of ascorbic acid t o coenzyme free esterase there is only a very slight restoration of the initial esterase activity. On page 228 one reads the following contradiction, "It is probable that there is no separate phosphorylase as a synthesizing enzyme, as distinct from phosphatase. Phosphorylation is probably the hack reaction catalyzed by phosphatase." I n the next paragraph, however, it is stated that "Euler and Adler obtained monophosphorylase in partially purified form." Of conrse there is sufficient evidence a t hand, as found in various laboratories, that specific phosphorylases (phosphateses) do exist. No mention is made in this monograph of the important new discovery of dioxymaleic oxidase by Banga and Szent-Gyiirgyi ( Z . Physiol. Chem.. 255, 57 (1938); Naore. 142, 874 (1938)). I n spite of the occasional inaccuracies the book contains a good review of the literature. I t will prove a useful addition to the biological chemist's library. HENRYTAUBER CAICAGO.ILLIN018
MODERNA s m a s OF INORGANIC CHEMISTRY.H . I. Emellus, D.Sc., and J. S. Anderson. Ph.D., Imperial College of Science and Technology, London. D. Van Nastrand Company, Inc. New York, 1939. xi 536 pp. 14 X 21.5 cm. 69.00 (supplied for text use a t a lower figure). This book begins where most texts on inorganic chemistry leave off. I t is intended to furnish information on "developments which have taken place in inorganic chemistry during the last two decades or so, and to relate those developments to the science a s a whole." Material which is readily accessible in the standard textbooks has been omitted, except as it is needed to introduce the more recent knowledge or more advanced concepts. The hook is, in reality, a discussion of special topics in inorganic chemistry. As such, it departs from the usual outline based upon the Periodic Table, and presents the subject from a new point of view. Most of the recent advances in inorganic chemistry have been made through the aid of physical chemistry, and this is reflected in these pages. The authors have done remarkably well in interpreting this knowledge in simple terms, so there are no special prerequisites for an easy understanding of most of the topics presented. The book is primarily intended for advanced students, research workers, and teachers. Teachers of advanced courses will wish to consider it as a textbook; ,teachers of elementary chemistry will also find i t a valuable book to own. I t can he used t o supplement the material given in t h w x t b w k , and as a reference in answering the multitudinous, questions which even elementary students ask about atomic structure, isotopes, hewly discovered elements, the structure of alloys, radioactivity, and other topics which are frequently mentioned in the popular scientific journals. The better and more interested students may be referred directly t o Emelius and Anderson, as they can read and understand most of i t without difficulty. The chapter headings are as follows: Atomic Structure and the Periodic System, Atomic Weights and Isotopes, Structure of Molecules of Inorganic Compounds, CoBrdination Compounds and Inorganic Stereochemistry, Polyacids and Silicates, Hydrogen and the Hydrides, Free Radicals of Short Life, NonMetallic Oxides and Related Substances, Recent Chemistry of the Non-Metals, Peroxides and Peracids, Recent Chemistry of the Metals, Metallic Carbonyls, Nitmsyls and Related Compounds, Intermetallic and Interstitial Compounds, Reactions in Liquid Ammonia and Liquid Sulfur Dioxide, Radioactivity and Atomic Disintegration. MODERNASPECTSOP INORGANIC CHEMISTRY deserves a wide acceptance, not only because it presents material which is not readily accessible in other books, but because of its clarity and excellence of organization. Jorw C. BAILAR.I n .
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LABORATORY EXERCISESIN GENERALCHEMISTRY. James F. Norrir. Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Kenneth L. Mark. Simmons College. Second Edition. McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., New York City. 1939. xiii 574 pp. 16 figs. 14 X 21 cm. $2.00. This book is designed t o accompany the new edition of INORGANIC CHEMISTRY POR COLLEGES by Norris and Young. The order in which the experiments is given is somewhat different than in the first edition of the manual, and several new experiments have been added to illustrate topics not previously discussed. The book is a large one, having one hundred sixty-five experiments, so that the teacher may select as many as he needs. A wide variety of experiments is offered; same of these, of course, are well known, but a pleasingly large number are entirely new. Each experiment is preceded by a discussion outlining the principles involved. The laboratory directions are clearly written, and in great detail, so accidents and unsatisfactory results should be reduced to a minimum. The right hand pages of the book are left blank for the students' notes, which are to be written largely in the form of answers to the numbered questions which appear in the discussion and directions. Professors Norris and Mark have produced an interesting, well written manual, which deserves careful examination by all teachers of elementary chemistry. JOHN C. BAILAR,JR.
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EARLY FIRE-MAKINGMETHODSAND DEVICES. Warren N. Watson. Gibson Brothers, Inc., Washington, D. C.. 1939. 71 pp. 15.5 X 23.5 cm. 51.50 cloth bound, $1.00 paper bound. ESSENTIALS OP PHYSIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY.Arthur K . Anderson. Second Edition. John Wiley and Sans, Inc., New York City, 1939. x 323 pp. 15 X 23 cm. $2.75. I n 1935, Dr. Anderson's first edition of this book appeared. I n this edition he attempts to bring the subject matter more up-to-date and for the purposes of .t h e e e r t he has done a very creditable job. I. The appearance of the book from the outside will not give students for which it is especially written that inferiority feeling which comes over so many wh& they first see the thick biochemistry textbooks which are being published today. The book is a thin one, well printed a n d indexed, and contains hut three hundred two pages of subject material. The author makes it plain that his b w k is not supposed to bP a comprehensive one in the subject and that it is not written for students of dentistry and medicine. In his preface to the first edition Anderson writes, "Although designed for students of human nutrition, it is hoped that this book will prove of value in more general courses in animal biochemistry such as are given to pre-medical, agricultural, bacteriological, and other biological students." Upon opening the book to detesmine the order of subject matter presentation, I find it much mare to my liking than many.of the newer arrangements now used. When the h w k has been mastered well, a student will have the' bare essentials of the subject in mind in logical sequence, physical chemistry concerned, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, food compositions. enzyme action, digestion and intestinal putrefaction, absorption. carbohydrate, f a t and protein metabolism, energy metabolism, composition of tissues, blood, urine, hormones, and vitamins. The physical chemistry concerned is well explained, and especially hydrogen-ion concentration. The proof of structure of carbohydrate molecules is scanty, it probably being assumed that such discussions belong in a course in organic chemistry. Fats and oils are discussed thoroughly enough for such a book, but the protein chapter is, in the opinion of the reviewer, too incomplete. Biological oxidations and reductions are discussed in three pages, and consequently only the surface is scratched. The composition of tissues is brief hut a good addition to the first edition. The remainder of the book "hits the high spots"
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