December 2, 1922] 



NA TURE 



73i 



tion ; it is fairly easy to criticise, extremely easy to 

 ridicule, and yet still remains provocative. 



Very much more knowledge of the physiological 

 processes concerned in emotion is available now, and 

 although few thinkers could be found to accept the 

 theory in its more extreme form, nevertheless it still 

 has vitality. 



The whimsical humour characteristic of James's 

 writing arrested most readers' attention, and there 

 seems little doubt that, although it in its turn had been 

 stimulated by the work of Darwin, the publication of 

 this theory gave considerable impetus to the study of 

 the emotions and their relation to organic processes. 



The present book, a reprint of James's and Lange's 

 work, will be a valuable addition to the psychologist's 

 library, presenting as it does, in convenient form, 

 papers hitherto not easily obtainable. 



A Manual of Clinical Laboratory Methods. By Prof. 

 Clyde L. Cummer. Pp. 4S4. (London : II. Kimp- 

 ton, 1922.) 285. net. 



Dr. Cummer has produced this manual for students 

 and practitioners with the object of presenting clinical 

 laboratory methods in concise and accessible form. 

 The book is divided into seven chapters dealing with 

 different materials — the examination of blood, of 

 urine, of gastric contents, etc. In each, the methods 

 of carrying out an investigation are first described, 

 and the significance of the findings is then discussed. 

 The subject-matter of each section is well arranged, 

 and there are numerous excellent engravings and plates ; 

 but there is much detail which could with advantage 

 have been omitted. The method of using the in- 

 accurate Tallquist haemoglobinometer does not merit 

 description in a text-book which aims at being concise ; 

 nearly half the book is devoted to the examination of 

 the blood, and the chapter on urine is comparatively 

 brief : the estimation of basal metabolism is not men- 

 tioned at all. The best section is that on cerebro- 

 spinal fluid, which contains good descriptions of modern 

 investigations, including the Lange colloidal gold 

 reaction. 



The Teaching of General Science. By Prof. W. L. 

 Eikenberry. (University of Chicago Nature-Study 

 Series.) Pp. xiii+169. (Chicago, 111.: University 

 of Chicago Press, 1922.) 2 dollars. 



The rapid spread of the teaching of general science 

 follows on the recognition of the educative value of the 

 subject. Much of this is lost, so far as children are 

 concerned, if the content is restricted to what may be 

 useful for some of them in future training as specialists. 

 " The preparatory values are incidental. The adjust- 

 ment between general science and special science must 

 be made by the latter building upon what foundation 

 the former lays, rather than by any attempt to prescribe 

 that certain materials shall be used for preparatory 

 reasons." This is the main idea underlying Prof. 

 Eikenberry 's book, in which he describes the history 

 and practice of the teaching in America. He has gone 

 to the root of the matter, dealing fully with the prin- 

 ciples on which practice should rest ; and the result is 

 a book which no one who has the interests of science 

 teaching at heart can afford to ignore. 



NO. 2770, VOL. I ioj 



The Elements of Astronomy. By Prof. D. X. Mallik. 



Pp. Yiii+233. (Cambridge: At the University 



Press, 1921.) i4.y. net. 

 Tin-, problems of the diurnal rotation, meridian observa- 

 tions, the motion of the moon and planets, precession, 

 nutation, refraction, etc., are dealt with in quite an 

 elementary manner in the work under notice. The 

 chief new feature is an interesting account of ancient 

 Indian astronomy. The book is, unfortunately, 

 greatly in need of revision, misprints, misspellings, 

 and other errata being numerous. Some of them are 

 likely to cause serious misconceptions ; thus, the 

 moon's distance is given as 23,800 miles, both on 

 pp. 102 and 117. On p. 146 the distance of Europa 

 from Jupiter is given as 0400 miles : on p. 138 the 

 periodic time of a planet is stated to vary as r 3 . It is 

 difficult to suppose that the proofs were read with 

 any rare. A. C. D. C. 



The Iron and Steel Institute. Carnegie Scholarship 

 Memoirs. Vol. n : The Corrosion of Iron. By 

 Dr. J. Newton Friend. Edited by George C. Lloyd. 

 Pp. vi+161. (London: The Institute ; E. and F. N. 

 Spon, Ltd. ; New York : Spon and Chamberlain, 

 1922.) 16s. net. 



Dr. Friend's collection of reports, dealing with various 

 aspects of corrosion, does not represent a complete 

 treatise on the subject. Many important researches 

 and theories are not to be found in it, but the sections 

 of the subject dealt with (including much of Dr. 

 Friend's own work) are treated fairly fully. The 

 subject of the corrosion of iron is one which has occupied 

 man for some thousands of years, and a collected 

 account of further progress will, therefore, be useful. 

 Each investigator has usually emphasised one aspei t 

 of the process more than others, and in a " colloidal " 

 theory of corrosion we recognise Dr. Friend's con- 

 tribution. 



Construction des reseaux d'inergie. Par M. Daval. 

 (Bibliotheque Professionnelle.) Pp. 275. (Paris : 

 J. B. Bailliere et Fils, 1922.) 8 francs net. 

 M. Daval's work is written for those who have to 

 design or superintend the working of electric power 

 networks. It is written from a severely practical 

 point of view, and assumes only the slightest mathe- 

 matical knowledge on the part of the reader. The 

 author lays particular stress on those practical points 

 about which the academically trained engineer is often 

 ignorant. The book is clearly written, and will be 

 helpful to the junior staff engaged in the distribution 

 of electric power. 



Les Encres, les cirages, les colles et lenr preparation. 

 Par Maurice de Keghel. (Bibliotheque Profession- 

 nelle.) Pp. 384. (Paris : J. B. Bailliere et Fils, 

 1922.) 10 francs. 

 Reference has already been made in Nature to an 

 earlier volume of this encyclopedia. The subjects 

 are treated from the technical point of view, i.e. 

 recipes are largely given. Many of these would seem 

 likely to be useful in the laboratory as well as in the 

 workshop, and the book should fulfil the purpose for 

 which it is intended. 



