The Merck Index

BOOK REVIEWS Physiology of Lactation. Vearl R. Smith. Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa. 291 pp. 1959. $4.95. This is the fifth edition of the well known book in the field of milk secretion. The previous editions were entitled Secretion of Milk, by Espe and later by Espe and Smith. The book is concisely written and covers the areas of the anatomy of the mammary gland, the physiology and biochemistry of milk secretion, as well as the environmental and physiological factors which affect the growth and development of the mamnmry gland and the formation and ejection of milk. I t has been revised and brought up to date, with the sections on the biochemistry of milk formation and on the environmental factors affecting lactation being extensively revised. The author has written basically on the cow, but manunary gland development and lactation in other animals are discussed where they illustrate a point or where research applicable to lactation in general was done on some other species. The book is extensive in that it covers all phases of lactation and the factors which affect it, and it is written so that it is an excellent text for students at the undergraduate level and also a basis for graduate study. R. L. t h Y s University of Illinois Urbana The Merck Index. Paul G. Stecher, editor. 7th ed. 1641 pages; Merck and Co., Inc. Rahway, N. J. 1960. Price $12.00. The new enlarged edition ef this valuable reference book contains nearly 10,000 descriptions of individual substances, more than 3,300 structural formulas, and 30,000 names of chemicals and drugs alphabetically arranged and cross-indexed. The cross listing is an outstanding feature of the book. I t enables the user to locate a particular chemical description by page num-

ber regardless of whether he knows only the generic name, brand name or systematic chemical name for the substance. Another outstanding feature of this book is the section which lists more than 400 organic "Name" reactions with original and review references, together with a description and structural representation of each reaction. The periodic table is arranged in accordance with the latest concepts of nuclear science. Nearly 300 pages are devoted to chromatographic absorbents, Russian alphabet, biological units, coal-tar colors, thermometric equivalents, antifreeze mixtures, refractive index of liquids, saturated solutions, radioactive isotopes, percentage solution tables, isotonic solutions and atomic weights and their multiples and logs. The preferred chemical name, common or popular names, generic and trade names for each entry are included. Properties and sources of a substance, methods of preparation, literature references and indications for use for each entry are also given. The extensive information about each entry makes this a book that is of much value to anyone requiring such a reference. R. P. L I ~ = University of Illinois Urbana, Ill. Prineipios de Production Lechera. Cesar Fernandez-Quintilla. Salvat Editores. S. A. Barcelona and Madrid. 486 pp., 158 illus. 1960. This book is a translation in Spanish of Principles of Milk Production by WILI,IA~ B. NEVE~S, eminent Emeritus Professor of Dairy Science at the University of Illinois. Published by McGraw-Hill Company, New York. The translation has been carried out with exacting detail. The translator has included an additional chapter on species of forage of greatest interest in Spain. E. O. IIERREID University of Illinois, Urbana

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