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S.WEST. 6t Physical Chemistry f o r Students of Biochemislry and Medicine. By EDWARD x 94 in.; xiv 365 pp.; 24 figures. New York: The Macmillan Company. Price: $5.75. The purpose which Professor West had in mind is indicated clearly by the title of his book. I n keeping with this purpose, he has wisely omitted topics, ordinarily included in physical chemistry texts, which are of little value to biological workers; an example is the phase rule. He has accordingly been able to spend more time on the topics of immediate biological interest, and to explain these applications in some detail. Afteli the introductory chapter, he has treated the following topics: the structure of matter; gases and solutions; osmotic pressure; electrolytic dissociation and the mass law; acids, bases, and buffers; the determination of pH; the colloidal state and membrane phenomena; oxidation and reduction; the velocity of reactions. Ten or a dozen problems are given a t the end of each chapter. The treatment throughout is quite elementary, and seems designed t o enable the student to carry out calculations involving the gas laws, pH, and the like, and to have a superficial acquaintance with the general facts concerning colloids, reaction kinetics, etc. The reviewer feels that the student would not gain from this book a real insight into the fundamental principles of physical chemistry. Thus no discussion of the kinetic theory of gases is included; indeed, the chapter on gases and solutions is not more advanced than the treatment in a good general chemistry text. Practically no derivations or explanations of the equations used to solve problems are given. The equilibrium constant is discussed on the kinetic basis, and the HendersonHasselbach equation is derived from the law of mass action; the reviewer located no other derivations. He would question whether a student can understand the significance of an equation which is merely stated and applied to numerical examples. A few topics which were missed include: the liquid-junction difficulty; sedimentation equilibrium; the vapor pressure of liquids; the proper use of units or dimensions; dialysis; the physical ideas of the interionic attraction theory; and the subject of free energy. The last omission in particular seems unfortunate, since so much of physical chemistry can be understood through this principle; it would seem of much greater value than a knowledge of atomic and molecular structure and resonance, which are discussed at some length. Other teachers may not share the reviewer’s view. Professor West has the gift of writing clearly and understandably of the subjects he presents fully; in particular, the reviewer felt the chapter on acids, bases, and buffers to be an excellent one for premedical students. Many biological applications are discussed in appropriate places throughout the book. I n short, this volume is a clear, well-presented, very elementary treatment of the portions of physical chemistry indicated. Basic principles are not thoroughly discussed, and some topics are perhaps oversimplified (such as the glass electrode). A few careless statements were noticed, such as “in the case of relatively dilute soluthe activities of the ions present are close to unity.” The rather high price of the text may well act against its wide use. BRYCEL. CR.4WFORD, JR.
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X - r a y Crystallography. By M . J. BUERGER.6 x 9 in.; xxii 531 pp.; 252 figures. Yew York: John Wileyand Sons, Inc., 1942. Price:$6.50. The first of the two chief steps in a crystal-structure investigation consists in a determination of the crystal symmetry in the larger sense, i.e., the crystal class, the space lattice (type and dimensions), and the space group. These results can he completely achieved only through the use of x-ray diffraction. It is thus convenient to designate this science of crystal symmetry investigation by means of x-rays as “x-ray crystallography.” This excellent book is devoted to a detailed treatment of this restricted field, much of which has been treated i n little more than outline form heretofore. The subject matter of the book is confined t o methods utilizing single crystals and monochromatic x-rays, and to the essential theory. There are thorough discussions of the
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simple rotating- and oscillating-crystal methods, and detailed treatments of the increasingly important moving-film methods-especially the Weissenberg, Sauter, Schiebold, and de Jong-Bouman methods. The latter have been available only in the original literature in the past. The treatment throughout is based on the reciprocal lattice, which is presented very completely. A very escellent chapter on precision in the determination of lattice constants deserves special mention. Finally, it gives many experimental details which have never appeared in the literature. The book requires little background, inasmuch as such subjects as elementary lattice theory, x-ray diffraction, space groups, etc. have been treated in a gradual manner. Where possible the author presents ideas requiring space geometry, first in terms of a n example in a plane. Another excellent)feature is the inclusion of all the intermediate steps i n the mathematical derivations. In the case of crystallographic proofs customarily given in vector algebra, alternate proofs are presented by geometrical and algebraic methods. The typography of the book is excellent, and the drawings are the finest the reviewer has ever seen in books in this field. I n spite of the large amount of mathematical detail it appears to be remarkably free from errors. I t is to be recommended without reservation whatsoever, and workers in the fields of x-ray diffraction and crystallography will find i t a “must” for their book shelves. HAROLD P. KLUG.
contributions to Chemical Education. Number One. Acids and Bases. .4 Collection of W . C. JOHNSON, H . N . ALYEA, Papers by N.F. HALL,H . T. BRISCOE,L. P. HAMMMETT, 1.P. MCREYNOLDS, T. H . HAZLEHURST, ANn W . F. LUDER.5 x 8 in.; vii 103 pp. Easton, Pennsylvania: The Journal of Chemical Education, 1941. Price: $1.00. The first four articles in this booklet are papers presented in the symposium arranged by the Division of Chemical Education a t the Spring Meeting of the American Chemcal Society in 1939, in which the modern definitions and conceptions of acids and bases were discussed. These papers and a number of other articles on the same subject (with the esception of one) which are collected in the above booklet have been published in the Journal of Chemical Education. Several of the papers deal with the methods of teaching the modern conceptions and theories of acidity and basicity. One cannot but feel t h a t the answer to the question whether the newer concepts and theories should be taught in elementary courses is not solely determined by the background of the average student, who can assimilate new ideas if clearly presented. ‘Po a large extent the answer is determined by the ability of the teacher to familiarize himself well enough with the new conceptions so that he can present them as a logical outgrowth of older ideas. L. P. Hammett, who has made valuable and original contributions to the subject of acidity, expresses himself as follows on this score (page 25): “Of course, the new theory is difficult to those of us trained in the older theory, but the difficulties me meet do not exist for students who have nevzr met the older theory. Even now my own tongue stumbles over the new terminology, while it slips glibly off the lips of my students, . . . . . ’ I . The other papers in the series deal with general discussions of the behavior of acids and bases in water, amphiprotic, and aprotic solvents. I t has been a happy idea to incorporate the report of the Committee on Somenclature of Acids and Bsses, headed by H. N. Alyea. All the papers are well written and thought stimulating. The editor, S .W. Rakestraw, deserves praise for havingmade available to teachers, students, and all chemists interested in the progress of their science this attractive looking booklet. I . M.KOLTHOFF.
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Contributions to Chemical Education. hrumber Two. The Polarographic Method of Analysis. By 0 . H . Muller. 5 x 8 i n . ; vi 113 pp. Easton, Pennsylvania: The Journal of Chemical Education, 1941. Price: $1.00. This booklet contains a series of papers which have been published in the Journal of
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