FEBRUARY, 1953
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Beems to give a misleading impression of both the physicd power and the possible mathematical elaborateness of thermodynamics. Nothing is said about the postulational development of Caratheadory nor is there any reference to the important new work on the thermodynamics of irreversible syatems. The discussion of wave propagation (pages 269 ff), to cite another example, is misleading - since it is unnera~srtrilv restricted to periodic waves. The recent papers of Scbdinger suggest that the problem of the interpretation of quantum mechanics, naually considered to have been settled by the probability view of Born, may have to be reopened for more careful consideration. The portraits of famous mathematicians and physicists add considerable interest to the work. Among those of pre-quantum physicists is one said to be that of Laaare Camot (1753-1823). This gentleman was not a physicist but a military expert whose principal scientific contributions were in the field of mathematics. His elder son, Sadi Carnot (1796-1832), was the eminent physicist, known to fame as one of the founders of thermodynamics. R. B. LINDSAY B a o w ~Umvmnsm PROVIDENCE, RAODZISUAD
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BIOCHEMICAL PREPARATIONS. VOLUME 2
Eric G. Boll, Editor-in-chief. JohnWiley B Sons,Inc., New York, 1952. vii I09 pp. 2 figs. 15.5 X 23.5 cm. $3.
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INRECENT year8 the study of individual chemical reactions in animal and plant tissues has occupied a large segment of hi+ chemical research. Such studies necessitate the isolation or
compilation is the objective of "~iochemical Preparations." The present volume is the second in the series. It contains isolation procedures for cytochrome-e, seed globulin, phusvitin. lactic dehydrogenase, oleic acid and methyl ricinoleate; the biosynthesis of myo- and epi-inosose, inosital monophosphate and Clrlabled sucrose. In addition, chemical procedures for the preparation of 14 compounds of biochemical interest are described. The methods are presented with full detail8 of procedure and are supplemented with footnote3 in which choice of reagents, vields. and other heloful comments annear. Each method har
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rapidly expanding contributions of chemical thermodynamics to the solution of practical metallurgical pprohlems. It is a little disturbing to find that many of these contributions have been made by chemists with little or no formal metallurgial education. Another significant trend has been the increasingly prominent role of chemical engineers in metallurgical activities." Thus a metallurgist admits the superiority of training in fundamentals over descriptive technology. He proposes to apply some of these fundamentals to process metallurgy. The successful application of the concept of unit physical operations and unit chemicel processes in chemical engineering points the way to its application to metallurgy. In the first volume the author devotes ten chapters to engineering principles common to all the unit processes of extractive metallurgy. These are: (1) The Unit Processes of Chemical Metallurgy, 11 pages; (2) Stoichiometry, 31 pzges; (3) The Heat Balance, 26 pages; (4) Metallurgical Fuels, 40 pages; (5) Combustion of Fnele and Heat Utilization, 34 pages; (6) Fluid Flow, 48 pages; (7) Steady Heat Flow, 68 pages; (8) Unsteady Heat Flow, 25 pages; (9) Phmes in Pyrometallurgicsl Systems, 41 pages; (10) Refractory Materials, 43 pages. In considering the number of topics, and the space allotted to each, that are covered in one semester, the reviewer wonders if the success of the chemist and chemical engineer is not due to the emphasis and time spent on fundamentals. The chemical engineer will spend a semester on staiehiometry alone. The author has done an excellent job of reducing the fundamentals in each subject to a chapter of materisl that is applicable to process metallurgy. The chapters on fluid flow and heat transfer appeared particularly good. All chapters me concluded with problems that apply the principles to metallurgical problems. Chemists and chemical engineers will be interested in seeing this "new look" given the teaching of metallurgy, partioularlp if they desire to adapt thwe iodustria1,problems t o their courses to extend the breadth of training of their students. KENNETH A. KOBE U N I V E ~ OF ~ ITTE~X A S A ~ T I NT. s x ~ s
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ANNUAL REVIEW OF NUCLEAR SCIENCE. VOLUME I
Committee on Nuclear Science, National ~edearch Council. 645 pp. Annual Reviews, Inc., Stanford, Calif., 1952. ix Illustrated. 15.5 X 23 Em. $6.
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THIS first volume of the ~eriesplanned to present the most significant developments in the various associated fields of neuclear science does somewhat more than its title implies. Most for the isolation of more of the enzyme proteins when methods for of its contributors not only review the published work in the their preparation are perfected. AR this series of volume^ ex- year 1950, but attempt to provide sufficient background materisl pands, it will be of value if each volume contains a list of the to provide a true perspective for the year's advances. In many com~oundsthat have been described in the earlier volumes of ceses this is accomplished in a spece-saving fashion by reference the ieries. to a critically chosen bibliography of general reviews. Thifi is a feature of the volume which particularly adds to its value for the academic library. Since the diversity of research in nuclear nhenomena is so .. meat.. the comurehensive ~ l a nfor the series arldom will nllorr a nwrr um-year appr~isalof a topic to he m d e . TI& l m h ~ r ni t u f i ~ i p ~ I)? t ~ dm m y of the sprcialist contril~itor. with an unuruslly large r~umhrruf "in-pre-
