New Books and Booklets REPORT
1933. 1934.
OF THE F O O D INVESTIGATION
BOARD F O R T H E YEAR
248 pages. His Majesty's Stationery Office, London, Price, 4 s. 0 d., net.
T H E report of t h e Food Investigation Board, Department of Scientific a n d Industrial Research of Great Britain, for the year 1933 is devoted t o a number of problems which bear upon the board's principal objective—namely, improvement of t h e food supply for t h e people of Great Britain. Precedence has been given first, t o home-grown produce; next, t o t h a t of t h e Empire overseas; a n d finally, t o foreign produce. An outstanding feature is t h e investigation on transport and storage of fish, meats (both fresh a n d smoked), and fruit in an atmosphere of carbon dioxide. I t h a s been demonstrated on a semi-commercial scale t h a t chilled beef can be held i n perfect condition from 60 t o 70 days in a n atmosphere containing from 10 to 20 per cent of carbon dioxide. This means t h a t not onlycan Australia a n d New Zealand send their beef t o England in good condition, b u t beef m a y also be imported from other producing areas, such as South America, without t h e formation of large ice crystals, which have always been objectionable because they break down cell structure and therefore interfere, n o t only with t h e quality, b u t with the flavor of the beef. Mild-cured bacon has been stored i n an atmosphere of carbon dioxide for 18 weeks a t 0° C. with entire success, while in another experiment bacon was kept in excellent condition for 8 months a t temperatures of from —3° t o —10° C. in a carbon dioxide atmosphere. M a n y other conditions influence the success of such storage, b u t the work has given such promising results t h a t largescale equipment is being constructed thoroughly to test commercial possibilities. Similar work is being conducted with apples of various kinds, as well as with other produce.
REVIEW OF PETROLEUM INDUSTRIES H A L E B . SOYSTEH of t h e Geological Survey D e p a r t m e n t of the Interior, h a s compiled Circular 11, entitled "Review of t h e Petroleum Industry i n t h e United States, April, 1934." This publication in mimeographed form gives m a n y statistics, valuable interpretations, a n d discussions on our petroleum reserves and their depletion, supply and demand, petroleum p r o d u c t s and thsir uses, as well as their waste, substitutes for motor fuel, a n d a s u m m a r y which stresses t h e need for conservative a n d economical u s e of this exhaustible resource from the drilling of a well to t h e final consumption of the finished product. Under Substitutes for Motor Fuel, a t t e n t i o n is paid gasoline substitutes from coal b y t h e various processes, gasoline substitutes from oil shale, and alcohol as a motor fuel. T h r o u g h o u t the publication there are references, 97 i n all, which add t o t h e value of t h e compilation.
PROGRESS I N T I N RESEARCH T H E International T i n Research a n d Development Council, whose N e w York office is a t 149 Broadway, h a s issued t h e first general report of the council describing the services which t h e organization h a s rendered in supplying technical information to manufacturers a n d scientific investigators in m a n y countries. It summarizes t h e progress m a d e in the p r o g r a m of fundamental research being carried o n to develop new outlets for tin. Among the applications of t i n covered are: t i n plate; bearing metals; preparations of alloys from powdered metals; solders and other lead-tin alloys; bronzes; addition of other elements to t i n ; hot-tinning of cast iron, steel, copper, e t c . ; electro deposition of t i n and t i n alloys; anodic oxidation a n d coloring of tin; spraying of t i n ; pewter; collapsible t u b e s ; t i n foil; block tin pipe; tin i n steel and nickel alloys; tin compounds. Copies of the report m a y b e had upon application to t h e New FOG. Alexander McAdie. 23 pages + 52 plates. T h e MacYork office. millan Co., 60 Fifth Ave., New York, 1934. Price, $2.50.
T H E recent experiments of H e n r y G. Houghton, Jr., i n an effort t o dissipate fog (see N E W S EDITION, Vol. 12, page 2S6, August 10, 1934) lends additional interest t o this volume by Alexander McAdie, whose primary purpose is t o direct the attention of the public to t h e possibility of removing this hazard to transportation, a t least in limited places and for limited times. The author brings t o his subject some I S years' experience as forecaster and service as director of the Blue Hill Observatory of H a r v a r d , as well as professor of meteorology. T h e book begins with a discussion of t h e modern scientific theories concerning atmosphere, clouds, lightning, etc., a n d a brief chapter on methods of dissipation t h a t h a d been investigated u p to t h e time of this publication. Then follow 52 interesting and unique plates, m a n y m a d e from photographs b y the author. These are concerned with atmospheric phenomena, including various sorts of fog, clouds, formation of snowflakes and frost crystals, and lightning.
BENJAMIN R U S H BIOGRAPHY T H E F I R S T full biography of Benjamin Rush, first formal professor of chemistry in America and author of the first chemistry text, distinguished physician a n d citizen of t h e Revolutionary period, is published this month by the University of Pennsylvania Press, 3622 Locust St., Philadelphia P a . T h e biography is written b y N a t h a n G. Goodman. Rush was only 23 when he returned from his medical studies a t Edinburgh in 1769 to apply for t h e position of professor of chemistry a t t h e College of Philadelphia. Bearing a recommendation and a "chymical a p p a r a t u s " for the "tryal of ores" to t h e trustees from Thomas Penn, proprietor of t h e colony, R u s h was duly elected to the faculty of the first medical school in America. I n 1770 he published his "Syllabus of a Course of Lectures on Chemistry,' ' t h e first textual contribution in chemistry t o be written by a n American. In addition t o his pioneer work in chemistry, Benjamin Rush was t h e greatest American physician of his time, an intense patriot, a n d a n outstanding social reformer. H e was t h e first American psychiatrist and wrote the first book on mental diseases. He founded t h e first free dispensary, t h e first temperance and antislavery societies, t h e College of Physicians, and Dickinson College. His political activities included cooperation with Thomas Paine in publishing his "Common Sense," service as physiciangeneral in the war, aid in drawing u p the Declaration of Independence which bears his signature—the only M . D . on the list— and active promotion of the Constitution in 1787.
D o w CHEMICALS T H E D o w CHEMICAL CO., Midland, Mich., has issued a 100page brochure which is attractive because of i t s physical a p p e a r ance and likewise for t h e information it contains. I t is a catalog of Dow chemicals, in which industrial, pharmaceutical, a n d aromatic chemicals, insecticides a n d fungicides, dyes, magnesium, Dowmetal, and the service of the Dowell subsidiary are g i v e n in considerable detail. Under each of the chemicals there a r e given the formula, synonyms, properties, specifications, uses, shipping classification, a n d packing information. D a t a of t h i s k i n d for the large n u m b e r of chemicals hsted m a k e the catalog a v a l u a b l e tool for a variety of purposes. Not t h e least attractive feature of t h e b o o k is t h e generous supply of interesting illustrations, most of t h e m being m a d e from actual plant photographs. I n the center is a n impressive airplane view of t h e 300 modern fact o r y buildings which house t h e extensive manufacturing facilities used in t h e production of over 250 chemical products. T h e plant covers a n area of 250 acres and employs "3000 m e n . Of these t h e chemical, civil, a n d mechanical engineers, t e c h n o l o gists, chemists, physicists, metallurgists, and biologists n u m b e r over 300. LAHGE-SCALE P H A S E EQUILIBRIUM DIAGRAMS COMPOSITION-TEMPERATURE phase equilibrium diagrams of t h e refractory oxides have been prepared by R o b e r t B. Sosman a n d Olaf Andersen a s four sheets 24 X 19 inches. In t h e s e are reproduced in colors t h e four ternary composition-temperature diagrams of t h e four refractory oxides—silica, alumina, lime, and magnesia—on a scale sufficiently large a n d accurate to p e r m i t of interpolation t o 0.1 per cent. The base is a 500-mm. equilateral triangle divided to 5 m m . (1 per cent in composition). T h e authors hiave recalculated t h e compositions a n d replotted many of the original data of t h e Geophysical Laboratory, making minor revisions to t a k e account of later work, a n d h a v e prepared drawings by the same methods used for colored topographic maps. T h e sheets are available a t $2 for a s e t of four t h r o u g h Robert B . Sosman, Research Laboratory, U . S. Steel Corp., Lincoln Highway, Kearny, N". J. THE UNION
OF S O U T H A F R I C A continues a n i m p o r t a n t
and
growing m a r k e t for American chemicals and allied products on account of better domestic conditions and improved purchasing power of t h e S o u t h African p o u n d in terms of dollars. Imports from t h e United States increased 46 per cent t o a total value of $1,444,000 in 1933 compared with 1932.
