works on Boyle in that it is based on a. careful study of the surviving original manuscripts of Bayle and his contemporaries. This hiography is not intended as a replacement of Birch's biography, whioh will always be of value, but is supplementary to it. The author has eorrected some minor errors that ocour in Birch's hiography, and has included a considerable body of new material which was either unavailable to Birch or was not 8. J. STRICKLER used by him in the 1744 edition. No University of Colorado attempt has been made to discuss in deBoulder, Colorado 8030g tail the content of Boyle's numerous scientific snd theological publiestiam. To quote the author: "The sole purpose of the present work is to describe . . the events of Robert Boyle's life so as to supplement Birch, and to provide a guide through the manifold aspects of his life The Life of the Honourable and work." Robert Boyle, F.R.S. The present book is based on a life chronology of Boyle, and is the result of R. E. W. Maddison, Librarian, Royal over twenty-five years of intensive study. Astronomiosl Society (London, EngThis work reprints, with detailed comIsnd). Taylor & Francis, Ltd., Lonmentary, Boyle's own account of his for332 pp. 40 plstes. don, 1969. xxii mative early years; and continues with a 14.8 X 23.5 cm. £9.50 ($23.75). chronological account of the major and minor events throuehout his life. Bovle In 1744, Thomas Birch published the first full-scale biography of the great English scientist Robert Boyle (1627-91). and physics, but also as a man who was Surprisingly, Birch's biography has served closely associated with the intellectual as the basis of all subsequent accounts of moiety of his time, and its religious and Bovle down to the nresent time: ex.. economic interests. those of Masson, $isher, ~ o r d , and This excellent biography carefully docuPilkington. ments Boyle's relationship with other Dr. Maddison's latest book is a reFounder Members of the Royal Society, freshing change from other biographical
and with many eminent foreign scientists. Boyle's enthusiasm for the industridimtian of laboratory chemical processes is also discussed, rts is his concern for the propagation of Protestant Christianity through trenslrttions of the Bible. The generosity and bequests of Boyle for the establishment of charitable schemes are also covered. Brief mention is made of Boyle's major scientific works; and, of course, this information dill be of interest to chemists who enjoy reading and studying the historv of their suhiect. Bovle's most important books receive several pages of comment [e.g., "The Sceptical Chymist' (1661); "Certain Physiological Essays" (1661); "New Experiments Physico-Meehanical Touching the Spring and Weight of the Air" (1662); "The Usefulnesse of Experimentd Natural Philosophy" (1663), etc.]. This book is obviously the result of s. "labor of love" by an accomplished scholar, and eonteins a. prodigious amount of important, often new, and difficultly accessible information. In addition, many new illustrations are included which are not familiar even to professional historians of chemistry (e.g., the portraits of Cabherine Fenton and Richard Boyle, the mother and father of Robert Boyle). The book has been pleasingly produced and is written in an agreeable and pleasant style. I t is enthusiastically recommended to all who are interested in Boyle and his
Volume
49, Number 1 I , November 1972 / A655
text. Each chapter has a brief bibliography at the end, but this is not redly a satisfactory substitute. I often found myself wishing for more information about some interesting point in the text, with no simple way of knowing where to look. In spite of these drawbacks, I do think that the book fulfills a useful purpose, and that it will find a place on the shelves of many nonspecialists and college libraries.
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(Continued on page A856)
book reviews circle, and should he in every university library. ROYG. NEVILLE Bechtel Laboratory Belmont. Calif. S I Chemical Data
0.H. Aylward and T. J. V. Findlay. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, 1971. vii 127 pp. $3.50.
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Thereis growingdiscussion in the United States as to the worth and feasibility of moving toward S I units. Here is a. mast useful, compact book which both supplies some examples of what happens
when SI units are used, and (it is the opinion of this reviewer) shows that no great difficulties are involved. The biggest one is learning to live with an additional factor of four in moving from kcal to kjoules. I wonder how long it will he before centigrade disappears completely in favor of Kelvin? There are thirty tables of various values for the properties most commonly used in chemistry. They are clearly and s u e cinctly resented and a list of reference sources is indicated for those who wish to look further. Any small collection of data can he faulted, but this one seems to he exceptionally well balanced. I was amused to find that the tables for organic compounds included general properties plus them* chemical data wheress there are two Ben%rate tables for inorganic compounds. I would find i t space saving and more useful
to have the inorganic compounds treated as the organic compounds were. This compilation will almost certainly be more widely used abroad than in the United States, which is unfortunate for i t does show haw minimal the changes are in moving to SI units-a. direction that chemists in this country should follow. J . A. CAMPBELL Harvey Mudd College Claremont, Calif. 91711
Elsevier's Medical Dictionary in Five Languages
Compiled and arranged by A. Slioberg, Paris, France. Elsevier Publishing Company, Amsterdam and New York, 1963. 1538 pp. 16 X 22 em. $45. Certain areas of chemistry are so closely allied to medicine that a chemical library must necessarily contain medics1 dictionaries in various of the modern languages. This monumental work, though based on English-American, actually comprises no less than five lmguages and thus is highly recommended. The languages included a : English-American, French (Fran$a&), Italian (Italiano), Spanish (Esparid), German (Deutsch). I n all, close to 35,000 terms are included and the worker in rtnv of these five laueuaees will make the location of any one term and hence its equivalents in the other four languages a. very simple matter. Actual trials have demonstrated that this device really works. Though small type is employed the text is excellently legible. I n these days when workers in science are daily confronted by journals published in other languages, the need for a dictiona y o f this kind and scope needs no defense and though the price, a t first glance, seems high, the buyer gets a lot for his money. The compiler, a medical man of rare talents, must have devoted years to this compilation and richly deserves a hearty approbation for his "labor of love." Though this review comes quite a few years after the actual date of publication, this kind of information never goes out of style and the chances of its being brought down to date seem a t present to he remote. This book is an exceptionally fine literary tool and deserves favorable publicity and the resultrtnt wider sale. RALPHE. OESPER University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio
Koagulalion und Stabilitil Disperser Systeme
Hans Sonntag and Klaus Strenge, Berlin, East Germany. VEB Deutscher Verleg der Wissenschaften, Berlin, German Democratic Republic, 1970. 173 pp. Diagrams and tables. 16 X 23 cm. 30.80 marks (= approx. $9.50).
A656 / journal of Chemical Education
