Abstract
AT a time when popular books on science over-emphasise the hypothetical and speculative, it is pleasing to find one in which chemistry is treated as an experimental science. The experiments are chosen for performance in the private laboratory, yet they are all instructive, deal with real problems, and in some cases, e.g. those with the electric furnace, call for considerable skill. The details are carefully given, and the reviewer, with memories of early failures, finds the pitfalls clearly marked. The dangerous character of a mixture of potassium permanganate and sulphuric acid should, however, have been mentioned on p. 21. The brief historical notices of famous chemists are sure to prove inspiring, and the book as a whole is written in an easy yet dignified style, which is most attractive. It should be a popular gift. The illustrations are excellent, and the only slip noticed was in the description of the experiment on the density of air on p. 60. In all cases the scientific value of the work is clearly in evidence.
The Boys' Own Book of Science.
F. L.
Darrow
By. Pp. x + 331. (New York: The Macmillan Co.; London: Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1923.) 10s. 6d. net.
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The Boys' Own Book of Science. Nature 113, 488 (1924). https://doi.org/10.1038/113488b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/113488b0