thinking of old by a liierarchical concept of natural "systems", in which order in the 



gross goes hand in hand with freedom in the small. 



As usual, Weiss' style of writing is both elegant and lucid, and even those who do not 

 agree with his quaHtative systems approach will find much of value to ponder. The first 

 one hundred-odd pages are devoted to "The order of Ufe", discussed in 30 brief sections. 

 The remainder of the book is taken up by a Postscript entitled From life science to 

 education for living. Two sections here are of particular philosophical interest, that on 

 linear causaUty as the predicament of man, and that on "category versus continuum". 

 Both bring out Weiss' emphasis on the dynamic (operationalist) rather than the static 

 (substantialist) approach to the problems of life and hving. These lessons from a great 

 biologist deserve to be read widely by scientists and non-scientists alike. 



PLANT DEVELOPMENT (general) (see also 10) 



Textbooks 



16. 



D. H. NORTHCOTE. 1974. DIFFERENTIATION IN HIGHER PLANTS 



Oxford Univ. Press, London. Oxford Biology Readers No. 44. 32 pp., 40 figs. 60p. 



(paper) 



A fairly detailed account of cell differentiation with strong emphasis on ultrastructure 

 and on the biochemistry of the cell wall components. Brief treatment of cambial different- 

 iation and stomatal complex formation. Clear diagrams and many electron micrographs; 

 of these some appear superfluous, others have lost much detail, and the captions are not 

 always clear. 



Monographs 



17. 



M. J. GOUJON. 1973. ETUDE DES MECANISMES PHYSIOLOGIQUES DE LA FORM- 

 ATION DES SCLEROTES CHEZ LE CORTICIUM ROLFSII (SACC.) CURZI 

 O.R.S.T.O.M. (Office de la Recherche Scient. et Techn. Outre-Mer), Paris. Travaux at 

 Documents de TO.R.S.T.O.M. 26. 107 pp., 34 figs., 24 tabs. 



Thorough study on the formation of sclerotia in a parasitic basidiomycete; centered on 

 the action of a (proteinaceous?) morphogenetic factor produced by the thallus. 



18. 



R. B. MYERS and E. C. CANTINO. 1974. THE GAMMA PARTICLE, a study of cell- 

 organelle interactions in the development of the water mold Blastocladiella emersonii 

 Karger, Basel, etc. Monographs in Developmental Biology, vol.8. X, 117 pp., 43 figs., 

 14 tabs. SFr. 67.00, $ 24, 50, £ 9.80, DM 64.00 



Gamma particles are found in swimming zoospores of the water mold Blastocladiella 

 emersonii; their numbers are related to the parental phenotype. The particle has been 

 shown to contain DNA, a store of tRNA, and the enzyme chitin synthetase. It is involved 

 in the formation of the chitinous wall that surrounds the zoospore upon encystment (that 

 is, the first step in differentiation). Its probable function is to sequester certain cytoplas- 

 mic constituents until the time they are needed. 



This monograph presents the whole story of the gamma particle over a period of a 

 quarter of a century in systematic fashion; this includes the development of the particles 

 in the differentiating zoospore. A host of modern techniques has been brought to bear on 

 the problem of the nature of the particles, and the results are set out with clarity. The 

 book is illustrated with good drawings and electron micrographs. It has no index. 



198 



