154 



NATURE 



[Decemuek 9, 1909 



student who !s eommencinf^ to study the subject. To 

 ■a larg^e extent the book is based on the " Kleine Prak- 

 tikum," arranged by Prof. Nernst for students of 

 physical chemistry at the universities of Gottingen and 

 Berlin. As such it presents many features of merit, 

 but at the same time a lack of discretion in regard 

 to the relative amounts of space devoted to the various 

 sections of the subject detracts very largely from its 

 value as a work for general laboratory use. Only 

 nine pages, for example, arc devoted to the chapter on 

 chemical statics and dynamics, whereas twenty-two 

 are taken up by that on the determination of density. 

 Again, thermochemistry is liberally treated, while 

 spectroscopic and electrolytic work are not dealt with 

 at all. Apart from this lack of proportion, the subject- 

 matter is carefully handled, and the exercises arc in 

 general well chosen. .Special stress is laid on the 

 application of physico-chemical methods in connection 

 with quantitative analysis and the determination of 

 the constitution of organic compounds. The trans- 

 lator has added a chapter on the construction and use 

 of the thermostat, and also an appendix on the use of 

 the electroscope in radio-active work. 



(2) In consideration of the fact that preparative 

 work in inorganic chemistry forms an essential part 

 of the training of the modern chemical student, an 

 addition to the rather scanty literature of the subject 

 is not unwcloome. In this book the authors outline 

 a course of laboratory work which is essentially 

 synthetic in nature, and is designed to aid in acquir- 

 ing a more adequ.ite knowledge of inorganic chemistry 

 than is to be obtained by practice in chemical analyse 

 alone. It is intended priinarily for those who have 

 passed beyond the more elementary stage in their 

 study of chemistry. .Mthough this is the case, the 

 experimental part of the book is set out in relatively 

 complete detail, and, to assist in the study of the 

 theoretical relations involved, brief discussions of a 

 general nature are interspersed throughout the 

 book. 



The experiments, which involve the preparation of 

 more than 200 substances, have been carefully com- 

 piled, and the processes have been tested in the .uithors' 

 own laboratories. 



Having regard to the meritorious nature of the 

 contents of the book, it is unfortunate that the authors 

 should have departed from the usual practice in the 

 arrangement of their material. Instead of treating 

 the compounds according to the periodic groups, they 

 have chosen to base the classification upon the dif- 

 ferent types of combination. It is claimed that this 

 arrangement results in a better comprehension of 

 analogous methods of preparation and analogous 

 properties, and a more intimate amalgamation of 

 experimental and theoretical chemistry. The justice 

 of this claim appears doubtful. On the other hand, 

 the general impression created by the arrangement is 

 that the experiments have been written down in 

 haphazard order, with the result that closely related 

 compounds are often widely separated, in these 

 circumstances a re-arrangement of the material on 

 the lines of the periodic table would add to the value 

 of the book. 



NO. 2093, VOL. 82] 



SCIENTIFIC METHOD IN GEOGRAPHY. 

 Macmillan's Practical Modern Geographies, (i) .4 



Geography of the Britisli Isle.';. By Dr. .\. Morley 



Davies. Pp. xiv + 358. Price 3.f. 

 (2) Practical Exercises in Geography. By B. C. 



Wallis. Pp. xxiii+184. (London: Macmillan and 



Co., Ltd., 1909.) Price 2s. 6d. 

 (i) TN the "Geography of the British Isles," Dr. 

 J- Davies introduces each section by a number 

 of exerci.scs with maps and statistics, so that pupils 

 may have inferences of their own gleaning to help 

 them to appreciate the descriptive portions of the 

 book. This is an interesting experiment, and is 

 carried out with considerable success, though chances 

 are missed in the descriptive paragraphs which might 

 have been used to teach rather more by appeal to the 

 imagination. In that way, too, the work would have 

 been made more valuable as a book for the pupils 

 themselves to handle. 



The subject is introduced through a brief survey of 

 the British region as a whole, and then its tides and 

 climate are considered, after which districts are 

 studied in a regular sequence. It is characteristic of 

 the district-study in this book that no attempt is 

 made to define the districts in any exclusive fashion ; 

 they are chosen as geographical units, and the 

 occasional overlapping only enliances the thorough- 

 ness of the survey. 



London is of such unique interest, and shows in 

 so many ways the influence of the past on the present 

 geographical conditions that it might have been 

 considered in more detail, especially from this point 

 of view. A fuller account might also have prompted 

 teachers in other centres to study their own towns in 

 similar fashion, and thence to introduce local and 

 practical considerations into their teaching. .\ large 

 number of district maps and some good photographs, 

 mostly illustrating physical features, enrich this book, 

 and an alphabetical index of the abbreviated names 

 used on the maps is a useful addition. 



(2) " Practical Exercises in Geography " is a 

 reasoned attempt to work out a continuous series of 

 practical exercises, some of the nature of experiments, 

 some "in the field," and some in the class-room. 

 The course begins with the simplest rudiments of 

 surveying, and leads up very effectively to the under- 

 standing of contour lines and the relief of the 

 country, the United Kingdom being, of course, the 

 chief object of study. 



Following this are exercises on the factors of 

 climate, and from the basis of the study of relief and 

 of climate we proceed to vegetation and human 

 activities. .>\ less satisfactory chapter on rocks and 

 minerals is inserted mainly for the purpose of drawing 

 in the consideration of coal, iron, and other mineral 

 products. The definition of metamorphic rocks as 

 "rocks which w-ere once ' water ' rocks and have since 

 been changed, usually by the action of heat," i- 

 objectionable. 



The course should give a reasonable knowledge of 

 British geography in a somewhat unusual fashion^ 

 but it is to be feared that the knowledge of other 



