BOOKS AND WRITERS 



A new "Dictionary of Scientific Terms" by J.F. and VV. 

 D. Henderson has been received from the D. Van Nostrand 

 Company of New York. This work aims to define the tech- 

 nical terms relating to the sciences in general with which the 

 reference to botany, zoology, physiology and anatamy. These 

 terms, it may be said, are not those used in taxonomy nor yet 

 those found in the ordinary dictionary but are the strictly tech- 

 nical terms relating to the sciences in general with which' the 

 scientist may be unfamiliar. In additicMi to being defined, 

 each word is pronounced, its derivation given and the science 

 to which it refers indicated. We note the use of a diacritical 

 mark to indicate a variation, we assume, in the pronunciation 

 of certain terms though no reference is made to it in the table 

 of sound svnibcils employed. The book was made in England 

 and naturally reflects the British viewpoint. Fertilization and 

 pollination are not as carefully distinguished as they are in 

 America and the spelling of various words is different as for 

 instance cacsl'itosc where we write cespitose. T.oth ecology 

 and oecolugy are given and rosaceous is defined but liliaceous 

 is not. Halophytes are included but oxalophytes have been 

 overlooked. Monocotyledons and dicotyledons are, of course, 

 defiined.but the shortened forms monocotyl, dicot, etc. are 

 not noticed. The derivation of the words appear to have been 

 very carefully traced. In this connection it may be noted that 

 one is not warranted in assuming that two different words 

 are derived from the same root because they have a similar 

 sound. The first part of the word triangular comes from the 

 Greek tria. but the .same syllable in triarticulate is from the 

 Latin trcs. The defects noted in the book are not such as to 

 impair its usefulness and these will doubtless be corrected in 



