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books, together with the present one and the book by R. Whytlaw-Gray and H. S. Patterson (Smoke, a Study of Aerial Disperse Systems, Edward Arnold, London, 1932), give a comprehensive account of practically all aspects of the subject. There is an interesting chapter in the present book on the electrical properties of aerosols-a subject of importance to aircraft pilots and meteorologists. The authors refer to the pioneer investigations of J. J. Thomson on the formation and stability of electrically charged droplets and of droplets whose surface tension is a function of the radius. These are both important subjects. It could not be expected that the authors would be familiar with that famous (or infamous) n-component system, the “London particular,” Le., the yellow smoky fog that used to occur so frequently in the winter months. This “meteoric” monster has now, however, practically vanished, owing to the increasing use of gas and electrical energy for heating and cooking, and of central heating sy@ems employing oil or coke. The reviewer can recommend the following simple lecture experiment on the electrical coagulation of an aerosol. Take an old-fashioned bell jar (one fitted with a tubulure and cork a t the top). Stick a metal wire well through the cork, and connect it with the secondary of an induction coil. Lift the bell jar from its glass plate, burn a piece of magnesium wire under it, replace it on the plate, and start the coil. In a few seconds the magnesium oxide aerosol will come down as a beautiful “snow” storm (verb. sap.). Although the specialist may detect certain lacunae in the book of Winkel and Jander, the authors have succeeded in compressing a great deal of highly interesting material into 111 pages, and their book may be recommended to a wide circleof readers. F. G. DONNAN.
From Galileo to Cosmic Rays. By HARVEY BRACELEMON. 450 pp. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1934. Price: $5.00 (including stereoscope). The title of this work might lead one to suppose i t to be another popular treatment of certain aspects of modern physics addressed to the adult reading public. While the author states that he had the latter somewhat in mind, i t is essentially a pandemic textbook of elementary physics designed for the undergraduates in the “Chicago System.” The writer’s statement in the preface that the need has been felt of such a text under one cover in preference to allowing the student to browse among selected passages from miscellaneous sources is interesting. Since visual instruction is the watchword of the newer educational methods, the author has spared no trouble not only in illustrating the principles under discussion, but in providing marginal pen sketches on almost every page intended to enliven the subject and to catch and hold the reader’s interest. It is perhaps a matter for a psychologist to predict, or of experience to show, whether the desired end is to be attained in this way; whether, for example, comprehension of the principles of the components of force will be facilitated if accompanied by a sketch of a canal boat with all details including not only the mule and driver but the family laundry being dried en route; whether an Alaskan dog team, an Alpine climber, an East Indian student (or is it merely the proverbial wet towel) are all essential on one page to illustrate work. Will the imagination be stimulated by that which leaves nothing t o the imagination? Or is the imagination which is so dull as to need stimulation worth the effort and expense? The usual principles of physics are set forth, mainly following classical methods except in the matter of illustrations which undeniably are artistic and attractive. Although neutrons and positrons are described, one is surprised to find deuterium and deuterons neglected.
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Those who are interested in a pandemic presentation of the principles of physics will find this work of undoubted value. It is not intended for a more serious or fundamental approach to the subject.
S.C. LIND. The Science of Rubber. Handbuch der Kautschukwissenschaft. By K. MEMMLER, translated by R. F. Dunbrook and V. N. Morris. 770 pp. New York: Reinhold Publishing Corporation, 1934. Price: $15.00. The editor has been assisted in the preparation of this treatise by seven collaborators, who join him in writing the various chapters into which the book is divided. The editors of the English edition have been assisted by a group of ten translators, all members of the Research Staff of the Firestone Rubber Company. The author wisely chose to ignore plant practice in the fabrication of rubber products and the factory technology of rubber, so as to devote his efforts exclusively to the science of rubber production, treatment, and testing. I n carrying out this object, he has given a thorough presentation of the botany, cultivation, collection, and properties of rubber, the treatment of the latex to convert it to crude rubber, the chemistry of rubber and its derivatives, including artificial rubber, the theory of vulcanization, the analytical methods of testing, the physics of rubber, and the physical methods of testing. The work is replete with statistics, scientific data, and descriptions of methods which are of great value to all of those interested in any aspect of rubber production or treatment. The theories of the structure of rubber, of its polymerization, of vulcanization, of rubber as a disbursing medium, are all of great interest to the physical chemists as well as to organic chemists and chemical engineers. I n fact any scientist not already familiar with the science and properties of rubber is sure to find new ideas extending into many different fields of physics and physical chemistry. I n preparing this translation for the English reading public, a valuable service has been rendered in a very acceptable manner. The translators have made such additions and corrections in the way of footnotes as were necessary to make the work clear and to bring i t up to date. They have checked the literature references and added an unusually well arranged and classified bibliography covering the entire subject. The work appears indispensable to all those interested in any of the scientific phases of rubber. S. C. LIND.
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Physical Chemistry. By A. J. MEE. 14 x 22 cm.; xix 780 pp. London: William Heinemann, Ltd., 1934. Price: 15s. “This book,’: the author states, “sets out to give an up-to-date outline of the results and methods of Physical Chemistry. . . The book is suitable for students who are preparing for the Higher School Certificate and Intermediate Science Examinations of the various Universities, for University Scholarships, and for University degrees up to Pass standard.” I n achieving the end which he had in view, the author has been very successful. I n the book under review, we have a well-,written and clear discussion of a wide range of topics, “all the topics usually dealt with under the heading of Physical Chemistry,” as the author assures us, including photochemistry and the methods used in determining the structure of the simpler molecules; and any student who masters this work will have a knowledge of physical chemistry which should carry him well beyond the standard for a Pass degree. Mr. Mee has given, on the whole, a remarkably clear and comprehensive survey of the whole range of physical chemistry, and he has taken pains to keep the mathematical treatment and the explanation of physical concepts as simple as is consistent with an exact
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