book reviews were inadequate and that the display material has never been proofread. The tone of the book changes rather abruptly at Chapter 12. In general the organic section is well written. The presentation is considerably more rigomus than that of the general chemistry material. It perhaps would have been better if the nomenclature yhapter had been presented first. Nothing on spectroscopic methods of identification, such as ir or nmr, or chmmatographic separation methods, such as gas or gel chromatography, is included. The author also writes with authority in the concluding section of the hook on biochemistry. In this reviewer's opinion. the most interesting chapters of the text are those on nutrition and pharmaceuticals. Strangely these are the only two chapters in the text whieh do not contain a summary. Some of the difficulties which occur in this section are that the peptide bond is repeatedly shown incorrectly, rather poor representations of the Pauling-Corey alpha helix and the Watson-Crick double helix are given, and the protein synthesis diagram shows four transfer RNA's simultaneously bound to an RNA molecule which is labeled ribosomal and not messenger RNA. Some general areas of weakness should be noted. The presence of a second color would have clarified a number of the diagram; S n a n i u r r are gwcn r u the pwhIrn,%. No h;hl~ographirrnatwni nrr gwcn t u pwmit ntiduwul ctwy I,\ thr studvnl In summary, this text provides a good introduction to organic chemistry, a moderately good introduction to biochemistry, and a rather poor introduction t o general chemistry. If an instructor is willing to correct the numerous errors which oceur throughout the hook and add a discussion of thermodynamics, either through lectures or by reference to a standard general chemistry text, this hook may pmve suitable for its intended audience. ~
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James 9.lfft University at Redlands Redlands. Caiitornia 92373
An Environmental Approach to Physical Science
D Wilson, Ohio University. D. C. Heath and Co., Lexington, Massaehusetts, 1974. viii + 448 pp. Figs. and tables. 19 X 23.5 em. $7.95.
Jerp
Ten years ago a textbook that presented an environmental approach to physical science would have been unique. Today there is a plethora of books concerned with science as it relates to society and/or the environment, and same of them are very good. This book must therefore be considered in the light of some rather strong competition. This volume contains a large amount of information, perhaps even too mueh. It seems that the author has tried to mention most of the basic concepts of f i s t year physics, chemistry, geology, astronomy, A44
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Journal at Chemical Education
and meteorology-all this in a one-semester textbook for students who are not very interested in science. New scientific terms (helpfully printed in hold type when they are introduced) sometimes occur six or more to 8 page. Explanations are necessarily brief. Since most of these concepts are never referred to again, one wonders why many of them had to be included a t all. This reviewer would have been mueh happier with the book if it had said less but said it more carefully. A cursory examination of several chapters turned up a number of errors, of which the following are typical: On page 127 technetium and promethium are referred to as "Te and Pr" (the symbols for tellurium and praesodymium); On page 153 it is stated t h a t t h e "monomer of Teflon is F-C-F" (instead of F2C=CFzI. This error is repeated later in the same paragraph. It was oxygen, not hydrogen as stated on page 117, that was the reference standard for atomic weights prior to the adoption of carhon-12 as the international standard in 1961. A frequent error is that of referring to elements as compounds, as on page 325 for example, ". . . other compounds, such as He, Nz,
....
The author also tends to make broad sweeping statements that are true only sometimes, as in the following eases: (page 153) "Polymers are commonly referred to as plastics." (Haw about starch, proteins, etc?); (page 129) ". . . the noble gases were once referred t o as inert gases, hut this name is out-dated and no longer applies, since the nohle gases can be chemically combined with same elements under very special conditions." (The statement applies only to xenon, krypton, and radon, the very rarest members of the group. No mention is made of the fact that the more common noble gases are still believed to be "inert."); and (pages 368-370) "The principle of the fuel cell, whieh was first demonstrated in 1839, involves an electrochemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen to produce water and electricity." (The "fuel," of course, need not be hydrogen. and the oxidizer need not be oxygen.) There are also a number of factual statements, such as the following, to whieh some may take exception: (page 5) "Empirical knowledge of the earth and other aspects of the environment began with the appearance of man some 3 to 4 million years ago."; (page 98) "The four most common methods, or modes, of radioactive decay are alpha decay, beta decay, gamma decay, and fission."; (page 143) "pV = k T This relationship is referred to as the general, or ideal, gas law."; and (page 150-151) "The lower the pH is below 7 the stronger the acid. The higher the p H is above 7 the stronger the base." The various chapters on population. pollution, and environmental problems, all found in the latter half of the book, are the sections this reviewer liked best. They present a great deal of practical information and are written a t a level appropriate for their intended audience. Many excellent tables, diagrams, and photographs are included.
Introductory Organic Chemistry
J. T G e r i ~ .University of California, Santa Barbara. Academic Press, Inc., New York, 1974. xvii + 404 pp. Figs. and tables. 16.5 x 24 cm. $9.95. "Introductory Organic Chemistry" by Gerig is a text to be used in a ane-semester or twa-quarter course for nonmajars. The text has many distinctive qualities. For example, it is quite compact. The traditional content of introductory organic chemistry is covered along with an interesting chapter on Chemical Evolution in less than 400 pages. The arrangement of topics suggests that the author has ordered the material primarily by functional group. The early chapters discuss the chemistry of hydrocarbons. Sections that deal with alkyl and aryl derivatives of water, hydrogen sulfide, and ammonia follow. The last part of the hook is concerned with the chemistry of carhonyl compounds, carhaxylic acids and their derivatives, and compounds of biological interest. Chemical theory and physical methods are introduced when needed. For example, the first discussion of spectroscopic methods fallows the chapters an hydrocarbon chemistry and includes mass and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. For some unapparent reason treatment of infrared and ultraviolet visible methods is deferred t o Chapter 12 after all major functional classes have been discussed. The chemistry of biologically important molecules is well integrated with the treatment of related, simple organic compounds. The chapter on carbohydrates follows immediately after treatment of aldehydes and ketones. A section on lipids is included in the chapter on carboxylic acids and the discussion of proteins follows shortly thereafter. One of the teat's more striking features is the regular appearance of anecdotes that relate specific compounds to contemporary problems or noteworthy applications, e.g., hydrocarbon supply and the energy crisis, the carcinogenic properties of polycyclic aromatics, steroids, and antifertility drugs. There is also an excellent list of suggested readings a t the end of each chapter. This text appears to he one of the more attractive ones available for a short course in organic chemistry. However, i t does have some shortcomings and it places some special demands on students and instructors. There are no summaries of reactions within the chapters to aid students. Perhaps the compactness of the presentation precludes a need for summaries. The material is presented in concise, scientifically accurate language. Thus, the student is expected to have a good knowledge of general chemistry and to quickly adapt to the terminology of the modern organic chemist. The text focuses on a small number of basic, well-known reactions and gives little space to new reactions. The approach taken by the author far explaining important concepts is frequently outstanding; however, his language sometimes ohscures the simplicity and elegance of the argument. (For example, see the diseussion of aromatic substitution on page 102.)
Doris K . Kolb lflinob Centre1 College East Peoria, INinois 6161 1
(Continued onpageA57J
