BOOK REVIEWS Prefixes, suffixes and abbreviations are well treated; for example, the German ending -in is clearly ditferentiated as to its English equivalents -in, - h e , and -we. Nine (;erman uses of the prefix ab- are listed. The vccasional use of prepositions as postpositions is also explained. The book makes no attempt to be a grammar, hut the introduction gives enough in~truction about Germm peculiarities to help users out of many a hard spot and teach them to avoid t,raps for the unwary. T h e x aids are reinforced by specific instructions in the vocabulary, such as the ten lines devoted tu explaining the meanings and uses of der. Some trade names ur their acronyms are entered, e.g., Adurol ( a ehloroquinol developer) and PAN far polyacrylonitrile. Names of many chemicals are enteredeven t.hough nearly or quite identical with the English names; this serves to alert users to small dilferenees in spelling, reassure them of identities, and remind them that apparent identity is sometimes deceptive. The volume is not as large as its vocabulary size would indicate. Space is saved hy small (but clear and legible) type, and by tricks of lexicagraphy such as avoiding repet,ition of adjectives, which in German are mnerallv also adverbs. The double duty is indicated thus: saihw, cleanlly, neat/ly, tidy&. The expedient- mentioned, and other small devires for helping dictionary users, are not, novel if taken one by one, but their
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Journal of Chemical Education
combination as employed here is a rare if not unique lexieagr;tphic aid to scientists seeking to read a language with which they have only a modest familiarity. The publishers have produced a rompact and come-packed volume, easy to oarry and read, with goad t.ypography and adequate but not excessive white space, with a large store of information in small bulk. I t will earn its price and its shelf space "a plurality of times," as a patent attorney would say.
J U L ~ AF. N SYITII Lenoir Rhwe College Hickory, North Carolina
Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. Volume 4, Calcium Compounds to Chloramphenicol
Anthony Standen, executive editor. Interscience Publishers ( a division of John Wiley and Sons, Inc.), New York, 1964. 937 pp. Figs. and tables. 19 X 27 em. $45 each; $3.5 subscription. Volume 4 continues in the same pattern as previous v o l u m ~of the "Encyclopedia" by providing competent coverage of the multitudes of subject matter that arise in m y encyclopediawith such broad purposes. The people selected have done an admirable iob of containinn - their suecialty to carefully selected reviews which will certainly be stimulating to students learning for the first time about certain subjects and helpful to seasoned profes-
sionals who need a starting paint for lurther study on many topics.
F. RASE HOWARD University of Tezav Austin Elements of the Theory of Gases
Sidney Golden, Brsndeis University, Boston. Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Ine., Reading, Masssehusetts, 1964. iv 154 pp. Figs. and tables. 16 X 23.5 em. $5.
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"Elements of the Theory of Gases" is a. brief account of some of the equilibrium and non-equilibrium properties of gases. Both thermodynamic and statistical ttreatments artre given for some of the topics. These include: equation of state of ideal and real gases, corresponding states, molecular distributions, mechanics of collisions, and the mean-free-path theory of transport properties. The level of discussion is slightly above or on par with Moore's or Sheehm's "Physical Chemistry." I have my doubts about the usefulness of the book. Much of the subject matter is included in the books mentioned above, and much more in advanced treatises such as "Physical Chemistry" by MoelwynHughes. The discussion of the mechmics of collisions is given in more detail than usual in elementary discussions of gases; this is a welcome addition. It. is easy to find faults with a book,
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