RECENT BOOKS A TREATISEON PHYSICALCHEMISTRY. VOLUM&I. ATOMIS- metals, "airplane" metals and protective metals, on paints, on TICSANDTKEF~ODYNAMIC~. Edited by Hugh S. Taylor, David fwd, drugs and cosmetics, on textiles and plastics, and on chemiB. Jones Professor of Chemistry, Princeton University, and Samuel Glasslone, Professor of Chemistry, the University of Oklahoma. Third Edition. D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc., New York, 1942. vii 679 pp. 151 figs. 15 X 23 cm. $7.50. Since i t was published in 1924, Taylor's treatise has been the standard reference in English in physical chemistry. The intervening period has been one of tremendous activity and advance in the field, a fact which has made i t necessary but difficult for revised and amplified works t o he written. Hence it was with almost a sense of relief that physical chemists received the publication of Volume I of the third edition of "A treatise on physical chemistry." This and the remaining four volumes will fill a real need. Volume I concerns itself with the fundamentals of physical chemistryatomistics and thermodynamics. Chapter I, The Atomic Concept of Matter, presents the material in a way familiar t o all who have had a course in physical chemistry. Its thoroughness makes i t extremely useful. Those who are familiar with the earlier editions will find Chapter I1 an up-to-date revision of the discussion of atomic theory and atomic structure. Following this presentation of the microscopic theories of pbysical chemistry, a more or less standard discussion of the first and second laws of thermodvnamics is "eiven.. which ends with a vem h i e l prc.entztion of the stati,tiral nature of thrrmodynnmici. One of the most rrrent and signific.ant advances in science has been the clarification 01 thc third law of thcrrnodynarnic$ by the combination of quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, and thermodynamics. This development is admirably presented in the fourth and last chapter. Chapters I and IV should prove especially valuable t o workers in chemistry. J o m P. HOWE
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EsOm UNlvsasrrY PEOVIDBNCB, RHODB ISLAND
VITALIZEDCHEMISTRY. Russell T . Dederdins, Department of Chemistry, Pierre S. DuPont High School, Wilmington. Del. Edited by George C. Job, Department Supenisor of Science, Public Schools, Albany, N. Y., and Theodore C. Saqent, High School, Swampscott, Mass. College Entrance Book Company, New York, 1942. iv 380 pp. 63 figs. 13.3 X 19 cm. $0.50. This paper-bound textbook for bigh-school chemistry is unique in its format rather than in its content. The most outstanding feature is the liberal use of red ink in the printing of the text and illustrations. The general effect is good, adding clarity t o drawings and emphasis to tables and text, although i t seems out of place representing sulfur in the diagram of the Frasch process. With one exception the figures are line drawings, superior t o photographic cuts for explaining processes. A number of the drawings have been made more effective through the use of white lines on solid black background. At first glance this hook appears t o be a welcome reaction t o the tendency of each new textbook t o be more voluminous and encyclopaedic than any of its predecessors. Closer inspection reveals that brevity has been achieved by abbreviated treatment of tooics. rather, than~hv the This state~ ~ ~ elimination ~ ~of tooics. , rnent is less true of thc author's treatment of the fut.danwmls of chcmical theory than i t is of his dinassion 01 the applications of chemistry. The order of topics is conventional in the first two-thirds of the hook. The remaining chapters deal with various applications of chemistry directly. There are chapters on structural
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cal warfare. The information in the twenty-page appendix has been well selected, and includes a bibliography, a glossary, biographical sketches, chemical tests, tables of properties, and a specimen examination. At the close of each chapter there is a list of questions on the text. In addition, many chapters include brief objective tests. One notes but few questionable statements in the book, although the author's definition of pH as "potential hydrogen ion concentration'' would stand re-checking. ROBERT L. EseL
PHY~ICALCHEMISTRY *.OR STUDENTS OP BIOCHEMISTRY AND MEDICINE. Edward Stanton West, Ph.D., Professor of Biochemistry in the University of Oregon Medical School. The MacmiUan Company, New York, 1942. xiv 368 pp. 24 figs. 15.5 X 23.5 cm. $5.75.
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The author states that he is writing primarily for biochemical and premedical students. He endeavors to accomplish this in the following chapters: Introduction; The Structure of Matter and Some Fundamental Chemical Principles; Gases and Sohtions; Osmotic Pressure; Electrolytic Dissociation and the Mass Law; Acids. Bases and Buffers; The Determination of pH; The Colloidal State and Chemical Phenomena; Oxidation and Reduction; the Velocity of Reactions. While all these matters are undeniablv, imoortant t o hiochemistrv and medicine. it is regrettahlc that the colligative properties of solution;, other than osmotic prrsFurc, are scnrccly mentioned, and thrrc is no discussion of the measurement of conductance, of transference numbers, of heterogeneous equilibrium, or of thermochemistry. I t seems that the long treatment of atomic and molecular structure and of activity coefficients might well he considerably shortened to permit the inclusion of some of these more important subjects. The book is replete with illustrations drawn from biology and medicine. Another valuable feature is the inclusion of a fairly lengthy list of hooks and journals that should he accessible t o every biochemist. The author's discussion of acids, bases, and buffers, of the determination of pH. ef colloids, and of oxidation and reduction is quite commendable. There is an excellent appendix on the use of logarithms which should be very helpful. However, the reviewer believes it is entirely reasonable to expect a more adequte mathematical background of premedical students than is required by this book. The book is marred by several errors and misleading statements. Thus per cent by volume is stated to be grams solute per 100 cc. solution; the impression is given that rise of temperature always lowers the solubility of a gas (but consider the HCIH1O system); fogs and smokes are colloidnl solutions and should not be used as illustrations in a list of molecular dispersions; not all alloys are solid solutions; etc. The author gives 0.3376 and 0.2848 as the voltaces of the decinormal and normal calomel electrodes. Sincr I C. T. gives 0.3331 and 0.2805,respectively, 11would help to point out that thc value$ furnished include overage liquid junction potentials. Each chapter has attached a list of bwks (hut not articles) pertaining to its contents, and a list of questions and elementary problems. There are 32 tables scattered through the book. Type and general appearance are very good. The book is worth consideration by anyone who must teach a one-semester, elementary, relatively non-mathematical course to premedical and biochemical students. MALCOLM M. HARINC
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UNIVBRSITY om MARYLANO COLLBOB PAEX,MARYLAND
