No. 3947,  jUNE  23,  1945                        NATURE                                                          743 
              Diseases  of  Vegetables                                        background necessary  in every telecommunications 
              Bulletin No.  123  of the Ministry of Agriculture and  engineer  whether specializing in radio  transmission 
              Fisheries.   By  Lawrence  Ogilvie.  Second  edition.  or not. 
              Pp.  ii+74+S  plates.       (London:  H.M.  Stationery            The authors of the second book are slightly more 
              Office,  1944.)  ls. 6d. net.                                   ambitious ;  they link up the theoretical work with 
                   HIS is the second edition of the now well-known  practice and bring in topics too numerous to mention 
              Tbulletin  on  diseases  of  vegetables  written  by  here.  There are many applications of valves which 
              Mr.  L. Ogilvie, advisory mycologist for the Ministry  must wait for general disclosure, but this book will 
              of Agriculture's western province, with headquarters  certainly impress the student that there are important 
              at  Long  Ashton  Research  Station,  Bristol.                  applications of radio .technique, and that to under-
                Among  the  expert  mycologists  comprising  the  stand them-and in the future to introduce new ones 
              Ministry's team of advisers, no one is more fitted than  -it is necessary for him to learn much relevant funda-
              Mr.  Ogilvie to write this bulletin.  His province in-          mental work. The authors, while not exhausting the sub-
              cludes five  counties within         boundaries of which  ject, have made a careful selection which can be recom-
              are to be found some of the best vegetable-growing  mended with confidence.                          L. E. 'C.  HuGHES. 
              areas,  cultivated by some  of the  most  progressive  Organic  Reagents  for  Organic  Analysis 
              growars  of market-garden produce.  Long  years of  By the Staff of the Research Laboratory of Hopkin 
              experience coupled with his considerable number of  and  Williams,  Ltd.  Pp.  172.                    (London :  Hopkin 
              investigations into many diseases of vegetables have  and Williams, Ltd.,  1944.)  5s.  6d. 
              given Mr.  Ogilvie such knowledge of the problems                   SSENTIALLY  a  summary  of  a  good  deal  of 
              which arise in the successful cultivation of vegetables         Einformation hitherto available only in a  dispQrsed 
              as to rendor his advice extremely valuable to growers  form in recent chemical literature, this book provides 
              of these  crops.                                                a  comprehensive list of organic reagents which may 
                 After a brief but lucid introduction explaining the  be used in identification work for the preparation of 
              nature  of  the  various  kinds  of  disease,  the  ones        crystalline derivatives of various organic types.  To 
              attacking vegetables are described and appropriate  illustrate  its  scope,  we  may  note  that  under  the 
              measures for preventing or checking them are given.  alcohol type are given eight 'selected reagents' and 
              The diseases are referred to by the accepted common  eleven 'other reagents', the former being as a rule more 
              name (standardization of which for Great Britain has  satisfactory and easier of access than the latter, for 
              been attempted in the List of Common British Plant  details of which the reader is referred to the original 
              Diseases recently published by the Cambridge Univer-            literature.  Choosing 3 : 5-dinitrobenzoyl chloride as 
              sity Press); but the full scientific name of the organism  a  typical  'selected  reagent',  we  find  a  description 
              causing  the  disease  also  appears  in  brackets  after  including  its  structural  formula,  molecular  weight 
              the common name.                                                and significant properties, with experimental details 
                 Compared with the first  edition,  there has  been  for its use in preparing derivatives of alcohols  and 
              some  revision  and  addition  in  the  light  of recent  phenols,  together with notes  on  other applications, 
              discoveries by research workers.  There are  a  score  a  bibliography, and references to tables of melting-
              or so of excellent photographs to illustrate  some  of  points given at the end of the volume.  To name a 
              the  important  diseases.             .                         less familiar example, xanthydrol is described, on a 
                 Following the main part of the bulletin dealing  similar  plan,  as  a  reagent  for  amides,  urethanes, 
              with  vegetable  crop  diseases,  there  is  a  small  but  sulphonamides  and  substituted  barbituric  acids. 
              useful  section  giving  descriptions  of such practices  There is a  good  index. 
              as  soil  sterilization  by  steam  and  chemicals,  seed          The book is evidently an outcome of much first-
              treatment, preparation and use of fungicidal sprays  hand experience, and will be a  valuable adjunct to 
              and  dusts,  disinfecting  of glasshouses,  etc.       There  teachers, students, research workers and others con-
              follows a  list of the Ministry of Agriculture advisory  cerned with qualitative organic analysis.                  J. R. 
              mycologists with the counties administered by each 
              -this is of great use in indicating where growers can  Bentley and  Driver's .Textbook of Pharmaceutical 
              apply for advice on crop troubles.                                 Chemistry 
                It is an extrvmely well set up publication which  Revised  by  Dr.  John  Edmund  Driver.                          Fourth 
              every grower of vegetable crops ought to have.  The  edition.               Pp.  ix+644.      (London,  New  York  and 
              information it contains is written by an expert, and  Toronto:  Oxford University Press, 1945.)  21s. net. 
              the  price,  as  usual  with  these  bulletins,  is  within'         HIS  book  is  widely  used  by  those who  have 
              reach of everyone's pocket.                      D. E. G.       Tpassed preliminary scientific examinations  and 
              Radio  Technique                                                are  studying  for  the  qualifying  examinations  in 
              By A. G. Mills.  Pp. viii+170.  (London:  Chapman  pharmaceutical  chemistry.  Its suitability for  this 
              and Hall, Ltd., 1944.)  12s. 6d. net.                           useful purpose is attested by the appearance of four 
              Radio  Receivers  and  Transmitters                             editions in twenty years.  It is  divided into three 
              By S. W. Amos and F. W. Kellaway.  Pp. x+2Sl.  sections dealing with analytical methods,  inorganic 
              (London:  Chapman and Hall, l-td., 1944.)  21s. net.            chemistry and  organic  chemistry respectively,  and 
                                                                              is  full  of facts  clearly  and  simply  set  forth.      A 
                   HE paucity of new text-books concerned with  large proportion  of these  facts  is  taken  from  the 
              Tradio transmission makes the above pair particu-               "Pharmacopoeia",  with  suitable  explanations  and 
              larly welcome.  While we cannot subscribe to the  amplifications.  A few references are given to original 
              claims of the first author that his text covers among  papers, but the book is essentially an elementary text-
              other matters a  thorough treatment of transmission  book for a specialized purpose.  The new edition has 
              and  reception  necessary  for  the  complete  under-           been brought up to date by the inclusion of data from 
              standing of radio, nevertheless what he has attempted  the first six addenda to the "British Pharmacopoeia" 
              for  the  young student in a  restricted  field  is  well       of 1932  and revised throughout in the interests of 
              done,  and gives a  very good idea of the theoretical  accuracy and clarity. 
                                                             © 1945 Nature Publishing Group