'interference with any-single metabolic pathway, such as sulfhydryl group function, as a general explanation for the mecbanism of antibiotic action. Workers who have considered antibiotic production by fungi other than Aetinomycetes, Aspergilli, and Penieillia will be interested in R o b b i d brief review of the Basidiornycetes. Clytacybine and polyporin, produced by species in the latter group, have shown some promise in therapy. An interesting sidelight to these studies is the observation that a rapidly crobing fungus may produce s. low level of antagonistic &b%nce, while the same oreanism can demonstrate vieorous antibiotic nroduetion on a semideficient medium. In such cases, it is suggested that the antibacterial agent is, therefore, a product of incomplete metabolism. Plant physiologists and soil scientists will 6nd a succinct outline of antibiotic production by higher plants. In this lecture, Irving draws attention, also, to the intriguing possibility of employing antibiotics in the control of plant pathogens. While this treatment o m be almost summarily ruled out in view of excessive present costs, it may find furtker stimulus as improved production techniques develop. Then, too, antibiotics toxic to animals may find an application here. More than 500 references are cited. The book is relatively free of errors in makeup, typography is good, and a subject index is included. WILLIAM D. ROSENFELD C*.rrosnu Resmsca C o n ~ o m n o ~ *.I H*~B*.C * L ~ O ~ I *
GIANT BRAINS OR MACHINES THAT THINK Edmund Collis Berkeley, Consultant in Modern Technology, President, E. C. Berkeley and Associates. John Wiley & Sons, 270 pp. 78 figs. 17 tables. Inc., New Yark, 1949. mi 14 X 21 cm. 54.
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TEE development of computing machines is proceeding so rapidly that a scientist is fortunate to know the field in even gross outline. Because these developments are heralding exceedingly powerful tools, scientists will want to learn of them. Because these machines may be expected to affect society considerably, men in many fields will need to learn of them. Finally, because they are so very fascinating, logically minded people greatly enjoy learning about them. Mr. Berkeley has spared no effort in writing the first popular book on modem computers. A clear and colorful expositor, he selects and explains ideas in physics, semantics, mathematics, logic, m d electronics so wall that persons with some scientific training should follow the story readily. The author says the book is for every one, and certainly the approach is broad rather tban deep. The unusual freedom from misprints, the 27-page bibliography, and the entirely adequate index reveal the author's conscientiousness. We are first introduced to machine language, and for orientation are led carefully through the design of a, primitive relay computer. There follow chapters desoribing I. B. M. equipment, the newer M. I. T. differential analyzer, the Harvard "Mark I" Caloulator, the ENIAC, the Bell Telephone Laboratories' Relay Csloulator, and the Kalin-Burkhardt logical-truth caloulator. In each of these chapters there are many diagrams and examples and an operational evaluation of the machine. There is next a briefer survey of the much faster electronic machines which appeared in 1948 and 1949, or whieb are to appear shortly. Findlv. the imaeination is stimulated with sketches of nossible
decisious-all automatic and all in principle possible with present knowledge. One regrets that the author could not include more tban a peek a t the mast recent type of digital computer&-for example, the EDVAC (Aberdeen), MANIAC (Princeton), or Zephyr (Los Angeles), any of which may be operating when this is published. The size and great adaptability of such general-purpose digital computers makes possible a much wider variety of logical spplications and enormously more rapid arithmetic computation. If available, a popular description of these would make a fine sequel to Mr. Berkeley's book. Such a book could add many details on bow the future machine applications mentioned above can be carried out, as well as mathematicslandlogiealcalculation. The reader will meantime need to prepare himself by mastering the present work. It is probably unnecessary to add that, despite the possible sales appeal of the title and the figure on the cover jacket, the question of whether machines can think is irrelevant to their technical usefulness. GEORGE E. FOFSYTHE narrow*^ Basl;*o or BTANDARDII Los A N ~ E L ~ CSa ,~ m o n ~ r *
ADVANCED ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
G. W. Wheland, Profeesor of Chemistry, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. Second edition. John Wiley & Sons,Ioc., New York, 1949. xi 799 pp. 3 5 figs. 30 tables. 15 X 2 3 cm. $8.
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PROFESSOR WHELAND'S new text is designed for second-year students of organic chemistry who have bad a thorough firstyear course. It attempts to point out the relationships between the numerous facts of organic chemistry snd to provide an introduction to the theoretical aspects of the science. The primary viewpoint of the book is the structural one, and the main body of argument and evidence is in support of our current structural concepts. The question of mechanism receives secands.~,but by no means slighted treatment, although mechanistic evidence, especially of the kinetic sort, is not developed in extensive detail. A marked dart has been made to examine the fundamental concepts and delinitions of the science, to point out ambipuitiea and inconsistencies, and to substitute more adequate statements of clearly delineated applicability. The book is divided into fifteen chanters.. wrvine in leneth from 13 to over 100 pages, and trcutinc the subjccts oi fundarneutal ronrrpts, addition compomd?, :r&lsnnd bases, s~ruerural Biomrrwm, strrioinucrism, stcrrocl.c~nu.itryof rnrbon and other elements, strain theory and steric hindrance, resonance, electrostatic effects, molecular rearrangements, tautomerism, and free radicals. The chapters are further divided into sub-headings dealing logically with specific aspects of each general chapter topic. An author index of 11pages and a carefully constructed subject index of 37 pages follow the textual material. The book is well documented with references to the original literature, and on many subjects it serves aa a good reference work as well as a text. There are almost 750 footnotes, many containing two or more individual references, and surveying the literature into 1949. In evaluating such a book one might ask how well it fulfills its objectives and how it compares with other trestises of a similar sort. There is no question that the book succeeds in being a "unified treatment of the subject, primarily guided by the principle of the structural theory in its broadest sense," and that it is superbly written a t sbout the level which can be profitably read by its intended reader, an advanced senior or frrs&yes*rgraduate student. The objectives are well fulfilled. In most respects Professor Wheland's book compares favorably with other available second-year organic texts, and in many respects i t fsr excells its eomnetitors. Its laneuaee is lucid and orwise, its emlana~ . . most i&nort&t. it is nontionn are unusuallv c o m ~ l .e and. doymatir ~ n Ioiglily d critw~lwith rcwrd to the rhroreti~dand cxprrirunltal material it trcnts. By its cmphasi~llnc\perinlental
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JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION evidence and its clear delineation of the particular flaws and Radiation, in Neon; XIV. The Condensation and Evapolimitations thereof the student is spared the ez cathedra approach ration of Gas Molecules; XV. The Evaporation, Condensation, 80 often encountered, realizes more than is usually possible the and Reflection of Molecules and the Mechanism of Adsorption; tme validity of our information and concepts, and may even be XVI. The Evaporation of Atoms, Ions, and Electrons from stimulated to independent thought. I t is bard to read certain Caesium Films on Tungsten; XVII. The Mobility of Caesium portions of Pmfessor Wheland's book without trying to elaborate Atoms Adsorbed on Tungsten; and XVIII. Types of Valence. experimental solutions to some of the problems he indicates as A s may be seen from the list of chapter headings, some macurrently unanswered. Hisis unquestionably a more penetrating terial is included from nearly every one of the author's various and hence more stimulatine book thzn most of its tvne. Interest lines of researoh. This book is valuable for the reason, then, that " is heiehtened bv" freauent historical ~ mat,erial. ~ ~ r ~ r - ~mic . .~ - - many . ~ of these classic papers are collected under the same cover, ,- and nonulnr conceptions of historical priority are clarified in several instances. even though some of them are very well-known, and others conPossible criticisms of the book are for the most part trivial. tain disewsions which are now obsolete. The usual lucidity of the writing sometimes approaches verbosity, In spite of the rather flamboyant title, this book should he a and inconsequential meterid is occasionally developed in too valuable (if rather expensive) addition to the library of anyone painstaking detail. Considerable space is wasted in printing interested in a representative collection of papers by a leading and designating with Roman numerals the fomulas for simple scientific figure of our day. oraanic com~oundswhen the name alone would suffice. In some se&ons of the hook the number of illustrative examnles is PJ((.P.+ siw, with nothing new a d d d i y the repetition. The owadonal use of It.trer~orher than X to dr4wstc nlkyl p u p s might prime confusing, nnd the use of simple hexngms, rlther than 1it.kule structures, to designate aromatic rings seems unfortunate since it requires the use of more cumbersome structural formulas for 0 VACUUM EQUIPMENT AND TECHNIQUES cycloalhne derivatives. Remaining criticism is more from the A. Guthrie, Radiation Laboratory, University of CaliEdited by viewpoint of omission. The qualitative molecular orbital treab ment might profitably have been included in the chapter on fornia, Berkeley, California, and R. K. Wakeding. McGrawresonance which, incidentally, gives a somewhat over-optimistic Hill Book Co., Inc., New York, 1949. mii 264 pp. 102 figs. impression of the applicability of quantum mechanics to organic 25 tables. 16 X 24 om. $2.50. chemistry. More recent examples of steric effectsand s. discusTHIS book is Volume I, Division I, of the Nationd Nuclear sion of the steric inhibition of resonance might have added to the Engineering Series of the Manhattan Project Technical Section. treatment of steric phenomena. The question of orientation in It makes available the rather extensive experience gathered at the aromatic substitutions is largely ignored, as are, explicity a t least, University of California Radiation Laboratory in the course of the topics of structure and oolor, ultraviolet and mfrared spec- developing high vacuum equipment for use in the electro-magtroscopy, and detailed treatments of most modem physical meth- netic separation plants. The material presented by several auods of structural investigation. thors is arranged in an orderly fashion and will be of practical Organic chemistry is currently so broad that perhaps no single value to laboratory workers who are making use of this increaspoint of departure is adequate for a completely satisfactory treittr ing field of vacuum technology. Since a great deal of the dem a t . Thus, omissions and differences of opinion regarding scriptive practical material pertains to the larger scale vacuum desirable emphasis are probably inevitable in any text. It is systems, persons interested in industrial vacuum engineering will therefore to the author's credit that he has produced so logical find the book of great use also. and adequate a book from the classioal viewpoint of structure. I n the initial chapter by R. Loevinger, the basic theory of The excellence of Pmfessor Wheland's book is certain to insure vacuum practice is presented and the quantities which cbmacterits widespread use ns a single-volume advanced text.bmk of or- ize vacuum systems sre d e h e d snd related to one another. ganic chemistry. The elementary parts of a vscuum system are described and diso w e d by W. E. Bush in Chapter 2. Chapter 3, by K. M. WILLIAM A. BONNER Simpson, gives in detail the methods for measuring low pressures while materials and equipment for construction of vacuum s p tems are discussed by W. E. Bush in Chapter V. The final c h a p ter by R. Loevinger and A. Guthrie describes the methods for 0 PHENOMENA, ATOMS, AND MOLECULES trouble-shooting and maintaining vacuum systems. Appendices Inring Longmuir, General Eleotric Corparation, New York. contain a list of symbols, a summary of formulas useful in design of vacuum systems, physical properties of gases and vapors, a list Philosophical Library, Inc., New York, 1948. xi 436:pp. ing of mechanical m d diffusionpump oils together with their prop Dlustrated. IS X 23 cm. $10. erties, data on cold traps and drying agents, and miscelTHISbook is a collection of twenty papers which were published laneous vacuum materials and same solids and liquids encounby Langmuir since 1909. They have been assembled, in eighteen tered in vacuum practice. The selcctian of materials, its arrangement, and the many chapters, to f o m this very interesting volume. These chapters figures and tables will make this book very useful as a reference are: I. Science, Common Sense, and Decency; 11. Discussion of volume. Because of the background for the book, metal vacuum Science Legislation; 111. World Control of Atomic Energy; systems are emphasieed, as me fasbpumping systems. While IV. Surface Chemistry; V. The Constitution of Liquids; such systems comprise the largest bulk of the modern vscuum VI. The Distribution and Orientation of Molecules; VII. work, laboratory workers using small scale glass equipment may Atomic Hydrogen and an Aid to Industrial Research; VIII. not find much material that is of specific value. The book does Flames of Atomic Hydrogen; IX. The Dissociation of H y d m not have much to say about the various applications of vacuum gen into Atoms; X. Forces near the Surfaces of Molecules; practice but the many references, if used, will accomplish this end. XI. Isomorphism, Isosterism, and Covaleuce; XII. The JOHN P. HOWE Effects of Molecular DDissymmetry on Properties of Matter; GENWC ELBCIWC CO. XIII. Metastable Atoms and Electrons Produced by Resonance Kaoms ATOMIC Powxa L~sosmonr. Scanrwr*o~.N e w Yonr
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