5 comments about Advanced Organic Chemistry: Part A: Structure and Mechanisms (Advanced Organic Chemistry / Part A: Structure and Mechanisms).

1. It is now more than a month after I was supposed to receive this book and I have not gotten it yet, what the hell is going on.



2. This book is written at the undergraduate level. The figures are a joke. It's a paperback and will fall apart. If you are in graduate school; buy the text by Anslyn & Dougherty instead. It is a nice hard bound book, durable & weighs a ton. Its worth the money and the weight in your backpack.



3. This text is good for an advanced undergraduate course. It is a pretty good reference, with two major problems:
   
   1) The book is a flimsy paperback. Other paperbacks I have can withstand usage just fine, but after 1 month the text was in two pieces. It feel apart at the binding. I never even brought it to class, it sat on the bookshelf and fell apart after twice a week readings.
   
   2) The solutions are presented as references to journal articles. I am not too shy of searching for articles, but when you are in a crunch it would be nice to not have to search through 10 pages of tangential information to find the one data or conclusion you need in order to verify the accuracy of your work.
   
   Besides for that, it worked just fine for my advanced undergrad course in physical organic chemistry. I did have to make frequent references to other sources for more in-depth information, but when study time came it worked better than the myriad organic texts available at my library.



4. I have been using this book since the first edition, in my postgraduation courses and each time, it is better. The 5th edition introduced aspects that we awere longing for, like, for example, new achievements in the area of aromaticity and improvements in the first chapter. The best improvement was attached to problems solving (despite being not so friendly) and 3D figures. A CD should be added to the next edition.



5. Everyone in the world of organic chemistry knows of Dr. Carey and the great author and chemist he is. Hardly anyone could compare with the way he slides from subject to subject, explaining in detail and ease subjects that can be rather difficult to grasp. However, his method, because of his complete understanding of the subject matter is amazing. Often I wish I had had him for an instructor for at least one course in organic or any other for that matter. It is his ability to break down difficult concepts, and introduce them in logical and orderly fashion as to make that same difficult concept... much more easy to understand. If you are thinking about graduate school, or even want to make better grades in your soph-jr 2 semester organic chem class, use this book. It will help you understand some of the topics your "quick course" book leaves out! I cannot recommend this book high enough. guyairey

5 comments about Schaum's Outline of Physical Chemistry (2nd Edition).

1. This book is a fabulous supplement to any physical chemistry text. It even includes reviews on quantum and solid state. I found this book especially helpful as i am a physics major taking p.chem with little chemistry background.



2. The over-five hundred pages that make-up this "Schaum's Outline of Physical Chemistry" were dedicated to giving overview of every aspect of the subject. The book's presentations and analyses are easy-to-follow; and would be appreciated by any Physical Science undergrad.
   I valued its exploits in the fields of: Thermodynamics, Equilibrium Properties, Chemical Kinetics, and Intermolecular Forces. Its information are concise; yet, detailed enough. There are both tutorials and worked examples in every chapter: hence, making it a fine revision tool.
   However, bear in mind that the contents of this book are more or less obsolete. The fact that it has not been revised since 1988 is discouraging. In view of this, I am reluctant to recommend it!



3. The examples are from a different planet! The text is very general in the important concepts and too detailed in the obscure stuff; this is definintley not intended for someone new to PCHEM. Stick to you textbook, like Atkins, which probably has better explanations and problems.



4. For as cheap as it is, this is a great value. It reviews every concept in physical chemistry very well. Obviously it won't replace your textbook, but it will at least cover subjects that maybe your textbook omits. The outline was last updated in 1989, but, honestly, physical chemistry has not changed in at least the last twenty or thirty years. Conceptually, all of physical chemistry has remained the same, so I would not say that this book is obsolete.



5. I bought this book because I had a deficiency in physical chemistry owing to a bad teacher at my undergraduate study i chemistry. This book although cheap is garbage and is not useful at all. so do not buy it. If you are outside the USA don't buy books published in america because mostly they are for commercial purpose and not intended to teach you.

3 comments about Inquiry-Based Experiments in Chemistry (American Chemical Society Publication).

1. I'm a third year science teacher and just wanted a break from reinventing the wheel. This book has 35 great labs that are designed to get the students to think and also get them to understand the content too. These are not cook book labs which was exactly what I was looking for. There are thought provoking questions provided and a sample lab write-up with sample data for each experiment. Also the author includes additional suggestions, common misconceptions and safety information. If you want a book with ready to use labs that are inquiry-based, this is a great find.



2. The strength of this book is that it lays out 35 detailed Chemistry experiments that are not cookbook labs. It has concrete examples of how to have students design their own procedures to solve a problem. When I first started reading the book I was very excited and thought I would definately use it. The farther I read though, the more disappointed I got that the labs do not include real-life connections. Most students are not inherently interested in "Calculating the Heat of Solution," but could become more engaged if the author made a connection between each topic and a real-life problem. I think that a book that is far superior is "Teaching Inquiry-Based Chemistry," by Gallagher-Bolos and Smithenry. It really explains how to get the students engaged in real-life inquiry-based problem solving and describes how to get them to do it as a community of learners.



3. This was the type of information I've been searching for. Simple, easy to set up and implement. IF you are into iquiry based lessons / labs this is an excellent book. With little effort I was able to implement these experiments right away.

5 comments about New Brewing Lager Beer: The Most Comprehensive Book for Home and Microbrewers.

1. Although this book has a lot of useful information in it, I was disappointed to find it was not about lager at all. It is simply a general purpose brewing book with a lot of emphasis on all grain brewing. This makes it hard to rate because as a lager book it gets zero stars, which is why it was on my Christmas wish list.



2. DO NOT get this book if you are a beginner looking to start brewing, I recommend How To Brew by John Palmer for that, a truly excellent book to start with. This is more of a reference guide for the advanced brewer ( being a beginner myself I have yet had a chance to use it ).



3. I enjoyed the book however the technology is outdated and most people ferment lagers at 9-11C, secondary ferment then filter at -2C. Nothing on force fermenting or Hermes systems for infusion mashing. OK reference book for the shelf.



4. I hesitate giving this book a bad review because it's clear that anyone who does so must not be "advanced" enough in homebrewing to appreciate it. (We might not be altogether different from those who couldn't see the emperor's new clothes.)
   The book certainly isn't about brewing lagers (as opposed to other styles.) The author says as much in his introduction. That was a disappointment. More disappointing was the tone. It read more like a textbook than what I've come to enjoy in "homebrewing books." (Books like Papazian's and Palmer's among others.) It screams with the message that brewing is just too serious of a matter to have fun with. I disagree. I guess that means I'm just a beginner.



5. This is one of the few book on brewing that I would recommend to everybody who is truly interested in art of making beer. Everything within the book is logically arranged and is layered from baseline topics to more advanced ones. This makes it very easy for Advanced brewers to skip the child's play and move right along into the good stuff, and for beginners to read all they need to know and skip through the scientific mumbo jumbo.

5 comments about Pairs Trading: Quantitative Methods and Analysis (Wiley Finance).

1. I have mixed feelings about this book: on the one hand it's a good overview of statistical and risk (merger) arbitrage. On the other, it is pretty shallow in terms of both practice and theory.
   
   It is certainly not possible to use it directly for trading (like any other published book, I guess). An example of a theoretical flaw is the dodgy usage of bootstrap methodology which is a lot more assumption-sensitive tool than it is generally believed. One more example when the idea itself is nice but the implementation is not: the author shows how to assess VaR for a pair of assets and doesn't seem to notice that the estimated probability of deal-break is risk-neutral, not physical probability and thus can not be directly used to estimate VaR which is tied to the physical probability distribution.
   
   There's a possibility, however, that these and other discrepancies are a result of the author's unwillingless to disclose too much. Indeed, I have yet to see a book that properly covers the gap between the original cointegration results (obtained around 1985) and their real industrial implementation. If anyone can suggest a deeper book on Statistical Arbitrage, please let me know (click on my name above).



2. I was looking for books on stat arb and risk arb and was surprised that not many titles showed up for my search on Amazon. I eventually bought this book (a used copy) and although the book covers exactly the kind of stuff you want to learn about pairs trading, the writing is very poor and there are way too many places where the sentences don't make any sense, regardless of your math/stat background. This book is not a how-to book. It's a general treatise and not a good one at that. I cannot recommend this book. You may want to check out Tsay's financial time series analysis book which, although not specifically for pairs trading, has all the essential materials.



3. When people talk about "quant" stuff, they are generally talking about two fairly distinct kinds of quant. There are the derivatives guys (options sell side & risk hedgers), and the 'statistical arbitrage' guys. This is one of the best books for a larval 'statistical arbitrage' guy. 'Statistical arbitrage' is a term referring to the techniques used by sophisticated hedge funds and trading desks to provide 'risk free' returns. I stick in the scare quotes around these phrases, because they're not really arbitrage, though they can be pretty decoupled from market returns. The techniques go well beyond just trading pairs, so the phrase, 'stat arb' is probably with us for good, even though it is often neither stat nor arb. The mean reverting versions of these techniques were largely invented by Nunzio Tartaglia and company (primarily Gerry Bamberger according to Thorp) at Morgan Stanley in the 1980s. Many of his underlings went on to found their own hedge funds, and the secret eventually became relatively common knowledge. Boesky was one of the more famous practitioners of merger arbitrage, which is an older, related technique.
   
   This book is a fun introduction to 'statistical arbitrage,' concentrating on the standard "mean reverting pairs" variety, and a decent explanation of merger arbitrage which he unifies with mean reverting stat arb in an interesting way. These two strategies still form the basis of a large number of high frequency techniques in one form or another. In fact, the book provides enough background material to be useful for all kinds of techniques for finding alpha; it has a very clear treatment of factor models, time series analysis (best low level one I have ever read, anywhere) and what market neutrality is and isn't. He provides a decent amount of discussion of the complexities surrounding tradeability and other practical issues that get swept under the rug in most books.
   
   Sure, there are a lot of specific 'stat arb' techniques he doesn't mention explicitly. He doesn't talk about basket trading plays, index arbitrage, volatility arbitrage or any of the other myriad clever (and often over my head) techniques used by sophisticated fund managers to vacuum up loose change that dumb people leave on the street. So what? Vidyamurthy gives you enough material you can go out and learn the practical details of real strategies on your own. If you're gifted enough, you can go figure them out (and more) for yourself once you understand the material in the book: they're mostly variations on these themes. Why should Vidyamurthy give away the keys to the kingdom for $100? Be happy he wrote the book at all. Presumably, he makes a living actually doing 'stat arb' type things, and his motivation was to have a book to give to his underlings so he didn't have to explain GARCH and cointegration to someone who breathes out of his mouth for the 9,000th time.
   
   Anyone who can't read this book simply doesn't have the intellectual horsepower or attention span to do this kind of trading. The book is almost excruciatingly clear, it is very short, and even does the MBA's the favor of tucking the scary mathematics involving matrices and standard deviations safely away in chapter appendices. I mean, it even has cartoons and funny anecdotes (which are actually very funny: I detect a Wodehouse fan in Vidyamurthy). You have to actually pay attention while you read, and some sections, you may have to read twice. The concepts will not leap off the page and embed themselves into your frontal lobes, but it really isn't that difficult for any intelligent person to understand. I can think of no better introduction to pairs trading, or general alpha quant type stuff than this book. It should probably be on every wannabe quant or trader's desk if it isn't already etched into the fiber of their being.



4. It's a good read even with the somewhat unorthodox mathematical notation. The overall concept of pairs trading is introduced well, with just enough detail to tempt the more adventurous gambler. The author appears well versed in the subject and writes well but assumes a relatively high level of mathematical maturity on the part of the reader.



5. The reviewers up to this point have all made valid points. I just want to add that this book IS NOT worth $50. $15 maybe $20. It's a paltry 204 pages filled with graphs and cartoons. Check it out from your local research library and make notes. You can read through it in a matter of weeks if not days if you have a lot of free time on your hands.

5 comments about Physical Chemistry: A Molecular Approach.

1. To be succinct:
   1) Thorough explanation of each subject.
   2) Subjects broken down into manageable chapters.
   3) Lots of worked problems.
   4) Lots of problems at the end of each chapter.
   5) Material presented in a logical, not necessarily historical, fashion.
   6) Layout is generally superior to other texts (spacious, not cramped)
   7) Get the solutions manual.
   
   Bear in mind most schools teach thermodynamics and kinetics, followed by quantum chemistry. This methodology is merely a reflection of the order of discovery, and not because quantum chemistry necessarily builds on thermo or kinetics. This text teaches quantum first, followed by thermo and kinetics. It's more logical to teach quantum first, but you can jump right into traditional physical chemistry with this text.
   
   Only recommendation:
   The publisher should package the book with the solutions manual. I'm a big fan of solutions manuals and a student is somewhat hobbled without one.



2. I received the correct book in excellent condition (matching the seller's description) in the timeframe I was told when I purchased it.



3. This is one of the poorest textbooks I've ever owned. It is wordy yet it explains very little. And there is one really annoying aspect to this book:
   The authors only ever introduce an equation once in the text. From thereon, they refer to that equation as "equation 17-1" or whatever number they designate it. So you're constantly having to turn back pages and entire chapters just to find out what stupid equation they are talking about. They also embed all the important tables within random chapters instead of being in an appendix, so good luck finding any constants or any other figures that would be put in a table.
   Another bad thing about this book is that they made an update to it and added two chapters but didn't change the ISBN. So some people get the newer version with the correct number of chapters and some people will pay the same price for the book missing at least 2 chapters that they will need in their p-chem class (this happened to my girlfriend who has the older book and I have the newer one and we didn't discover this until the fourth test!). I hate this book with a passion. It has crappy black and white illustrations,and instead of writing fractions like ft/sec or mol/L they write ft*sec(-1) and mol*L(-1) and it gets quite distracting when they have several terms in the denominator. It looks like it was written in the 70's. I will say as a side-note that it's very much worth getting the solutions manual if you get this book. The solutions manual is pretty well-done.



4. For those students who are REQUIRED to derive everything on their PCHM exams, THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU! Excellent supplement to that weak and required text book of yours, for sure. Good luck! PCHMI (Thermo-C) PCHMII (Q. Mechanics-B)



5. It's great. It's quite in depth, though you have to accept some parts of the math if you don't already know differential equations.
   It's understandable even to me, and the last chem course I took was just AP, but it's also very challenging and in depth. Highly recommend.

5 comments about Pushing Electrons: A Guide for Students of Organic Chemistry.

1. Having had Dr. Weeks as a professor in my college days, I could not reisist purchasing and reading this book. As an educator, Dr. Weeks was gifted in his ability to take difficult course material and convert it into material that was not only understandable, but enjoyable. He has accomplished this again with the third edition of his book. The mastery of electron movement in organic reactions makes the understanding of more complex aspects of organic chemistry more easily achieved. No organic chemistry student should be without this book.



2. This book starts out great, because it really makes it clear for us idiots the reason electrons are pushed. It is an engaging study tool that makes you want to open the book everyday. The problem with the book, I'm now learning, is that I now know how to push electrons, but I still don't know when to apply what rules. I thought that the book would have talked more about how to identify electrophiles, and nucleophiles (with regards to reagents). Instead the books jumps for being really easy to follow, to asking the reader to attempt really complex mechanisms. That's like asking a kid who just learned his ABC's to write a book. Very poor ending.

   However, for those of you who are clear on electrophiles and nucleophiles, this book would be perfect for you. I suspect that if you know those well, you might not need this book.




3. This book is not a substitution for organic chemistry by any means. It's mean (the first 2 chapters) to prepare, review, and reinforce concepts learned in Gen Chem but vital to organic.

   The last 3 chapters are not review. They require some understanding of organic first. They are meant to reinforce and review what you learn in class.

   So you can't just jump for chapter 1 and 2 directly into 3. One and two are meant for prior to organic. And 3 through 5 are to be used during the class.

   It's definately got me several steps up on my classmates so far.

   Ken




4. I'm taking Organic Chemistry this semester at a Big 12 university, and bought this book on recommendation from my professor. The simple truth is, past a certain point, you can no longer rely entirely upon memorizing reactions to do well in this subject -- you really have to understand the mechanisms. This book provides the basis for that, and is therefore very valuable. It's only downfall is that it's very expensive... If you're ok with parting with 50 dollars I'd recommend it.



5. The cost wasn't too bad, and the shipping was great. However, the book has writing all through... which for a workbook makes things slightly difficult. I remember the review saying there was a bit of writing, but it is all through the beginning of the book.

5 comments about Napoleon's Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed History.

1. While first scanning through Napleon's Buttons, I had expected a completely and utterly useless story that would have wasted my time. After finishing the introduction and a few chapters, however, I found myself more knowledgable. I learned numerous new things already with a few pages. Napoleon's Buttons has seventeen chapters that basically tell the story of seventeen different molecules and how they changed the world. These molecules range from birth control to glucose and spices to dyes. The book also proves how many of the things humans take for granted in modern society were things that were extremely rare years ago. Salt, for example, was something everyone wanted, but not everyone could afford. Today, people put salt on food everyday and throw bags of it on the ground when it snows outside. The book also showed how something as simple as tin buttons could alter the course of history. (You will learn about this in the introduction.) Overall, the book was alright. It was not fantastic, nor was it insanely boring. I learned a lot, and if you choose to read it, you will too. I do not recommend this to any one who is not an adult and has spare time (because it is lengthy). I am glad I took the time to read Napoleon's Buttons, however, because I did learn a lot about history and how humans take so many things for granted.



2. Whether you are a rocket scientist or summa cum barely high school graduate, you'll find this book a facinating, fun read. I have read this one several times. I will often just read one chapter, as each is somewhat indepentant of the other. The author's did an excellent job on the illustrations of chemical structures. It is good science and good history at the same time. It has more than a few "ripping-good yarns" in it. This is a book that has come up in quite a few conversations, with one of us usually writing out the title so that it will not be forgotten.



3. We have enjoyed this book so much that we bought two for presents. It is a bit deep on the chemistry end of the explanations, but great for the historical significance dealing with each of the 17 molecules explained.



4. I really enjoyed how much I learned from this book. It was slow to start, but once I got into the "dense" writing style, I learned so much, and can now really appreciate the critical balance between natural and man-made substances and their effects on the environment. A very fascinating read.



5. Napoleon's Buttons looks at how several compounds have drastically affected human history, including spices, sugars, fabrics, metals, drugs, cleaners, and dyes. The book made me fondly reminiscent of the old 80's TV sitcom "Head of the Class", where the teacher would give lessons such as "how a baseball led to the Bay of Pigs".
   
   Some might be turned off by the detail given and discussed regarding chemical structures and formulas, but it can be skipped - however I don't recommend it because the similarity in compounds they discuss is a key part to fully enjoying the book. I highly recommend this book for a teenager who has shown interest in Chemistry.

5 comments about Acid-Base, Fluids, and Electrolytes Made Ridiculously Simple (MedMaster Series).

1. I purchased this book with some doubt, because you see a very high variability in these series. Now, i am very happy. Every medical student and resident gets frustrated with fliuid and electrolytes. Reading textbooks makes it worse. I have seen a lot of attendings and Nephrologists (!!) who are scared of this subject. This book can help you tremendously. It is written in a very simple language and gives you the proper approach to fluid and electrolyte problems. It is full of practical examples that you will see every day and shows you how to solve them. After reading this book, you will be confident enough to deal with electrolytes. Instead of replacing electrolytes blindly with K-Dur and Neutra-Phos and .... and not knowing what to do with Hyponatremia, you will have a nice framework in your brain to deal with them. And the best part: It is a small book. Don't hesitate to get it. You won't regret.



2. enjoing your reading
   a practical and easy to understand little book which give you the key to approach first, and most important, a lot of true clinical problem and second, more heavy textbook abt the issues treated.



3. This book is awesome. It gets right to the point. Preston is incredible. He actually taught some of our acid-base lectures during renal, and they were some of the best lectures we have had. I highly recommend this book!



4. This book truly reduces the breadth of information to a manageable and understandable format.
   
   I recommend this book for anyone needing a refresher of previously learned information, and for those that need a thorough basis for future study.



5. I was surprised by the detail that this small book covered, but it explained just enough without being too much. Very good for someone needing a little more guidance through the topic of electrolytes and such. Lots of information in each short chapter and good practice questions.

5 comments about Line by Line: How to Edit Your Own Writing.

1. Superb! I am a programmer by day and a writer of articles on programming at other times.
   
   Growing up in England I was taught every miniscule detail of the English language. How to construct sentences and how pronunciation changes depending on word stems, Country of origin and so on. I had a pretty good grasp on writing. At work I spend some of my time re-writing briefing notes, user manuals, and proof-reading emails.
   
   On top of this I study grammar and style manuals. You get a feel for where I'm coming from in terms of expertise.
   
   This book changed my entire outlook on writing. I am only up to page 26 and already I have hacked through some articles like a whipper-snipper through a weeded garden. I found some habitual mistakes I constantly make and curbed some emerging ones. This is a fantastic book!
   
   The last briefing note I edited started as a monstrosity of bad grammar and ended as a shining example of what this book has to offer.
   
   I cannot recommend this book enough. It is only 200 pages but not a word is wasted. It is concise and packed full of information and is an example of its own subject.



2. I'm a working writer who has found this book very helpful. An original hardbound edition holds an honored place in my library.
   
   If you want to improve your own writing, then this is the book for you. You would likely only need one of the copy editing books recommended by other reviewers if you are (or want to become) a working copy editor.



3. I've bought a lot of grammer books over the years. Some of them are well written some are not. They don't help me much but I keep buying them and hoping that someday I'll find one that helps me with all my style problems. I consider Elements of Style the best of the lot, but this one is a close second. Her examples of good writing as opposed to poor writing are very helpful. She provides not only a poor sentence and an alternative one but also various alternatives of style and sentence structure. I think the process of working towards a clear crisp sentence very helpful.
   
   



4. Based upon the Modern Language Association guidelines, Claire Kehrwald Cooks' instructive 'how to' manual for aspiring authors, "Line By Line: How To Edit Your Own Writing" completely demystifies the process of self-editing, a vital aspect of honing, polishing, and otherwise preparing a manuscript for publication. All the relevant issues are addressed including basic grammar; pruning unnecessary words and phrases; balancing related sentence elements; making subjects and verbs agree; using pronouns accurately; the correct usage of punctuation marks; and avoiding the 'questionable usage' of words and phrases. A welcome and core addition to personal and professional writing reference collections, "Line By Line" is especially recommended reading for aspiring writers, published professionals, business managers and government officials needing to communicate with clarity, advertising and public relations professionals, scholars and students, as well as technical and science writers.



5. Claire K. Cook's Line by Line contains invaluable information, but the delivery reads like a wall of text. Most novice writers will begin skimming from the start despite its wealth of knowledge.
   
   All information passes to the reader in blocks that hampers like hammer blows. Lists, a numbered sequence, or individual chapters on each item would provide a better method that relaxes the reader with white space and breeziness.
   
   Instead, the work presents passages like old textbooks used to torture elementary students. Despite my love of the written word, I regretted buying this book because of this reason alone. I cannot recommend.
   
   Wolfe