4 comments about Frontier Orbitals and Organic Chemical Reactions.

1. This is a classic book about frontier orbitals. This book should be required reading for any serious chemistry student.



2. Provides an outstanding introduction to the concepts of molecular orbital interaction in organic chemistry. Presents the topic such that an organic chemist without a strong background in group theory or math can still follow the discussion.



3. Excellent book - I used this with Carey and Sunberg's book Part A and it correlated well.



4. I found the book very infomative on molecular orbitals of the organic molecules. It will help me pass the proficiency test in my doctorate education.

3 comments about Analytical Electrochemistry.

1. Wang did such a nice job on this one. He is an artist, Wang, such an artist. I love Wang. I love Wang until the day I die!



2. This book is a good starter book for people who are interested in taking electrochemistry. This book explains an overview of equations used in electrochemistry. You will have to go to Allen J. Bard to get a more fundamental approach to electrochemistry. However, this book is useful to jog one's memory about a certain instrumentation used and quick equation look up. This book really helped tremendously while I took my electrochemistry course.



3. Excellent theory and full of tremdous resources (and references) for anyone in the Electrochemical Field

1 comments about Surfaces (Oxford Chemistry Primers , No 59).

1. i am an organic chemist considering expanding my research to surface chemistry. as such, i was looking for a straightforward introduction to the field. this book accomplishes that admirably.

5 comments about Molecular Quantum Mechanics.

1. I have always had a reverence for quantum mechanics, but now I have dread. Dread that sometimes manifests in awe, but most of the times, grows from confusion, thanks to the heap of frustration from quantum mechanics.

   I gave the book 4 stars to avoid my biased review doing the injustice to the authors as a result of my own folly, but I must admit that I cannot understand the authors past the chapter on angular momentum (Chapter 4), albeit their breathless enthusiasm to impart the wonder of quantum mechanics to the reader. Probably a formalistic approach that Atkins and Friedman told us they took to present the book hampers my progress. A whole page of obscure subscripts wouldn't seem to help much either.

   The first three chapter took the familiar analytical route, giving way to the intuition to supply insight and inspire the heart during times of imminent failure, yet the introduction of the quantum mechanical concept of angular momentum by the supposedly clever arguments of subscript manipulation went over my head. And this marks the end of my struggle, for after that I am just a regular mechanic.

   The humor in this assumedly humorless subject seems to alleviate the pain a bit. (It should strongly be reminded that such humor should only be reserved for the geeky lot, for those college kids are probably too cool to appreciate a joke from, ugh, quantum mechanics.)

   The book is perhaps too inclined to chemistry (hence Molecular Quantum Mechanics). A considerable amount of mathematical maturity is needed (not necessarily mathematical knowledge), and a readiness to leave your intuition bewildered.




2. Okay, I'll admit that my background in quantum chemistry is pretty sketchy. However I feel much more lost than usual in this book when it comes to understanding the phenomena that they're trying to model. The problems at the back and the solutions that come with the 3rd edition of this book are even worse as he jumps around alot and don't teach you how to think about problems, just random ways of solving it. I guess this is an intermediate quantum course but I feel safer with Levine, which I used in undergrad physical chemistry. He/she (not sure if Ira is a guy) at least goes through the math so that you can follow it pretty easily. Atkins... Not my cup of tea!



3. This text is not for someone that is starting out in the subject, or even for someone looking to get more into quantum chemistry. This is a book for someone already fairly familiar with quantum and particularly quantum chemistry.
   My main issue with this book is that it's way too much information that is not covered in enough detail to give any insight into the methods that are presented. The examples that he uses to illustrate an idea rarely if ever can be generalized to other cases and for someone not already comfortable with this material it will be more than a challenge. I often found myself reaching for McQuarrie's Quantum Chemistry text as well as Griffiths's Quantum mechanics text to help clarify what was presented in this book.
   The questions at the end of the chapter often are confusing and any hint that is given only makes the problem more obscure. What makes it worse is that equations that are cited in the hints are often wrong and unless you know what you're doing you will have a hard time figuring out what they're hinting at. Many of the examples have mistakes and typos in them, and they're not trivial most of the time. For example, in Chapter six they attempt to walk you through group theory. In one of the examples showing you how to get an irreducible representation from a reducible one they mix up the last two rows using the little orthogonality theorem.
   Several of the character tables in the back of the book are wrong as well. This can make several of the problems at the end of chapters more than a little challenging.
   If you're looking for a good quantum chemistry textbook, this is not it. Even putting the typos aside there is too little information in the book for it to stand on its own as anything useful to learn from. I recommend McQaurrie (both undergraduate and graduate texts) or Levine. Griffiths's quantum mechanics text is a useful reference no matter which text you use.



4. I used this text after struggling for the first few weeks in my quantum chemistry course at Berkeley. Recommended by my professor, this text made sense of things that I believed impossible. And, it includes a lot of graphs to boot! I found this book coupled with Griffith's Quantum Mechanics to have been the best possible undergrad combo in my junior year as a chemistry undergrad. In fact, I sold my required text and passed the class with flying colors using just the Atkins book and the Griffith text. Where Atkins is too wordy, Griffith's concise explanations help greatly. And, vice versa, when you need more info, turn to Atkins. Bon chance!



5. This is a beautiful book and has some very clear mathematical introductions to the subject of QM but I fear that the subject matter is still quite formidable and is most useful as a reference to those who are already comfortable with the subject.
   
   John

2 comments about Environmental Chemistry: A Global Perspective.

1. I've been looking for this book. Other environmental chemistry textbooks cover too many topics: environmental analysis, ecotoxicology, and environmental engineering are common. This one gets it just right: the chemistry of the air, water and soil (including common pollutants) at the level of a undergraduate sophomore- or junior-level course. The text is challenging enough for chemistry majors but not too intimidating for the biology majors interested in the field.

   My only quibbles: not much about environmental modeling of the chemical composition of important systems, still not quite advanced enough (but better than current general textbooks on the topic), and it's missing some important topics (groundwater attenuation, for example). Still, I'll be adopting this book for the course I teach.




2. Overall subject matter is thoroughly interesting. Though, i feel that some equations and procedures to answer questions is not address well. The plus side is that the book is not too thick and over-flowing with excess information. I like the book, but i can not compare it with any other environmental chemistry book because i have never used the book.

4 comments about An Introduction to Fire Dynamics, 2nd Edition.

1. fire is one of the most dangeris enamess that we have it can burn all that you have down to the ground and so'' an this saftey tip from me dont play with fire''' thank you... chris j coombes...



2. An excellent update of Dr. Drysdale's "must-have" 1985 introduction to advanced fire physics. Dr. Drysdale brings the reader up-to-date (as of the 1998 publication date) on the state of the art in fire behavior, analysis, prediction and modeling.
   
   I bought the paperback, because (a) the hardback is more expensive (Dr. Drysdale is Scottish, after all...); and (b) the 3rd edition is hopefully only a few years away. Readers in active day-to-date fire science application work probably will want the more durable hardback edition.



3. An indispensable guide to Fire Science and excellent starting point in Fire Engineering - the old faithful of my undergraduate studies at University !



4. É realmente um livro indispensável para qualquer profissional que lide com ciência do fogo. Seu conteúdo deveria fazer parte do currículo mínimo dos Cursos de Formação de Oficiais Bombeiros Militares (CFO-BM) e dos Cursos de Perícia de Incêndios ministrados no Brasil.

3 comments about Physical Pharmacy: Physical Chemical Principles in the Pharmaceutical Sciences.

1. This is probably the worst textbook I have ever had thedispleasure of being forced to own. The author expects the"student" to already have a degree to be able to read thetext. None of the formulas are explained in detail at all and someare just pulled out of the air. Others are explained only half givingvariables that are expected to be known - in a textbook! Also, thelayout and format of the book are horrible, it's in newsprint stylewith no color no illustrations to give better understanding of thedata contained in the book. There are a few graphs, but again,they're poorly explained. In my personal opinion, DO NOT PURCHASEthis book, it will not help you. You're better off trying to learnthe material on your own.



2. For anyone in the pharmaceutical sciences, this book is a must. It is exhaustive and covers every aspect of physical pharmacy that you can think of. Along with Remington's The Science and Practice of Pharmacy, these two books are a must for anyone in hard-core pharmaceutical or pharmaceutical chemistry research.



3. This is an important book to have if in the pharmaceutical field. The book covers important subjects such as crystalline properties and solubility.

3 comments about Thermal Physics, Second Edition (Physics and Its Applications).

1. All I have to say is...I came...I read...I understand! By the end of the book I could explain to my classmates how to complete problems, and I could also go up to the board in front of the class and answer problems. I had NO fear of being called on by the professor to answer questions in class. BUY THIS BOOK!!!!!!



2. This is a very well written book about the basic notions one might have to be introduced to Thermodynamics.It is clear, concise, and does not avoid the subtleties of the subject.By focusing the concept of entropy of a closed system,the author gives a quite good discution over the meaning of the thermodynamic functions, a difficult topic for beginers.The first chapter of the book is also very interesting, for it has an up-to-date introduction to the field of thermometry.This book may be used as a companion to a book like Fermi's classic "Thermodynamics" and gives the reader a sound basis for further studies, using a book like Callen's for instance.



3. I enjoyed most of this book. It has helped me with getting to grips with Thermodynamics. The last few chapters did not keep me very interested. However I am now reading more advanced material on Thermodynamics, so this book has been very helpful.

4 comments about Guidebook to Mechanism in Organic Chemistry (6th Edition).

1. This book was recommended to me by a senior lecturer in Organic Chemistry at a Scottish university: A very fine example of a British gentleman - and a very good recommendation he made.
   
   I have always prized this book and return to it again and again, although my current scientific work involves little organic chemistry. The presentation is very considerate to beginners and sympathetic of their problems. Even advanced chemists will appreciate its clear and insightful presentation of the logic behind organic reaction mechanisms.
   
   Peter Sykes' book is certainly a model of clarity and to my mind perhaps the best book ever written on this vast subject. It is certainly my favorite organic chemistry book: All the explanations are clear and helpful; one is never (or very rarely) left dangling at the end of a presentation wondering just what in the world is going on, as seems to happen too often in other texts.
   
   Sykes starts at the basic level of structure and reactivity, proceeds to acid/base equilibria, and addresses subsequent chapters to electrophilic, nucleophilic, radical, carbanion/carbocation reactions, Hammett plots, etc.
   
   Really a wonderful read and an outstanding short reference. Certainly an excellent investment for anyone interested in organic chemistry. How odd most Americans are unfamiliar with it.
   
   (If you value Sykes' presentation, the Royal Society of Chemistry used to have several audio cassettes of his presentations on organic chemistry.)



2. Peter Sykes' guidebook formats more as a reference to organic reactions such as nucleophilic substitution, electrophilic substitution, nucleophilic addition to carbonyl, elimination reactions, radical reactions and symmetry-controlled reactions such as pericyclic reactions. It is well written, clear, and succinct that undergraduate and graduate students will welcome it as a companion to an organic course. Sykes also discusses topics that are often omitted in an introductory text such as carbocations, electron-deficient species, carbanions, and linear free energy relationships. It can be thought of a compact version of Jerry March's Advanced Organic Chemistry, which is widely used as a graduate text. As a purchase guideline, I also purchased Hoffman's "Organic Chemistry: An Intermediate Text", and Bernard Miller's "Advanced Organic Chemistry", which treat the subject of electrocyclic reactions and cycloaddition more thoroughly. The portable size of Sykes makes it an excellent source of reference.



3. I have read this book. Nothing genuine about this book! The content has no difference than that of any textbooks. I threw this book in the trash can. I don't want to resell it because I don't want to waste other people's money and time.



4. The book is a condensed source of information of various different subjects relating to organic chemistry. In saying so it is a general overview of practical organic chemistry. Sykes is clear in his explanation and elucidation on various reaction mechanisms and as he states early on, he does promote a mechanistic perspective of organic chemistry.
   
   Sykes is particularly useful for individuals who have done introductory organic chemistry and are venturing into deeper topics of the subject, i.e. stereochemistry and synthesis as examples (a lot of universities offer courses which purely concentrate on these regions of study).
   
   Now the greatest downfall I see about the text is the price. March's advanced organic chemistry is much more extensive, newer and my personal opinion is that the authorship is better in March's
   
   Another downfall is the age, although a lot of the topics that have been introduced in this book have not changed significantly and therefore dont seriously affect the text's validity; I still feel it should have had an update. This book was published in the 1980's (the late era of the decade).
   
   All I am saying is that Syke's book is a classic, one can learn a lot from it and it is a fairly good reference book, however to my understanding there are better texts of the same genre covering practically the same themes as in this book.
   
   I would strongly recommend any individual interested in this book to have a look at March's Advanced Organic Chemistry.

2 comments about The Principles of Chemical Equilibrium: With Applications in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

1. This book is by far the best book, in my view, on the subject of chemical thermodynamics. The author covered both the classical and statistical aspects of the subject, and did it with such lucidity and consistency as rarely seen in books dealing with similar topics. Unlike many other text books which are primarily consisted of formulas and sample calculations, the author put in a lot of expositional materials that made each section very readable in itself and well connected with other sections. The author also didn't shy away from the necessary mathematics by providing the needed materials for all the derivations. The most outstanding feature of the book, however, would be the consistency and continuity in the materials covered, the explanations provided, the mathematics employed, and the simbols used. The only shortcoming of the book, however, seemed to be too digressional and wordy at times. But if you are prepared for these and ready to read a master upclose, you will be in for a pleasant surprize.



2. This is not a book for beginners. While the subject is covered thouroughly, there are virtually no examples on the usage of the equations and formulas. Perhaps I simply had a poor teacher but I feel that this book was written with the intention of being used as a reference book for graduate level students. I would recommend any undergrad assigned this book for class try to find a supplementary book from which examples and problems may be worked.