SEPTEMBER,1952
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gaged in its study and has not been aware of its possibilities. In addition to the recent advances, the book makes adequste reference to numerous problems which were touched upon around the turn oi the century but which still remain unsolved or cell for more witirxl examination. The accumulated knowledge has been sifted and organized into an impressive compilation of the facts, problems and theories bearing primarily on luminescence, but a h on more general problems. In plan. the various examples of luminescent organisms are considered in phylogenetio order. The 16 chdpters are devoted to Bacteria. Fungi, Protozoa and Porifera, Cnidaria, Ctenophora, Miscellen~ousSmall Groups, Annelida, Mollusca except Cephalopod%,the Cephalopoda, Crustaeea, Arachnaidea and Myripada, Insecta ?wept Coleoptera, the Coleoptera, Echinodermata, Tunicata, and Pisces, in this sequence. Although the higher plants seem conspicuous by their absence, the very reoently ohserved orcurrence of detectable chemiluminescence in conjunction with photosynthesis in green plants mean that every major group of ohnts. 8 s well as animals (short of the hieher vertebrates). co&,in &resentatives that produce light though metabolic reaetionp. Among the groups listed above, the taxonomic position of exampks known or alleged to exhibit luminescence is indicated, followed by a brief discussion of the various species, their natural history, and the chief facts that have been established concerning the morphology, histology, physiology, hiochemi~try and biophy~iwof the luminescent cells, tissues, organs, and in a few inteneively studied instances, luminescent extracts. As much information is given as could be feasibly included. While not d l of it is equally interesting to specialists in different fields, the enthusiasm, wide experience, and dignified humor of the author are rombined to make interesting reading of the factual material as a whole. The bezt is generously illustrated with well-chosen figures. A smooth surfare paper is used throughout, rendering not only the print and line drawings but also the half-tones pleasingly sharp and clear to the reader. Typographical errors itre remrkably few. Conaidering the immense amount oi literature covered, errors of fact are likewise few and minor: e.0.. Sarcina lutes foaee
thorities might find debatable. In sum, "Bioluminescence" is a highly informative and scholarly contribution, virtually indispensable to those who are actively engaged with any aspect of the production of cold light h,v living organisms, and potentially useful to all those whose int~rcstshear on fundamental biologicel problems, whether from a phy~iological,hiochemical, evolutionary, or other point of view. FRANK H. JOHNSON P n r s c z ~ o xr n v m m r r PRINCETOS. SEWJ&RSET
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ULTRAVIOLET SPECTRA OF AROMATIC COMPOUNDS
Robert A. Friedel, Physical Chemist, and Milton Orchin Organic Chemist, Bureau of Mines, Bruceton, Pennsylvania. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1951. vi 52 pp. 579 graphs. 20.5 X 27 cm. 510.
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RECEATyean have brought a greatly increased interest in, and use of, ahsorption spectra for the ultraviolet region of the ~peotrum. .\vailability of instruments, such as the Beckman (Model DU) and the Cary spectrophotometers, has iacilitated determination of such data. Publication of the results in widely scattered sourcps, in a disturbing variety of graphioal and tabular forms, has made reference work tedious and troublesome. The general aim of this neu. oornpilation was to present, in a consistent platting form, the data available for 579 aromatic compounds. About half of the curves are from the authors' awn laboratory, many previously unpublished, and the others are from the literature. The plotting form used employs log e (molar absorptivity or extinction coefficient) as the ordinate and
wave length in angstroms as the abscissa. With the curve are included the name and structural formula of the compound, the solvent used (if known), and the reference (if published). The spectral region covered is mostly the ultraviolet, but it ranges from near 2000 A.to as high as 5600 A. for rubicene and 6100 A. for pentacene. Although contained in a. spiral-bound cover, the sheets are punched for a standard k i n g , loose-leaf book. The introductory section deals briefly with the following topics: scope of the collection; nomenclature, symbols, and conversion of units;instruments and experimental procedure, ineuding spectral band widths used by the authors; theoretical aspects; use of the spectra for qualitative and quantitative analysis; and use of the catalogue. The spectra are indexed both by names and by empirical formulas of the compounds. The latter range from CjHjN to CrlFIla. For workers concerned with the compounds listed, this eamplilation seems very valuable to the reviewer. He has long wished for suoh a publication covering colored systems.
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THE CHEMISTRY AND ACTION OF INSECTICIDES
Harold H. Shepard, lnsedidde Division, Livestock BranchProdudion and Marketing Administration, U. S. Dept. of Agricul, ture. McGmw-Hill Book Co., Inc., New York, 1951. vii 504 pp. 22 figs. 123 tables. 16 X 23.5 em. 57.
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THIS book is the outgrowth of a mimeographed eidition puhlished in 1939 under the title "The Chemistry and Toxicology of Inseoticides." I t deals with the chemicals used to control insects rather than with specific insect pests. I t discusses insecticide~in their chemical, physical, and toxicologicsl aspects, and also presents historical and economic information concerning them. The author is especially well qualified to u~riteabout insecticides. He has experimented with them in the laboratory, lectured about them m the college classroom, and passed judgment upon them as a member of the federal agency which enforces the federal insecticide, fungicide, and rodenticide act. At oresent the author determines aericulture's need of insecticides.
manufacture. The book is divided into 14 chapters which treat of the compounds of arsenic, fluorine, sulfur and copper, miscellaneous substances (compounds of barium, bismuth, boron, mercury, selenium, zinc, etc., and diluents suoh as clay, talc, and pyrophyllite), plant products such as nicotine, pyrethrins and rotenone, synthetic organic compounds, and attractants and repellents. One chapter deals with the relative toxicity and mode of action of insecticides. Information ia given on the effects of insecticides on plants and warm-blooded animals as well as on insects. In the t,wo chapters on synthetic organic insecticides up-to-date information is presented on the newer materials including DDT, bensene hexachloride, chlordan, toxaphene, aldrin, dieldrin, and parathion. The reviewer heartilv recomn~endsthis book to all seekine
R. C. ROARK
u. s. B u n e ~ no r E s i b x o ~ o a r& PLANTQOARAVTINE BELTSV~LLE. M*RIL*ND
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MEDICINAL CHEMISTRY. VOLUME I1
Alfred Burger, Associate Professor of Chemistry, University of Virginia. Interscience Publishers. Inc., New York, 1951. m SO5 pp. (579 to 1084). 1 Fig. 60 tables. 15 X 23 cm. $10.
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THE~eeondvolume of this tno-volume treatise includes eleven
