JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
GENERAL CHEMISTRY Rofesaor Of Chemistry, Simmons John New Boston, Massachusetts. McGraw-Hill Baok Company,,.'nI York, 1950. Second edition. di 764 pp. 203 figs. 75 tables. 16 X 23.5 cm. $4.50.
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con versa ti om^ type in the author rpHIs book is directly h a student who has no previous knowledge of ohemistry. It is obviously the work of a fine teacher who is a w m of bpics found difficultby students, and who answers many of their questions just before they are asked. 1t is dearand interest. and line drawings, iog and is well illustrated with is a list of exercises reading refthe end of each erences. The exercises are good, but they are not as numerous as some might think desirable. ~~~tof them are questions, hut some are simple numerical problems of the types normally asin general ~h~ book gives the impression being written much more for the average thm for the superior more descriptive student, *]though it appessJ to be in nature than most of the recent general chemistry texts, it does hisdevote much attention to prj,,ciples and to theory, some toricd material is given, and theories are introduced after facts upon which they are based have been presented. he binding is attractive and substantial. Both the printing and the paper are eood and verv few t w o e r a ~ h i c aerrors are mesent.
For examde. sections on the silicones. the structure of silicates. the struciuk of sulfur, and the production of synthetic quart; crystals are now present. The number of figures has been increased from 173 to 203 and the number of pages from 592 to 764. ~~~tof the book, however, is still the same as the first edition. (Reviewed in Tars JOURNAL, 22,364 (1945).) When another revision is made one may expect h see the discussion of molecular structure extended to include modern treatments the Phosphates and/0r Organic In general, the book is written in a very clear style. This is not h e of all parts, however. An exmple is the sentence, "In each of the molecules of a given substance, there are the same number of atoms of eaxh of the elements of which the substance is composed!' Another example is the first &xssion b. 179) Of the balancing of oxidation-reduction equations. This is too brief to be easily understood by a beginner. There is not an adequate discussion of the meaning or the writing of ionic equations, nor is there a general use of ionic equations throughout the hook. They do appear, hut many of the ionic reactions in solution are repre"nted These criticisms do not mean that the reviewer regards the book as had. It is sctually one of the h e texts on chemIstry wwhich are now on the market. One who has the responsibility of teaching beginning students of average ability should examine the hook ca~efully,for it may be just the one which he
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treatment of nu~leonicsby adding a discussion of nuclear fiasion. the nuclear reactor, isotope separation, the transuranium elements, the atomic bomb, and the use of tracer isotopes. He also rearranged some of the chapters and made several additions.
GEORGE H. CADY U-EW,LTY
or was~rsnolr
S n m m s . Wasm~oron
