DISCOVERY OF THE ELEMENTS M a r y Elvira Weeks, Detroit, with a c h a p ter on "Elements Discovered by Atomic Bombardment" by Henry M. Leicester; illustrations collected by F. D. Dains. Sixth edition, enlarged and revised. Journal of Chemical Education, Easton, Pa.. 910 pp. 16.5 X 24 cm. 1956. xi $10.00.
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I AM SURE that every chemist would find i t interesting to read a t least parts of the sixth edition, revised and enlarged, of the book "Discovery of the Elements." The book has been brought up to date; it eontnins a discussion of 101 elements, ineluding mendele ium. The section on elements known to the ancient world has been greatly enlarged, and a. mare detziled discussion is given of elements discovered during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries than in earlier editions. I have thought of this book as being of especial value to the young student of c h e m i s t ~in , providing for him an account of those aspects of the history of chemistry that he can emily appreciate and understand, and that are likely to develop his interest in science. The sixth edition may be less valuable in this way than the earlier editions. With over 900 pages, it is nearly twice as large as the fourth edition (1939)) and the various chapters, which may be looked upon as nearly independent essays, a x in general about twice as long its in the esrlier editions. These historical essays, now given in greater detail than in the earlier editions, may have become so long and so complicsted that the interest of the student would not be retained. The tale of chemical diseovcry told in the new edition is not so straightforward and so easily followed as in the earlier editions. Nevertheless, the book ia an excellent one, satisfying the real need for an account of the historv of the discoverv of the elements and ofrelated aspects the history of ohemistry. Perusal of the book has raised in my mind the question as to whebher the decisions about the names of the elements that have been made during recent years by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry have been in all cases correct. First, there is the question of the choice between columbium and niabinm. There is no doubt that this element was discovered in 1801 by the English rhemist Charles Hntchett, who named it columbium; I do not understand why the name eolumbium should not be accepted. Secand, there is the choice between the names erythronium and vanadium. A. h1. del Rio, Professor of Mineralogy in the School of Mines in Mexico City, discovered a new element in s lead ore in the year 1801, and named it erythronium. Later he became doubtful about his discovery; he thought that the element might be identi-
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VOLUME 34, NO. 1, JANUARY, 1957
cal with chromium, which had been discovered in 1798, and he did not have a sufficiently detailed account of the properties of chromium to permit him to distinguish between chromium and his element. The Swedish chemist Sefstrem rediscovered erythronium in 1830,and named i t vanadium. Wehler had also reinvestigated the Mexican ore in which del Ria had identified erythronium, and h? immediately stated that vanadlum was identical with erythronium, tho elcment reported by del Ria. Perhaps the general use of the name vanadium for this element over a period of more than 100 years and the fact also that del Rio developed some doubt about his discoverv justifv the continuation of the use of the namekanadinm for this element, but similar argummts do not apply to columbium, and I think that the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry should be urged to reconsider the decision to abandon eolumbium in favor of niobium as the name of element 41.
coverage of European literature is particularly good, and the authors have used critical judgment for the most part in selecting their references although same questionable work is cited in the organometallic field. There are few omissions: the fortunate solubility of LiAlH, in ether-benzene mixtures is not mentioned (p. 5) although it is implied in another connectlon. Only ten lines are devoted to the hazard of the reagent, and no specific caution is cited re use withcertain methyl ethers, perfluomacids or nitro compounds. Every organic chemist will find this inexpensive book very useful. The authors have done us all a scholarly service. THOMAS R. P. GIBB. JR. Turn8 U ~ m ~ n s m r MEDFORO. M*BB*CX"SETTB
THE CHEMISTRY AND FERTILITY OF SEA WATERS
H. W. Horvey, Laboratory of the Marine Biological Association, Plymouth, England. University Press, Cambridge, 1955. viii 224 pp. 14 X 22 Em. $5.50.
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LITHIUM ALUMINUM HYDRIDE IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
V. M. Micovic, Professor of Chemistry, and M. Lj. Mihailovic, Lecturer in Chemistry, both of University of Belgrade. (Foreword by H. I. Schlesinger.) Haucna Rnjiga, Beograd, 1955. xi 193 pp. 17.5 X 24.5 cm. Paper bound. $3. (Available from Serbian Academy of Sciences, Knez Mihailova 35, Beograd, Yugoslavia.)
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THE value of this little book is a t once apparent from the fact that it presents in s. lucid, well-organized manner the highlights of nearly all pertinent work carried out through October, 1954. Some 1700 references are cited, one statement indeed being supported by no Less than 89 references, and the book is profusely illustrated with carefully drawn st,ructurd formulas and eqnations. The twenty-five chapters are concise, readable, and deal in turn with general considerations, reactions with inorganic and organometallic compounds, compounds containing active hydrogen, a long sequence of reductions ranging from those of simple cmborbonyl compounds through the less familiar formasans, epithio compounds, etc., and concluding with a three-page discussion of the hydride reduction mechanism. The sort of information conhined in this oomprehensive review is largely avnilable in other works but not perhaps in as convenient or complete a form. The
Tnrs book follows, and is in fact a thorough revision of, the author's two earlier works: "Chemistry and Physics of Sea Water," and "Recent Advances in the Chemistry and Biology of Sea Water." I t does not cover quite as bmad a field as the former of these, however. Taken together, these books have been just about the only collected accounts, in English, of our knowledge of the application of chemistry to the field of oceanography and marine soienoe. The suthor has himself been one of the most prolific contributors to this knowledge, and his books inevitably follow his own personal lines of interest. Up to the present, chemistry's contribution to marine science has been almost entirely its assistance to biology in explaining the peculiar variations in the "fertility of the sea." While it is certainly not a comprehensive review of the original literature, this little book summarizes the progress that has been made in this direction. I t probably represents the end of an era, however, for the interests of chemists in this field are nos morecommonly directed elsewhere, particularly into general geochemied pproblems. Part I ia entitled The Environment of the Fauna and Flora, and its chapters deal with the chemical composition of sea water and its movements, the changes in its composition due to animals, plants. and bacteria, and the factors influencing the growth of plants. Part 11, The Chemistrv of Sea Water. deals with the maim
tem. A short chapter on analytical techniques completes the volume. Harvey's writings are characterized by their clearness of exposition and this book is no exception. The chapter on the carbon dioxide system in the sea, for example, is without doubt the simplest, most understandable treatment of this complicated subject t o be found anywhere. If there is any serious criticism to be offered, i t is that the book presents too limited a. present-day view of "chemistry in the sea," but the author has admittedly not tried to cover the entire field. I t should also be noted that the author has almost entirely overlooked the Japanese contributions to his fie1d-a rather serious omission, in the opinion of the reviewer. Nevertheless, this book will be highly valued by all chemists interested in the orean. Harvey's books have had a, habit of going out of print almost before they were well distributed, and this recent one seems to be running true to form. NORRIS W. RAKESTRAW OF OCEANOORAPHY SCRIPPSINSTITUTION LA JOLLA,CALIFORNIA
VALENCY AND MOLECULAR STRUCTLTRE
E. Cartmell and G. W.A. Fowles, Lecturers in Inorganic Chemistry, Unive~sity of Southampton. Academic Press, Inc., 256 pp. 79 figs. New York, 1956. xi 32 tables. 22 X 15 cm. $5.80.
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IN THE words of the authors, '(this book is written by chemists for chemists!' Slightly more accurately, maybe, would be t o say that i t was mitten by inorganic chemists for inorganic chemists. The volume represents a relatively nonmathematical introduction t o quantum theory and molecular quantum mechanics, followed by a systematic discussion of inorganic compounds an the basis of the principles developed. A strongly historic viewpoint is maintained throughout. The book probably provides an unusually ranid introduction t o the basic nrincinles
is said about non-localized molecular orbitals, or about the entire field of relectron chemistry from either the molecularmbital or resonance viewpoints. The book is divided into three parts. Part I presents the historical development of quantum theory and the quantum meohanical treatment of the hydrogen atom, and ends with a. discussion of many electron a t o m and the periodic system. Part I1 gives an introduction to both the resonance and molecular orbital theories, and compares the two. A chapter on directed valence deals with hybridization. The first short chapter of Part I11 disposes of the ionic, metallic, molecular (van der Waals) and hydrogen bonds. The next chapter discusses the structure of "simple" inorganic compounds by groups according t o the periodic system. The chapter an complex compounds is up-to-date and provides a discu~sion of a wide variety of complexes in terms of
bonds formed by hyhrid orbitals. The find short chapter on electron-deficient compounds gives a review of most of the ideas which have been presented to explain the stability of these compounds, without doing much to evaluate their relative merit, or examining what they have in common, or how they differ. The book is not intended to be a reference work, and probably has little t o offer the fully trained chemist. For the man familiar with valence theory, there is little here with which he is not familiar, while the person wanting an insight will be hurt by the omissions. Despite its shortcomings, however, the book should provide a workable text for a course for advanced undergraduates or beginning graduate students majoring in inorganic chemistry. H l N S H. JAFF*
U N ~ ~ E R ~orI C T ~Yw c r r r * ~ , C,NCINN*TI,0 ° K
POLYESTERS AND THElR APPLICATIONS Johan Bjorksten, Henry Tovey, Betty Harker, James Henning, Bjorksten Research Lahorato~ies, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin. Reinhold Publishing Corp., New 618 pp. 15 X 22 York, 1956. viii om. $10.00.
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THE Bjorksten group has compiled all the practical knowledge they could find on what is going on in the trade in the field of unsaturated and saturated polyesters. Theoretical considerations are confined to the first 18 pages and no equations appear after that. Sources of raw materials are discuased briefly, but the book is devoted principally t,o resin msnufseture. eatalvsis. fillers.
compounds is in isocyanate modified The field is extensively documented with 3239 references to vatents, articles, books and manufactureis' publications. The subieet matter is nresented in 254 pages; bibliography, 313 pages; supplement, 8 pages; author index, 5 pages; subject index, 34 pages. The tail appears t o wag the dog. LEALLYN B. CLAPP
mentioned in the preface are unchanged: "an appreciation of the soientific environment, our survey of science has been so built that i t provides some of the physical science background for the general science teacher." The number of chapters and pages remain approximately the same as before. as well as the relative distribution of material chosen from the various physical sciences. We find this division to be: 19% astronomy, 24% geology and earth science, 24% chemistry, and 34% phys i c s a distribution not too different from many texts in this field. I n the latter chapters we find rearrangement involving two new chapter titles. One of these is "Modern applications of electrons in motion." Here there is not only some of the material from the first edition, e.g., X-rays and radio, but also some new topics such as the electron microscope, television, and radar. The other chapter, "The nucleus of the atom" mentions only briefly artificial radioactivity, atomic energy, and transmutation. Some ohanges mere made to meet the criticisms of the first edition. I n one case, however, this has introduced an inconsistency. When discussing "valence" the author correctly explains the eombination of sodium with chlorine by the formation of ions, but elsewhere he compares tho formation of a "molecule" of sodium chloride with the formation of hydrogen fluoride. Should these statements, among others, go unchallenged: "Since the moon does not often get into the plane of the earth's orbit," "Water vapor acts as a blanket," "Chlorophyll. seems to. .radi& the green part of the spectrum?" The author notonlyclassifies petroleum with the sedimentary rocks but also refers to it as a mineral and then again as a "product of rocks and minerals." Probably too many phenomena are mentioned for a. book of this type. What purpose is served by defining "octane number" in terms of isooctane and nheptsne without a discussion of these compounds? Also why classify the various plastics as melamine, methylmethacrylate, etc., without a diseus~ionof the organic chemistry involved? The text will require a well founded teacher to expound the many questions which i t will surely arouse in the mind of the normal student.
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Bnoww Uxlv~nsmr P n o v ~ o ~ ~RHODB c s . IBLAND
EDWARD M. COLLINS D E N ~ U~ ~~VNE B B ~ T G n m v r ~ ~Onro r.
THE PHYSICAL WORLD
A LABORATORY STUDY OF CHEMICAL PRINCIPLES
P a u l McCorkle, Head, Department of Physics. Bradley University, Peoria, 111. Second Edition. McGraw-Hill Book Co., 465 pp. Inc., New York, 1956. viii 278 figs. 2 7 tables. 1 6 X 24 cm. $5.25.
H a r p e r W. F m t z , Pasadena City College Second edition. W. H. Freeman and Co., San Francisco, California, 1956. xxx 266 pp. Many figs and tables. 21 X 27 cm. Paper bound. $2.75.
THEfirst edition of this text was reviewed by Wistar, J . CHEM. EDUC.27, 694 (1850). The comments and criticisms made a t that time are still, for the most part, applicable. The objectives of the author and purpose of the text as
THE ~econdedition of this mmual continues to be based on the author's statement t o the student: "Your laboratory work is the central core of your chemistry
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(Continued on page A88) JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION
