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Bonding, energy levels and bands in inorganic solids
This book provides an excellent introduction to the chemistry of benzene and its brethren, the experimental aspects being served better than their theoretical counterparts. The cost, unfortunately, will largely preclude its purchase by students. Peter Garratt
Bonding, Energy Levels and Bands in Inorganic Solids. By J. A. Duffy. fp. 249. Longman, Harlow. 1990. Paperback f 75.95.
Chemistry and physics each have insights to offer into the solid state. This book seeks to use a chemical approach to provide an understanding of solids, with particular emphasis on complex solids such as oxides, transition-metal compounds and glasses, where the chemical viewpoint is especially appropriate. Conventional solid-state ideas such as bands are treated, but there is also extensive interpretation of structural and optical behaviour in terms of concepts such as polarizability and basicity. Electric and magnetic behaviour are covered, but in less detail. The book is aimed at advanced undergraduates and beginning researchers. It is at its best in its more unusual coverage of complex solids, where the judicious blend of chemistry and physics helps to provide a necessary framework of understanding. In more conventional areas, the level and style of treatment are rather variable. For example, polarizability is extensively used but is nowhere explicitly defined, and nor is mobility. Commendably, each chapter ends with a good selection of references to other texts and reviews. This book will form a useful addition to libraries, but most readers are likely to need other solid-state texts as well. R. W. Mum
Mechanisms of Cooperativity and Allosteric Regulation in Proteins. By Max Per&z. Pp. 101. Cambridge University Press. 7990. Paperback f71.95, us $17.95.
‘Allosteric proteins control and coordinate chemical events in the living cell. When Monod conceived that idea he said that he had discovered the second secret of life. The first was the structure of DNA.’ So begins this very readable account of allosteric phenomena. The author is internationally recognised as being an authority on this subject and has pioneered much of the work that has lead to our detailed understanding of how these vital proteins function at a molecular level. In this reasonably priced book Max Perutz gives both an historical perspective, which only someone who has spent his life in a subject can bring, and a detailed appraisal of the structures that enable allosterism to operate. He describes the molecular details using many examples, including the haemoglobins, haemocyanin, haemerythrin, glycogen phosphorylase, phosphofructokinase,
aspartate transcarbamylase, glutamine synthase, the frp and met repressor proteins, immunoglobulins, and allosteric membrane proteins. This account is a living demonstration of the astounding progress that has been made in the 50 years since the first experiments on haemoglobin crystals described by Haurowitz in 1938 to the application of sitedirected mutagenesis on aspartate transcarbamylase to prove unambiguously the contribution of vital residues from neighbouring subunits. The use of engineering terms like levers and differential gears implies that we are finally achieving a mature understanding of how these proteins function. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to senior undergraduate students and above. I. G. Giles
The Chemistry of Functional Group Series. Supplement A: The Chemistry of Double-Bonded Functional Groups. Volume 2. Parts 1 and 2. Edited by Saul Patai. Pp. 797 and 891. Wiley, Chichester. 1989. f205.00 and f235.00.
Just about every practising organic chemist will have consulted ‘Patai’ - the long-running series on the ‘Chemistry of Functional Groups’ that is by now practically a library in itself. The volumes under review represent a third set of chapters on doubly-bonded functional groups - C=C, C=O, C=N, and N=N. These were dealt with originally in individual volumes, then brought together in Supplement A, volume 1 (1977). The new Supplement A2, a.k.a. volume 2, again in two fat parts, brings some coverage up to date, and provides substantial new chapters on carbonylation of maingroup organometallies (162 pages); allene rearrangements (98); 1,l diary1 alkenes (70); fulvenes (138); and the thiocarbonyl group (100 pages). Inevitably, the specialist will find each volume a curate’s egg of a book, and early volumes provided little nourishment for the synthetic chemist in particular. But the functional group-centred approach is ideally suited to his needs, and feedback over the years has clearly shifted the balance in his direction. So in this Supplement we find major contributions on cycloadditions of enones (198 pages); intramolecular 1,3dipolar cycloadditions (132); ene reactions (50 pages); and asymmetric induction in additions to C=O and C=N (132 pages). Chapter 1 deals with the theory of the C=C (vs the Si=Si) double bond, and the mechanistic updates include chapters on additions, eliminations, and substituent effects. The full set of volumes on doubly-bonded functional groups is a valuable resource, which any properly-stocked library catering for working organic chemists should possess. Patai is so often the logical place to start a literature search for an idea or a reaction not involving a specific compound, and I find recent volumes give significantly more hits per query. The price is high, but so is the density of information. Recommended. A. J. Kirby
Crown Ethers and Analogs. By Edwin Weber et al. Pp. 558. Wiley-Interscience, Chichester. 1989. fl10.00.
This very expensive book consists of 9 review articles, 5 (243~~) are reprints of ones which appeared, in the Functional Groups Series (Ed. S. Patai and Z. Rappoport) in 1980(4) and 1983(1); three are updates of the earlier ones and one is entirely new. The 1988 material consists of 272 pages plus a subject index and a very good author index for the whole volume. J. L. Toner’s interesting and valuable chapter is mainly on the impact of computational chemistry. His theme is the rational design of hosts aided by theoretical calculations (ab initio and molecular mechanics), space-filling models, and computer graphics. Beautiful colour photographs from his graphics screen illustrate the 3-dimensional problems. So many crystal structures were determined 198&1987 that I. Goldberg’s update is not comprehensive although it covers some topics coherently; these include polyatomic guests and compounds with enforced cavities. E. Weber deals with three new developments: lariat ethers, pre-organised hosts, and second sphere complexes. He discussestheir binding affinities and selectivities with critical insight. Finally R. A. Bartsch contributes a 9-page update on aryldiazonium guests. The considerable overlap with the older, and within the newer, material indicates very light editorial hands. M. R. Truter Lunar Base Agriculture. Soils for Plant Growth. Edited by D. W. Ming and D. L. Henninger. Pp. 255. ASA, C 55A, 555A,
Wisconsin. 7g8g. f26.40
This volume reports on research concerned with developing the reality of a lunar base. It comprises 18 papers, updated to 1989, and is divided into six sections. The first identifies, through two papers, the requirements for a permanent lunar base. The second section discusses the lunar environment and provides the essential information on the lunar climate and the nature of the Moon’s surface. The remaining sections deal with the complexities of growing plants to feed lunar base personnel. Each lunar ‘night’ and ‘day’ lasts about two weeks with the ‘diurnal’ temperature fluctuating from + 112°C to - 170°C. In addition, the large fluxes of meteorites and ultraviolet or shorter wave radiation require agricultural production to be carried out in underground controlled ecological lifesupport systems (CELSS) dependent on supplementary lighting. The argument inherent in the papers, but not expounded, is the role of the lunar regolith in this form of crop production. Some favour engineering it into a soil which requires creating zeolites to provide cation exchange sites. Microbes, possibly including genetically engineered forms, would be added and wastes used to develop the
203
Bonding, Energy Levels and Bands in Inorganic Solids. By J. A. Duffy. fp. 249. Longman, Harlow. 1990. Paperback f 75.95.
Chemistry and physics each have insights to offer into the solid state. This book seeks to use a chemical approach to provide an understanding of solids, with particular emphasis on complex solids such as oxides, transition-metal compounds and glasses, where the chemical viewpoint is especially appropriate. Conventional solid-state ideas such as bands are treated, but there is also extensive interpretation of structural and optical behaviour in terms of concepts such as polarizability and basicity. Electric and magnetic behaviour are covered, but in less detail. The book is aimed at advanced undergraduates and beginning researchers. It is at its best in its more unusual coverage of complex solids, where the judicious blend of chemistry and physics helps to provide a necessary framework of understanding. In more conventional areas, the level and style of treatment are rather variable. For example, polarizability is extensively used but is nowhere explicitly defined, and nor is mobility. Commendably, each chapter ends with a good selection of references to other texts and reviews. This book will form a useful addition to libraries, but most readers are likely to need other solid-state texts as well. R. W. Mum
Mechanisms of Cooperativity and Allosteric Regulation in Proteins. By Max Per&z. Pp. 101. Cambridge University Press. 7990. Paperback f71.95, us $17.95.
‘Allosteric proteins control and coordinate chemical events in the living cell. When Monod conceived that idea he said that he had discovered the second secret of life. The first was the structure of DNA.’ So begins this very readable account of allosteric phenomena. The author is internationally recognised as being an authority on this subject and has pioneered much of the work that has lead to our detailed understanding of how these vital proteins function at a molecular level. In this reasonably priced book Max Perutz gives both an historical perspective, which only someone who has spent his life in a subject can bring, and a detailed appraisal of the structures that enable allosterism to operate. He describes the molecular details using many examples, including the haemoglobins, haemocyanin, haemerythrin, glycogen phosphorylase, phosphofructokinase,
aspartate transcarbamylase, glutamine synthase, the frp and met repressor proteins, immunoglobulins, and allosteric membrane proteins. This account is a living demonstration of the astounding progress that has been made in the 50 years since the first experiments on haemoglobin crystals described by Haurowitz in 1938 to the application of sitedirected mutagenesis on aspartate transcarbamylase to prove unambiguously the contribution of vital residues from neighbouring subunits. The use of engineering terms like levers and differential gears implies that we are finally achieving a mature understanding of how these proteins function. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to senior undergraduate students and above. I. G. Giles
The Chemistry of Functional Group Series. Supplement A: The Chemistry of Double-Bonded Functional Groups. Volume 2. Parts 1 and 2. Edited by Saul Patai. Pp. 797 and 891. Wiley, Chichester. 1989. f205.00 and f235.00.
Just about every practising organic chemist will have consulted ‘Patai’ - the long-running series on the ‘Chemistry of Functional Groups’ that is by now practically a library in itself. The volumes under review represent a third set of chapters on doubly-bonded functional groups - C=C, C=O, C=N, and N=N. These were dealt with originally in individual volumes, then brought together in Supplement A, volume 1 (1977). The new Supplement A2, a.k.a. volume 2, again in two fat parts, brings some coverage up to date, and provides substantial new chapters on carbonylation of maingroup organometallies (162 pages); allene rearrangements (98); 1,l diary1 alkenes (70); fulvenes (138); and the thiocarbonyl group (100 pages). Inevitably, the specialist will find each volume a curate’s egg of a book, and early volumes provided little nourishment for the synthetic chemist in particular. But the functional group-centred approach is ideally suited to his needs, and feedback over the years has clearly shifted the balance in his direction. So in this Supplement we find major contributions on cycloadditions of enones (198 pages); intramolecular 1,3dipolar cycloadditions (132); ene reactions (50 pages); and asymmetric induction in additions to C=O and C=N (132 pages). Chapter 1 deals with the theory of the C=C (vs the Si=Si) double bond, and the mechanistic updates include chapters on additions, eliminations, and substituent effects. The full set of volumes on doubly-bonded functional groups is a valuable resource, which any properly-stocked library catering for working organic chemists should possess. Patai is so often the logical place to start a literature search for an idea or a reaction not involving a specific compound, and I find recent volumes give significantly more hits per query. The price is high, but so is the density of information. Recommended. A. J. Kirby
Crown Ethers and Analogs. By Edwin Weber et al. Pp. 558. Wiley-Interscience, Chichester. 1989. fl10.00.
This very expensive book consists of 9 review articles, 5 (243~~) are reprints of ones which appeared, in the Functional Groups Series (Ed. S. Patai and Z. Rappoport) in 1980(4) and 1983(1); three are updates of the earlier ones and one is entirely new. The 1988 material consists of 272 pages plus a subject index and a very good author index for the whole volume. J. L. Toner’s interesting and valuable chapter is mainly on the impact of computational chemistry. His theme is the rational design of hosts aided by theoretical calculations (ab initio and molecular mechanics), space-filling models, and computer graphics. Beautiful colour photographs from his graphics screen illustrate the 3-dimensional problems. So many crystal structures were determined 198&1987 that I. Goldberg’s update is not comprehensive although it covers some topics coherently; these include polyatomic guests and compounds with enforced cavities. E. Weber deals with three new developments: lariat ethers, pre-organised hosts, and second sphere complexes. He discussestheir binding affinities and selectivities with critical insight. Finally R. A. Bartsch contributes a 9-page update on aryldiazonium guests. The considerable overlap with the older, and within the newer, material indicates very light editorial hands. M. R. Truter Lunar Base Agriculture. Soils for Plant Growth. Edited by D. W. Ming and D. L. Henninger. Pp. 255. ASA, C 55A, 555A,
Wisconsin. 7g8g. f26.40
This volume reports on research concerned with developing the reality of a lunar base. It comprises 18 papers, updated to 1989, and is divided into six sections. The first identifies, through two papers, the requirements for a permanent lunar base. The second section discusses the lunar environment and provides the essential information on the lunar climate and the nature of the Moon’s surface. The remaining sections deal with the complexities of growing plants to feed lunar base personnel. Each lunar ‘night’ and ‘day’ lasts about two weeks with the ‘diurnal’ temperature fluctuating from + 112°C to - 170°C. In addition, the large fluxes of meteorites and ultraviolet or shorter wave radiation require agricultural production to be carried out in underground controlled ecological lifesupport systems (CELSS) dependent on supplementary lighting. The argument inherent in the papers, but not expounded, is the role of the lunar regolith in this form of crop production. Some favour engineering it into a soil which requires creating zeolites to provide cation exchange sites. Microbes, possibly including genetically engineered forms, would be added and wastes used to develop the
203