rather awkward approach.

For instance, a
section on Lipids covered every aspect of
lipids and membranes-structure. catabolism, anabolism, membrane functions, ete.
Then the text moved on to the next macromolecule. The second edition uses a more
standard topic outline. Part I (The Major
Components of the Cell) discusses the structure and functions of biological macromolecules-proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and
nucleic acids. Part I1 (Catalysis) deals with
enzymes and coenzymes. Part I11 (Catabolism) begins with a review of thermodynamics and an introduction to biogenergetics,
then coven the energy yielding processes,
including photosynthesis. The next three
Parts of the teat cover Anabolism (IV), Nuel& Acid and Protein Metabolism (V), and
Memhrane-Associated Reactions (VI). In
his Preface, Zubay states that the text was
redesigned in this manner to accommodate
one term biochemistrv courses (which usually cover the first three parts, without hsving to jump from front to hack, lwing rontinuity, as in the first edition.
There are many pluses to this text. As I
mentioned above, the multi-author approach really does work, and the material is
current. The figures are generally good, and
include many of the excellent figures of Irving Geis. Some subjects are lightly covered
in the text and refer to figures for a more
complete understanding. In other words,
students would be well advised to treat the
figures as integral to the text. This seems an
economical and pedagogically sound approach. The section on Catalysis discusses a
number of enzyme mechanisms in addition
t o the "Big Three" (lyzozyme, carboxypeptidase A, chymotrypsin). I was especially
pleased with the chapter on coenzymes.
Many bwks list the vitamins and eoenzymes a t this point, and then deal in a cursory manner with mechanisms in the appropriate section in metabolism. This chapter
covers in a sophisticated and thorough manner the role and the mechanism of action of
these coenzymes in key enzymatic processes. Chapters on metabolism then deal with
metabolism, not enzyme mechanisms.
Some of the pluses of this text also contribute to its minuses. This book is not for
the faint of heart. I t is an advanced book and
prohahly best serves senior biochemistry
majors or graduate students. The use of organic and some physical chemistry and
modern biology (including genetics far Part
V) make it an upper level text. An Introduction gives a brief outline of chemical and
biological principles needed for the text, but
one assumes students have had two years of
chemistry already. One cannot make that
assumption regarding a student's biology
background, and this introduction may be
insufficient preparation for what is ahead in
the text. Even though the book is thorough,
this also means that it can he encyclopedic
a t times. There is only so much hiochemistry that can he covered in a one-year course.
If one were to conscientiously cover Parts IV, only about two lectures could he dedicated to each chapter. For a first course in biochemistry, this text could be intimidating
for many undergraduates.
This problem is also apparent in many of

A104

Journal of Chemical Education

Advanced lnorganlc Chemistry, Fifth

Edltlon
F. Albert Cotton and Geoffrey Wilklnson.
1455
Wiley: New Yo*, NY, 1988. xvii
pp. Figs. and tables. 17.2 X 24.2 cm.
$44.95.

book through five editions over 25 years has

kept pace with the rapid maturation of inorganic chemistry. Thus, the single volume
format has been maintained with the addition of considerable new material only by
elimination of much of the theoretical material included in previous editions. For erample, ligand field theory and simple ideas
ahout bonding are not discussed. The authors assume, quite correctly, that the student will have been exposed to the theoretical background necessary to understand
modern descriptive inorganic chemistry in
lower level texts. With this in mind, the authors extensively use arguments based on
molecular orbital theory to rationalize experimental results throughout the hook.
In addition to the new material added,
several sections and many chapters have
been rearranged and reworked. Part One,
Survey of Principles, contains two brief
chapters: Concepts of Stereochemistry and
Bonding and Introduction to Ligands and
Complexes. The previous format is retained
with 14 chapters on the Chemistry of The
Main Group Elements in Part Two: Hydrogen; Group M I ) ; Group IIA(2); Boron;
Group IIIA(13); Carbon; Group IVA(14);
Nitrogen; Group VA(15); Oxygen; Group
VIA(16); Group VIIA(17);Group VIIIA(18);
Group IIB(12) and with 5 chapters on The
Chemistry of the Transition Elements in
Part Three: Survey of the Transition Elements; First Transition Series; Second and
Third Transition Series; The Lanthanides,
also Scandium (IIIB,3) a n d Yttrium
(IIIB,3); Actinium, Thorium, Protactinium
and the Actinide Elements. Part Four has
been extensively augmented, especially the
eight chapters devoted to various aspects of
organometallic chemistry of the transition
metali: Transition Metal Carbon Monoxide
Compounds; Metal-ta-Metal Bonds and
Metal-Atom Clusters; Transition Metal
Compounds with Bonds to Hydrogen; Compounds with Transition Metal Single, Double, and Triple Bonds to Carbon; Compounds of Transition Metals with Alkenes
and Delocalized Hydrocarbon Systems; Oxidative-Addition and Migration (Insertion)
Reactions; Homogeneous Catalytic Synthesis of Organic Chemicals hy Transition Metal Complexes. Chapters on Reaction Meehanisms of Transition Metal Complexes and
Bioinoraanic
Chemistry complete Part
.
Four.
The general format of the b w k is similar
ta the fourth edition in that it contains no
exercises or study problems. The specific
and additional references are current, mostlyfrom mid-1979 to mid-1987. Older work is
only referenced in previous editions. The
appendices have been revised with deletion
of sections from the fourth edition on atomic orbitals, quantum states and magnetic
properties and with addition of sections on
ionic radii and molecular svmmetrv (moved
.
from the h d y uf the text in previou~editrons). Happily, the index ha3 been expande d s i ~ i f i c a n t l yfrom 30tu45pages. Anuther
improvement in the hook is the typography;
on the stark white paper the type is dark,
clear, and easy to read.

Reviews of the previous four editions of

this classic comprehensive text on inorganic
chemistry have appeared in this Journal
1963,40,230; 1967,44, A240; 1973,50, A347;
1981, 58, A204. The development of the

(Continued on page A106)

the Selected Readines listed a t the end of

each chanter. Some &soter references are
u, sperralmd monographs or serlrs that
may not be found at many four-year under
graduate colleges. Some references are not
very specific;for instance, to all 131volumes
of Methods in Enzymology. Of course, this
is an impartant series that students should
know about, but they would benefit more
from specific Scientific American or Annua l Reuiews of Biochemistry articles. Some
authors do list references from these more
readily available sources.
In summary, this is s h w k that no hiachemist or biochemistry teacher should be
without. For biochemistry majors with a
strong chemistry and biology background,
or graduate students, it is certainly one of
the best texts on the market. But I would
think twice before using it in a first course in
biochemistry with a varied audience.
Charles L. Bering
Clarion Unlverslty of Pennsylvania
Clarion, PA 16214

rganlc Chemistry, Second Edltion

G. Marc Loudon. BenjaminlCummings:
Menlo Park, CA, 1988. 1259 pp. Figs. and
tables. 20.8 X 26 cm.

In this text the selection and organization

of subject matter places organic chemistry
most naturally in (the whole of) science subject matter. Use is made of information
learned in chemistry prerequisite.
Through the employment of clear, concise, and accepted mechanisms G. Mare
Loudou's Organic Chemistry (second edition) presents subject matter in a moat understandable manner, while a t the same
time it provides a framework for users (professors and students) to include new information as it becomes available from experimentation. Explanations are improved by
excellent diagrams and pictures. Data and
examples necessary for problem-solving experience abound.
A large number of problems of different
levels of difficulty are included. I believe the
text itself would have been improved had
answers to some of the prohlems been included in it.
Indices and appendices are well done with
many clarifying features.
No explanation of the cover diagram can
he easily found within the text.
S. Miles Wood
Rmevelt University
Chicago. IL 60605

ization; activation of small molecules: clusters and the metal-metal hond; applications
to organic synthesis; oxidation and high-oxidation-state complexes; and hioorgsnometallie chemistry.
The volume is thoroughly up to date in all
aspects, and in nomenclature it employs
that dernier cri-the new IUPAC group
designation for the elements in addition to
the familiar Mendeleev group numbers. The
author is to he commended for his inclusion
of history, hut in doing so, he has inadvertently introduced s number of errors in
dates: Werner's coordination theory was
published in 1893, not 1896 (p. 3), and he
received the Nohel Prize in 1913, not 1915
(p. 5); Frankland's attempt to prepare free
ethyl radicals dates from 1848, not 1857 (p.
38); Grignard first prepared organomagnesium halides in 1900, not 1903; and Zeise
first prepared the salt that hears his name in
1827, not 1837 (p. 89). Fischer is spelled
correctlv throuehout the text hut is misspelled in the Index. These few minor errors
notwithstandmg, this excellent testbwk
should find wide use by students and researchen alike.
George B. Kauffman
California State University. Fresno
Fresno. CA 93740

Although the length of the hook has increased only modestly (59 pages to give a
total of 1455 pages), the heft of the hook is
rapidly approaching the "pumping iron"
stage (2.09 kg Fourth Edition to 2.45 kg
Fifth Edition). This inconvenience, however, is trivial since once again the authors
have, quite admirably, achieved the purpose
of the hook: "To provide the student with
the background necessary to comprehend
current literature in inorganic and certain
aspects of organometallic chemistry." Every
student with a serious interest in inorganic
chemistry should have the fifth edition.
Laurence J . Boucher
Arkansas Stste University
State University, AR 72467

~~

Chemistry ol t h e
ransition Metals
Robert H Crabtree. Wiley: New York, NY,
1988. xv 422 pp. Figs. and tables. 15 X
22.7 cm. $39.95.

~~

Theo~sn~~metaUicch~miatryofthe
transition metal. bas played a prominent role in
the renaissance in inorganic chemistry that
began in the 1950s. This intense research
activity has resulted not only in the discovery of many new compounds but also in the
elucidation of their structures and in the
a~nlieationof their unusual nronerties to
the solution of practical problems. The field
is a young and vigorous one, and muchof the
research described in the hook under review
has been carried out during the last 15years
(references as late as 1987, the year of the
completion of the manuscript, are included).
In an era of increasingly lengthy texthooks the appearance of this concise hut
authoritative volume, intended for senior
undergraduate or graduate courses in organometallic chemistry or research workers
in related fields desiring a better acquaintance with the suhjeet, is most welcome.
Based on a course given by the author for a
numher of years at Yale University, the
hook consists of 16 self-contained chaders
(each provided with an extensive list df references and thought-provoking problemswith solutions (10 pp.) a t the back of the
hook), a three-page List of abbreviations,
and a six-page index. Replete with structural formulas, equations, renctron schemes,
figures, and tables, it deals lucidly with the
most important topics m the field, including
general bropertiei and characterization of
organometallic compounds; metal-earbon
and metal-hydrogen honds; ligand suhstitution reactions; complexes of pi-bound ligands; oxidative addition and reductive
elimination; insertion and elimination; nueleophilie and electrophilic addition and abstraction; homogeneous catalysis (one of the
most significant applications of organometellic chemistry and an important factor in
the rapid development of the field as a
whole); earhenes, metathesis, and polymer-

..

A106

J
J
Handbook of Hazardous Waste

. .

Journal

of Chemical Education

Management for Small Quantity

Generators
Russell W. PhMer and Wllllam R. McTigue,
Jr. Lewis Publishers: Chelsea. MI. 1988. xv
198 pp. Figs. and tables. 15.8 X 23.5
cm. $39.95.

Public demand for the orotection of our

enwronment forced Cmgress to l e p l a t e
rulesgovernmg the handlmg end drapuval of
toxic wastes a t a rate which has tended to
exceed the ability of generators to comply.
Targets have now moved from large businesses to small quantity generators (as specifically defined).
Colleges and high schools, too, may now
find that their practices in waste handling
are subject to control by federal or state
regulations, hut there still is substantial
confusion about what is covered, what to do,
and where to take regulated materials. This
is an essential source hook for administrations uncertain about the status of their institutions. and it will he a helpful
quick
ref.
.
erence for responsible persons in schools
with operating departments at work on
complisnee. It will heuseful to teachers who
are training scientists and engineers for life
in the real world.
The applicable federal laws, lists of regulated materials, proper handling, ultimate
disposal, and liabilities for noncompliance
all are collected in this small book. There are
addresses and telephone numbers of regional EPA offices and of state aeencies. The
opening chapter has the title "Why Yuu
Need This Bwk". This reviewer thinks that
eduraturs willappreciate the well-organized
reasons why.
Malcolm M. Renfrew
University of Idaho
MOSCOW.
ID 83843