MAY, 1953
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comnlete desorintions of several methods for the determination of mol&uler wcidhts, and estimation of hydroyxl groups, amino groups, acetyl groups, formaldehyde, urea, sugars, and simple amino acids. The section on semimicro andyais includes estimation of carbon and hydrogen, nitrogen (Dumxs m d Kjeldahl) and methoxyl. Part V, Simple Enzyme Reactions (18 pages), is a novel feature usually not found in labomtory manuals of this type. Although the material muears to be the same as in the first edition, it seems appropriate &mention the presence of this section in the third edition. Bioloev and nremedicsl students who sre bared bv the usual prepar&ns a i d exercises in the laboratory will'find interesting reactions in this section. The text is probably one of the most adaptable laboratory manuals of its type. It is extremely well done with meticulous regard to detail. Every teacher of organic laboratory should sxsmine this hook if he has not rtlready done so. DONALD C. GREGG
0
SELEClTD VALUES OF CHEMICAL THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES
Circular of the National Bureau of Standards 500. By Frederick D. Rossini, Donald D. Wagmon, William H. Evans, Samuel Levine, end Irving Jaffe. United States Government Printing Office, Washington. D. C., 1952. iv 1268 pp. 21 X 27 cm. $7.25.
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T m s hook oonstitutes a very valuable compilation of the thermodynamic data available up to April, 1950. Its price is so relativelv low that anv serious worker in the field of chemical can well aflord to purrlmsc x ropy for l.ia 1.wth~rmo~lynnmirc wnsl lilrmry; and, of eourr, all rdurntionrd institutions awl rewnwh lnbor~torictiwill find i t wry r.iwnti.tl for rhcir libmrirs. The present work is largely an outgrowth from "Thermochemistry of the Chemical Substances" by F. R. Bichowsky and F. D. Rossini 11936). I t is. however. considerablv more com-
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Walter Stiles, Emeritus Professor in the University of Birmingham, and William Lea=& Professor of Botany in the University of Manitoba. Methuen & Co. Ltd., London, and John Wiley & Sons, Ino., New York, 1952. vii 172 pp. 10 figs. 15 tables. 10.5 X 17 cm. 52.25.
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T m authors of this poeket-sized treatise an such a fundamental biological phenomenon as respiration have aimed a t a discussion of principles rather than a cataloguing of detailed observations. The result is an account of the process which is understandable and useful to both the elementary and advanced student. After an analysis and evaluation of technical procedures, there follows a brief survey of some of the classical and recently more critical work in a chapter devoted to aerobic respiration and another dealing with anerobic conditions. The fourth chapter is concerned with mechanisms of the process. I t occupies nearly hdf of the hook and has been largely rewritten for the present edition. Here the student will appreciate the concise descriptions of the several molecular organizations of glucose involved as well as the discussion of phosphorylation mechanisms and enzyme systems associated with anerohic respiration. A conservative point of view is maintained in considering the identity of aerobic cycles in plants with the more extensively demonstrated Krebs cycle in animal respiration. The chapter oloses with 8. discussion of the intriguing process of oxidative anabolism and the nature of energy transfer through energyrich phosphate bonds. Those of us who are engaged in teaching courses a t the general level constantly feel the need for providing students with the opportunity for independent pursuit of some particular phase of the subject: With regard to physiological studies, the elementary student often feels his lack of knowledge of even the rudiments of biochemistry. A book such as "Respiration in Plants" will give the student a t this point a very necessary lift in his intellectual endeavors. GEORGE L. CHURCH Beownr UNIVE~SITY P ~ o n n e a c a .Raona IBLAND
GENERAL AND INORGANIC CHEMISTRY
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of all the elements, except carbon compounds oontaining more than two carbon atoms. First, six pages of introduction involve a brief discussion of units and fundamental constants. svmhals. standard states. in-
chemical calorie. Next come the various tables. Those of Series I cover 530 pages and contain the available values for: The heat of formation, free energy of formetian, entropy, heat capacity, and logarithm of the equilibrium constant of formation, all at 2 5 T . , and also the heat of formation a t O K The tables of Series 11, occupying over 280 pagea, then follow with values for the heat, temperature m d entropy of transition, fusion and vaporization. Finally, the authors present references to the tables of both series, as well as an asassemhlv references, which add areatlv - of general - . to the value of their work. The book is easy to use, and it is to be hoped that frequent revisions in the future will keep the compilation up to date. The magnitude of the compiling task has become such that only an organization like the National Bureau of Standards will have the time and adequate resources to undertake it. The user of the present tables will frequently find a blank space where he is seeking a desired value. Such blanks should provide incentives for numerous future researches in ohemical thermodynamics. GEORGE 8. PARKS
RESPIRATION IN PLANTS
P. J. Durrant, Ledurer in Chemistry, Selwyn College, Cambridge. Second edition. Longmans, Green and Co., New York, 1952. x 761 pp. 140 figs. 6 3 tables. 14.5 X 22 cm. $4.50.
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THIS text is, as was true of the &st editioh published in 1939, "designed particularly for students reading chemistry for higher School Certificate Exsminations, for Preliminary Medical Examinations, and for Entrmce Seholm~rshipsto the Universities." Ten chapters that deal with general principles are followed by 16 chapters devoted to the study of the elements and their important compounds. Forty pages of exmninstion questions that have been selected from universities of the British Commonwealth are included in the book. Answers are given for all of the mathematical problems in these questions. The hook has a good index. The majority of the figures are line drawings to illustrate industrial processes for the preparation of chemicals. The tables give an abundance of physieochemieal data. Photographs are not included. No exercises or reading lists are given at the ends of chapters. The paper is of good quality, the type is clear, and the book is attractively bound. This reviewer read the book with both interest and profit. The definitionp, statement of laws, and explanations of theory m e clearly worded and logically developed. In some instances it is felt that conciseness w a s achieved at the expense of needed qualiications. Historical material is rarely given. Descriptive chemistry is not included except in a limited way in connection with industrial urocesses for the manufacture of ohemieals.
