Eeeent
Saa&
in variouv places, and modied societies also afforded opportunities for discussion ofhetter methods of combating disease. Philadelphia was the main center of scientific endeavor, and The American Philosophical Sooiety was started there in 1769 after s long period of earlier attempts and contests between rival groups. The comparable American Academy of Arts and Sciences was incorporated by thc Massachusetts legislature in 1780. Both were patterned on the loarncd societies at London and Paris. They hegan to pnhlish their Transactions and dlemoirs, respectively, thus providing outlets athcr than the European periodicals far scientific papers. The initial enthosiasms subsided, and bhese and similar organizations saw same rather sterile periods. There simply was not sufficient drive among enough American men to vitalize work in basic scienre. The Yankee bent toward useful inventions appeared a t a n early date, but agricultural machinery and textile equipment do not greatly f r r l ; ther investigation into scientific laws. P h y ~ i c s and chemistry ( i . . nabural philosophy) were not favorite subjects. Tho ideas of Priestley were preferred over those of Lssoisier, and Thomas Jefferson, who was in Paris during the chemical revolut,ion, considered Lavoisier's reforms as "promature." Potash derived from the burning of the abundant trees was perhaps the chief chemical product, and etorts were made to develop better mcthods of obtaining nitrates far the mnnufacture of gunpamder. Analyses of mineld waters n-ere favorite topics of publication and, in general, chemistry was rlasely allied n i t h mineralogy. The author has presented a scholarly and sympathetic account of this special chapter in American history. He has read a tremendous numher of papers and books dealing n i t h and bordering on his chosen topic, and he has xvovon the mass of facts into a valuahle text. Every page is provided v i t h a n ample supply of references, &nd the hook closes n i t h an execllent discussion of Source material. Scientists interested in this phase of their professional history will find here many northn-hile hints t,o buried treasures, some possibly of real value. The reviewer learned muoh from the hook and recommends i t to soiontists of all fields. I t helongs in school and public lihraries. R 4 L P H E. OESPER l i s l v ~ n s l ~ l CISCIVX*TI or CINCINNAI.~,OH>"
THE AIM AND THE END Sir James Colpuhoun Irvine. Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh, 1936. x 15.5 X 22.5 cm. $4.90.
+ 303 pp.
For over thirty-five years selected audiences, many of them the students and assembled dignitaries of academic convocations, had the rare privilege of listening to a great chemist, administrator, and tibizen clothe his profound ideas in tho
(Continued on Page ASS) JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
graceful garments of English prase a t its best. This volume collects many of these addresses. Successful editing has preserved their chronology and allows the reader to share with this remmkahle Scot the growth of his humble convictions about "his duty in an age which ought to be soientifie." There is the humor, imagination, and enjoyment of the "fragrant smell of henzaldehyde" which identify the chemist acquainted with the labmatory bench. Overlying these are the historical pperapective, the appreciation of human pemonality, and the penetrating insight of the Christian philosopher which urge the reader to recognize "the aim and end of true learning." W.F. K.
THE HRRVEY LECTURES,
195P55
The Horvey Society of N e w York. Academic Press, Inc., New York, 1956. viii 421 pp. 106 figs. 42 tables. 14 X 21 cm. $8.
+
THEfiftieth series of the Harvey Lectures has been published, a worthy successor to its predecessors. Thia reviewer will forego the temptation to pick out particular lectures as his favorites because he feels sure that readers are not interested in his personal preferences. Suffice i t to say that each lecture lives up to the high expectations with which readers of the Harvey Lectures have come t o look forward t o every new volume of the series.
But a general observation is in order. The Harvey Society, according to it8 constitution, has for object "the diffusion of knowledge in selected chapters in anatomy, physiology, pathology, bacteriology, pharmacology, and physiological and pathological chemistry." Chemistry, it will be noticed, tsgs dong a t the tail end of the list, which is probably symbolic of its proper place in the opinion of the Harvey Society's founders fifty years ago. I n view of this ciroumstrtnce, it is food fox. thought that among the ten lectures in this volume only one, entitled "The Harvey Society-Its first fifty years and its future," does not deal directly or indirectly with chemistry. Surely this is equally symbolic of the place which chemistry has acquired in the past fifty years in the biological sciences. I t is s, fart from which we as chemists should derive a sense of satisfaction as well as obligation, for the biologists look to us for furt,her important contributions to their science. The complete list of lectures in this volume is as follows: Hormones of the posterior pituitary gland: oxytocin and vasopressin (Vincent du Vigneeud); The metabolism of the heart (Richard J. Bing); Lipoproteins of human plasma (J. L. Oncley); Control and interrelations of metabolic and viral diseases of bacteria (Andrk Lwoff); The intermediary motabolism and biological activities of ferritin (Ephraim Shorr); Some aspects of the constitution and behavior of normal and malignant cells maintained in continuous culture (George 0. Gey); Biochemical explorations with bacterial mutants (Bernard D. Davis); The biosynthesis of porphyrins (David Shem-
in); Thc Harvey Soeiety-ltti first fifty years and its future (Haven Emerson); Osmotic aotivity in relation to the movcment of water under normal and pathological conditions (Eugene I.. Opie). ALEXANDER GERO HAANEIIANN MED~CAL. COLLEGE
P " , L * D ~ ; ~ P ~PENN~YL"*N,* ,*,
SYNTHETIC ION-EXCHANGERS
G. H. Osborn, Consulting Chemist, Catalin Lid. The Macmillan Co., New York, 1956. ix 194 pp. 4 figs. 11 tables. 14 X 22.5 cm. $6.
+
THEtcxtual part of thi8 book consirt~of only 85 pages and is divided into sewn chapters: ( I ) Tho Structure, Preparation, and General Properties of Ion-Errhnngc Resins, (2) Performance D a t a on Conrmercially Available Resins, (3) Anslytical Aspects, (4) Reactions with Materials 01 Law Solubility, (5) Ion-Exrlurion, (ti) Ion-Exchange Membranes, and ( i )T h m peutic Applicat,ions. The subtitle, "Recent Developments in Theory and Applirat,ions," indicates that the hook is intended for t,hose who are already well versed in ion exchange. Although thew readers will find somestimulat~ingtho~~ghts, they will be disappointed wit,h the lwevity and with the paucity of the theorrtic;il discussions. However, the author states in the preface: "So great is the number of puhlishcd applic
