Chemical Education Today
Book & Media Reviews
edited by
Edward J. Walsh Allegheny College Meadville, PA 16335
Introduction to Bioanalytical Sensors by Alice J. Cunningham Wiley: New York, 1998. xvii + 318 pp + appendices, bibliography, and index. ISBN 0-471-11861-3. $69.95. reviewed by S. Douglass Gilman
The preface to Introduction to Bioanalytical Sensors contains most of the essential elements of an effective book review. The intended purpose and scope of the monograph are clearly stated, and the educational background of the targeted reader is outlined. All that is left to the reviewer is to recap this information, judge whether the text meets its stated aims, and attempt to add to the book’s self-portrayal from the reviewer’s perspective. Introduction to Bioanalytical Sensors delivers what Alice J. Cunningham promises in its preface. It provides a thorough and compact introduction to bioanalytical sensors, and it communicates an enthusiastic and inclusive view of the history and future of this multidisciplinary field. The first two chapters provide an overview of bioanalytical sensors. Important terminology and figures of merit are defined for bioanalytical sensors. Sensor design strategies and the challenging applications that inspire these designs are discussed. Examples of specific sensors are provided to illustrate the implementation of the basic concepts introduced. This section of the book could stand on its own as a concise, complete introduction and review of bioanalytical sensors. The last four chapters expand upon the two most important topics in the field, bioselective layers and energy transduction. The energy
transduction chapters are divided into electrochemical, optical, and thermal and acoustic-wave transducers. The appendices and bibliography work together and are central to the effectiveness of this book. The appendices classify the references in the bibliography by topic and by target analyte. The bibliography is impressively up to date, and it includes many helpful review articles. My efforts to complete this review in a timely fashion were hindered by a tendency to stop reading in order to note references to look up, research ideas to try, and chapters for graduate students in my group to read. This last point best illustrates the educational niche that Introduction to Bioanalytical Sensors occupies. As stated in its preface, this book is aimed at a reader who is a self-learner and has at least an undergraduate degree in chemistry, including some course work in biochemistry. Accordingly, the text does not attempt to teach the reader all the basic chemical, biochemical and physical principles that are needed to fully understand bioanalytical sensors. Instead it provides a focused discussion of these principles as they pertain to techniques and concepts important to bioanalytical sensors. The book contains ample references to basic textbooks and review articles so that motivated self-learners can readily explore basic principles and techniques that are unfamiliar to them. Introduction to Bioanalytical Sensors probably is not an appropriate textbook for an undergraduate course. However, it will provide an excellent foundation for a course at the graduate level. This text is a valuable resource for students and faculty who are carrying out research in this exciting multidisciplinary field. I plan to guard my copy jealously. S. Douglass Gilman is in the Department of Chemistry, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996.
JChemEd.chem.wisc.edu • Vol. 77 No. 2 February 2000 • Journal of Chemical Education
161
