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Characterization of porous solids. Proceedings of IUPAC Symposium, April 1987
Book reviews Studies in Polar Research. Canada’s Arctic Waters in lnternatioiial Law. By Donat Pharand. Pp. 288. Cambridge University Press. 1988. f30.00, US$49.50. This book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on arctic waters. Although it focuses on Canadian waters, it also contains important information on the claims and doctrines of the other arctic states. It is divided into four parts. Part I on sector theory looks at the 1825 and 1867 boundary treaties, the concept of contiguity, and state practice. Neither the boundary treaties, nor contiguity, can ‘serve as a legal basis for the sector theory.’ Nor has the sector theory ‘developed as a principle of customary law.’ Part II, on historic waters, concludes that ‘Canada would not succeed in establishing that the waters of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago are historical internal waters.’ However, the author finds that the straight baselines around the perimeter of the archipelago established in 1985 are legally justified. The final part, on the Northwest Passage. makes it clear that it has never been used for international navigation, and it is not an international strait. ‘Since its enclosure by straight baselines, not even the right of innocent passage applies’ (p. 255). The new right of ‘transit passage’ may apply in the future. The book is the work of a recognized legal scholar. Non-lawyers can learn mwch about legal reasoning by reading it. Organization, clarity of thought, and adequate summaries make it very useful for the non-specialist, too. Finn Luursen Chernobyl: The Real Story. By Richard f. Mould. Pp. 256. Pergamon Press, Oxford. 1988. Hardback f25.00, US$45.00; Paperback f9.95, US$17.95. This ‘story’ is a mixture of narrative, quotation, illustration, and statistics relating to reactor safety, operational human factors, health effects, post-accident problems of evacuation and re-location. media dramatization, etc. It is difficult to identify the relevance or purpose of many of the prolific photographs. Important radio-ecological questions, problems of the widespread constraints on food and agriculture and their consequences for the dependent communities, and of the internationally disparate ‘action levels’ for food are not significantly addressed. The publication does illustrate some indicators for the future: e.g.. the now clearer importance of reactor siting in relation to human habitat, and to the proximity
Endeavour. New Series. Volume 13. No. 1.1989. 0160.9327189 $3.00 I 0.00. Pergamon Press plc. Printed in Great Britain.
of agriculture, fisheries, and water supplies; and the effective post-accident health protection could involve immense tasks of preplanned organization and logistics. Any serious attempt to provide the ‘real story’ of Chernobyl deserves attention. No technology-based accident has involved more complex and wide-ranging problems of applied science, management, international cooperation, and, indeed, of public understanding. This attempt cannot be seen as a useful contribution within the integrated context. Far more useful, albeit less graphic, reports on Chernobyl and its implications are available at international level: e.g., from IAEA, UNSCEAR, WHO, and from FAO. All this notwithstanding, the author has assembled in one volume a good deal of interesting information for the discrimina ting reader. F. P. W. Winteringham
vational constraints. On the way, and in an appendix, he provides brief, but wellrounded introductions to the theories of radiative transfer and plasma processes. The book is written in a clear, concise, and pleasant style, but, perhaps, too sparing use is made of diagrams and photographs. The reproduction of the photographs is adequate, but far from outstanding. Durrant assumes a general understanding of undergraduate physics and mathematics, so that the book is aimed at astronomy and astrophysics postgraduates and advanced undergraduates with an interest in solar and stellar atmospheres and activity, for whom it provides an excellent introduction to the subject. More advanced researchers may also find it a useful summary of the current physical description of the solar atmosphere. S. K. Solanki
Characterization of Porous Solids. Proceedings of IUPAC Symposium, April 1987. Edited by K. K. Unger, J. Rouquerol, K. S. W. Sing and H. Kral. Pp. 646. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam and New York. 1988. US$l71.00, Dfl 325.00. This is the 39th volume in a series of studies in Surface Science and Catalysis published by Elsevier since 1975. It brings together 62 papers of the highest quality, ranging from an overall review of pore systems and their characteristics to the use of the new science of fractals for characterizing porous structures, to the latest research on sorption on large ZSM-5 crystals. The importance of porosity and of porous systems in industry is now well recognized. This is the third major international symposium on the subject to have been held within a decade. The editors of the present volume are to be congratulated on their choice of authors, on their selection of topics. balancing new theoretical concepts against useful practical applications, and on the high standard of presentation that one has come to expect in this series. These proceedings should be available to all scientists and technologists working in the field of porous solids. One criticism is that there is no subject (or author) index. In the current climate of academic cuts, a bright Ph.D. student would probably have been glad to earn some dollars preparing one! Neiton Pilpel
Electromagnetic Fields and Waves. 3rd Edn. By P. Lorrain, D. P. Corson, and F. Lorrain. Pp. 754. W. H. Freeman, Oxford. 1988. Hardback f34.95; Paperback f 19.95.
The Atmosphere of the Sun. By C. J. Durrant. Pp. 168. Adam Hilger, Bristol. 7988. f23.50. Structured in the ‘traditional’ manner - i.e. starting in the solar interior, and then progressing outwards through the photosphere, chromosphere, and corona, with a final chapter on solar activity-this book nevertheless fills a long-felt gap. In contrast to other recent introductory monographs on general solar physics. it concentrates on the basic physical description of the phenomena in the solar atmosphere. Despite his mathematical approach, Durrant never loses sight of obser-
The third edition of this well known, and in my case, well used, textbook presents a substantially different image. The material has been reorganized and is now presented in short chapters, a change that will certainly help improve a student’s feeling of achievement. Much of the text is new, including four chapters on basic circuit theory and two chapters providing an excellent introduction to optional waveguides. In general, existing text has been rewritten more succinctly to allow for the new material. This will make self-study somewhat more demanding but the text continues to give an excellent physical interpretation of the analysis. The problems, many new for this edition, are an important feature of the book, introducing stimulating ideas and interesting applications of the text. Changes from the earlier editions include F and H being referred to as field strengths and not field intensities, a much tidier statement of Fresnel’s equations, and the hollow rectangular waveguide being rotated through 90” to provide a smoother transition to optical waveguides. Vector definitions, identities, and theorems are conveniently located just inside the front cover. This third edition deserves to maintain the leading role enjoyed by the earlier one in the training of physicists and electrical engineers. K. W. H. Foulds Astronomy: Principles and Practice. 3rd Edn. By A. E. Roy & D. Clarke. Pp. 357. Adam Hilger, Bristol. 1988. Hardback f45.00; Paperback f 15.00. Ten years ago, when the first edition was published, this book filled a useful gap between the glossy American astronomy books, illustrated with lots of pretty pictures and almost no physics, and the research texts, too detailed for the first year undergraduates. The new edition is hardly changed
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Endeavour. New Series. Volume 13. No. 1.1989. 0160.9327189 $3.00 I 0.00. Pergamon Press plc. Printed in Great Britain.
of agriculture, fisheries, and water supplies; and the effective post-accident health protection could involve immense tasks of preplanned organization and logistics. Any serious attempt to provide the ‘real story’ of Chernobyl deserves attention. No technology-based accident has involved more complex and wide-ranging problems of applied science, management, international cooperation, and, indeed, of public understanding. This attempt cannot be seen as a useful contribution within the integrated context. Far more useful, albeit less graphic, reports on Chernobyl and its implications are available at international level: e.g., from IAEA, UNSCEAR, WHO, and from FAO. All this notwithstanding, the author has assembled in one volume a good deal of interesting information for the discrimina ting reader. F. P. W. Winteringham
vational constraints. On the way, and in an appendix, he provides brief, but wellrounded introductions to the theories of radiative transfer and plasma processes. The book is written in a clear, concise, and pleasant style, but, perhaps, too sparing use is made of diagrams and photographs. The reproduction of the photographs is adequate, but far from outstanding. Durrant assumes a general understanding of undergraduate physics and mathematics, so that the book is aimed at astronomy and astrophysics postgraduates and advanced undergraduates with an interest in solar and stellar atmospheres and activity, for whom it provides an excellent introduction to the subject. More advanced researchers may also find it a useful summary of the current physical description of the solar atmosphere. S. K. Solanki
Characterization of Porous Solids. Proceedings of IUPAC Symposium, April 1987. Edited by K. K. Unger, J. Rouquerol, K. S. W. Sing and H. Kral. Pp. 646. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam and New York. 1988. US$l71.00, Dfl 325.00. This is the 39th volume in a series of studies in Surface Science and Catalysis published by Elsevier since 1975. It brings together 62 papers of the highest quality, ranging from an overall review of pore systems and their characteristics to the use of the new science of fractals for characterizing porous structures, to the latest research on sorption on large ZSM-5 crystals. The importance of porosity and of porous systems in industry is now well recognized. This is the third major international symposium on the subject to have been held within a decade. The editors of the present volume are to be congratulated on their choice of authors, on their selection of topics. balancing new theoretical concepts against useful practical applications, and on the high standard of presentation that one has come to expect in this series. These proceedings should be available to all scientists and technologists working in the field of porous solids. One criticism is that there is no subject (or author) index. In the current climate of academic cuts, a bright Ph.D. student would probably have been glad to earn some dollars preparing one! Neiton Pilpel
Electromagnetic Fields and Waves. 3rd Edn. By P. Lorrain, D. P. Corson, and F. Lorrain. Pp. 754. W. H. Freeman, Oxford. 1988. Hardback f34.95; Paperback f 19.95.
The Atmosphere of the Sun. By C. J. Durrant. Pp. 168. Adam Hilger, Bristol. 7988. f23.50. Structured in the ‘traditional’ manner - i.e. starting in the solar interior, and then progressing outwards through the photosphere, chromosphere, and corona, with a final chapter on solar activity-this book nevertheless fills a long-felt gap. In contrast to other recent introductory monographs on general solar physics. it concentrates on the basic physical description of the phenomena in the solar atmosphere. Despite his mathematical approach, Durrant never loses sight of obser-
The third edition of this well known, and in my case, well used, textbook presents a substantially different image. The material has been reorganized and is now presented in short chapters, a change that will certainly help improve a student’s feeling of achievement. Much of the text is new, including four chapters on basic circuit theory and two chapters providing an excellent introduction to optional waveguides. In general, existing text has been rewritten more succinctly to allow for the new material. This will make self-study somewhat more demanding but the text continues to give an excellent physical interpretation of the analysis. The problems, many new for this edition, are an important feature of the book, introducing stimulating ideas and interesting applications of the text. Changes from the earlier editions include F and H being referred to as field strengths and not field intensities, a much tidier statement of Fresnel’s equations, and the hollow rectangular waveguide being rotated through 90” to provide a smoother transition to optical waveguides. Vector definitions, identities, and theorems are conveniently located just inside the front cover. This third edition deserves to maintain the leading role enjoyed by the earlier one in the training of physicists and electrical engineers. K. W. H. Foulds Astronomy: Principles and Practice. 3rd Edn. By A. E. Roy & D. Clarke. Pp. 357. Adam Hilger, Bristol. 1988. Hardback f45.00; Paperback f 15.00. Ten years ago, when the first edition was published, this book filled a useful gap between the glossy American astronomy books, illustrated with lots of pretty pictures and almost no physics, and the research texts, too detailed for the first year undergraduates. The new edition is hardly changed
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