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JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
trait of Hooke, but this does not wholly account for the omission for there is none of Robert of Chester, the great translator of the twelfth century, nor one of Bartholomew who wrote tho most popular science textbook of the thirteenth century, "On the Properties of Things." The accounts are very short, usually not more than two or three pages, but the selection of material is discriminating. There sre a few errors: page 22, Boyle did not construct the air pump, this is the work of Hooke; page 24, Newton did not originate the idea of the calculus, this is most probably the contribution of another Englishman, Issae Barrow; p a g 74, ~ cathode my8 were discovered by Pluecker, not by Hittorf. There is no index. The Select Biographical Bibliography contains 23 titles, only a few of which will be new t o the reader in the literature of science. This is a relatively long review of a, very small book almost exorbitant in price. I t s appeal will be limited. The accounts are too brief to be of any real value to those interested in British contributions t o the development of the fundammtal work on which modern scientific achievements are based. Rut they may serve to whet the appetite of the general reader to pursue the subject further and in this event the book will have ~ccomplished its purpose. CLARA D E MILT NEWCOMB COILEOE.TOLANE UNIYERB~TY NEWO ~ I ~ N LOU~STONA B.
0
RTMlAMENTALS OF ATOMIC PHYSICS
Saul Dushman, Research Consultant, Research Laboratory, General Electric Ca., Schenedady, N. Y. McGraw-Hill Book 294 pp. 66 figs. 16 X 24 Co., Inc., New York, 1951. a cm. 55.50.
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ACCORDING to the preface, this book owes its origin to the Fellowships granted annually by the General Electric Company to high-school teachers of science for the purpose of "enlarging each Fellow's grasp of new developments in the physical sciences." To achieve this end, six weeks' courses in physics and chemistry were given during the summer, and Dr. Dushman states that he eoopers,ted in the preparation of a series of notes which might be of assistance in connection with the lectures in physies. "These notes were gradually developed into a. mare systematic survey of the fundamentals of atomic physics, which is the subject of this volume. It wm thought that this review might prove useful not only to teachersaf science.. .,but also to students of engineering." The hook opens with a brief history of physics, from 2000 B.C. to the present day, after which there is a short mathematical introduction in which the reader is taken from the binomial theorem t o tho solution of simple differential equations. Then follow chapters dealing with the kinctic theory of gases, properties and behavior of electrons, X-rays, atomic spectra, electronic configuration of the elements, and matter waves. I n the presentation of this material the author has drawn frequently upon his previously published works. The remainder of the volume, consisting of some 86 pages, is devoted to the nuclear aspects of atomio physics, such as radioactivity, isotopes, nuclear reaotions, fission, and nucleav forcestopic8 which are of interest to the chemist as well as to the physioist. However, almost cxaotly half of this consists of a chapter on Generators for Acceleration of High-Energy Partiolen. Thus, other important subjects, such as nuclear fision, tho ~eparatian of isotopes, nuclear binding energies, and the release of atomic energy, receive very brief treatment. I n his book, Dr. Dushman frequently quotes from other authors. These quotations are printed in small type, giving the erroneous impression that they are less important than the main text. Incidentally, the present reviewer feels that while quotations from primary contributors to the field of atomic physics add to the interest of a baok, direct quotations from texthooks and other secondary authorities, whioh abound in the book under review, have merit only in special circumstances.
As has been implied in the foregoing remarks, this book will appeal more t o teachers of physics, for whom it was intended, than to those who wish to learn how the newer developments in atomic physics should influence their teaching of chemistry. SAMUEL GLASSTONE Loa A ~ r a o s Nsw MEXWO
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THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES
Emmett James Cable, Iowa State Teachers College; Robert Ward GetcheU, Iowa State Teachers College; William Henry Kadesch, Adams State College of Colomdo; chapters on astronomy by Harry E. Crull, Butler University. PrenticeSall, Inc., 496 pp. 345 figs. 22 tables. 18 X New York, 1951. xvii 25cm. $5.50.
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THISis the third edition of a popular, well-written physical science text. The baok is written particularly for two types of students; the one preparing for teaching as a career and the one
and'tables. some of them new is a lame numher bf'i~~ustratians t o this edition. The authors have manseed'to mrtinhin a soorl and figures. I n the words of the authors: "The text has been revised a t many points in the interest of greater clarity, or for the purpose of including more recent develapments. Typical examples of the first kind of revision are found in the treatment of B~wwnian movement, the telephone, ionization, chemical equilibrium, and cent,ral forces. E x s m ~ l e of s the latter kind are modern nraet,iees ing atomic structure." Probably the greatest change lies in the Astronomy section. The number of chapters had been increased from five to eight. The chapters are well written from s n obviously broad background. For the moment they are up to date giving Kuiper's data on Pluto, a second moan for Neptune, and a fifth one for Uranus. CLAUDE FELL MERZBACHER SAN DIEGOSTATECOLLEGE S m Dmao. CAmronmn
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METALLURGICAL THERMOCHEMISTRY
0. Kubaschewski and E. L1. Evans, National Physical Labora. tory, England. Academic Press, Inc., New York, 1951. xi 368 PP. 103 figs. 14 X 22.5 cm. 56.
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VERYappropriately, this book is Volume I in a new series of monographs on Metal Physics and Physical Mehllurgy. I t assumes aame previous contact with chemical thermodynamics and is aimed p~imarilyto make the methods and data more readily available to process and physical metallurgists. The notation, given in a three-page introduction, is in general in accord with that adopted by the British Standards Institute in 1038. Exothermic reaotions are regarded as those in whioh AH is negative. To avoid misleading inferences, a study of the notation system is a necessary prerequisite t o perusal of the book. I n the first section the theoretical background is reviewed, using as a typical example the preparation of a pure metal by the reduction of one of its compounds. Solutions m e illustrated h y mixtures of metals and metal-slap systems. The next hundred pages are devoted to a discussion of experimental methods used to determine thermodynamic quantities in systems of interest t o metallurgists. An important contribution is the detailed discussion of methods to estimate values for thermochemieal vari-
