BOOK REVIEWS LIVID METABOLISM, A Biochemical Society Symposium No. 9, edited by R. T. Williams. The Cambridge University Press, New York 22, N.Y., 1952. 102 pages, illustrated, no index. Price $2.75. Seven contributors cover quite a variety of phases of livid metabolism. The layout and style are a trifle different, and at first a bit confusing. While all the addresses in this symposium are interesting and care- fully prepared, those by Lehninger on the enzymic oxidation of fatty acid and Sinclair on the essential fatty acids and their relation to pyridoxine were found to be espe- cially pertinent by this reviewer. Since certain phases of livid metabolism have cosmetic signifi- cance, researchers will find this book to be a useful reference.--M. G. DEN. THE HAIR AND SCALP, by Agnes Savill. Fourth Edition, The Wil- liams & Wilkins Co., Baltimore 2, Md., 1952. 316 pages, 51/2 X 81/2 inches, illustrated and indexed. Price $5.00. Among some new material is that on cold waving, influence of vita- mins and endocrines, with thorough revision of some of the other ma- terial. The author makes a point of hav- ing most of the published material on the pros and cons of cold waving. There is a question in this reviewer's mind if Speakman is in fact the first cold wave inventor and partic- ularly in connection with the use of 79 thioglycolates, as the author men- tions. This chapter has two new references but no other new mate- rial, though much has been done smce 1945. The very excellent articles on permanent waving, cold method, which have appeared in the Pro- ceedings of the Scientific Section of the Toilet Goods Association and in the JOUkNAL or THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS have appar- ently escaped both the author and her Yankee contemporary, Dr. H. Montgomery. On page 63 it is stated that the bromate solution resembles milk-- it may or may not. One also questions the cosmetic value of Dr. Savill's setting lotions. Then as a final blow on this sub- ject, the author fails to appreciate the potential for harm in her sug- gestion for straightening hair on page 64. It is regretted that Professor Ast- bury is unaware of good work (such as that of Pauling) other than that seemingly done by himself and co- workers at Leeds. The question of the numbers and diameter of hairs needs more recent work than that of Wilson and Stel- wagon. The portions dealing with vitamin and endocrine factors are good. Case histories of oily scalps treated with vaccines are interesting. Haw- ever, there is no mention of selenium sulfide in the treatment of sebor- rhoeic dermatitis. The "Hair Dyes" chapter while good could stand an overhaul.

80 JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS The author writes authoritatively and interestingly. The Fourth Edi- tion while a fairly good revision needs still more up-to-date embel- lishment.--M. G. D•.N. Dm'•.R•.•c¾ EvAnuATIo• A•D T•.STI•, by Jay C. Harris. 210 pages, 71/4 X 5 inches. Interscience Publishers, Inc., New York 1, N.Y., 1954. Price $3.75. This is a well written book on a highly controversial subject. It will be noticed at once that the scope of this manual is much greater than the title implies. Thus, Section II "Screening Tests" covers methods for such properties as acid and alkali stability, surface and interfacial tension, spreading coefficient, lime soap dispersion, wetting tests, foam tests, etc. All of these are of value in determining the usefulness of surface-active agents. This section should also serve as a good source of data on the above properties for Monsanto surface-active agents as no others are mentioned. The sections on detergency itself (soil removal and redeposition) are equally wide in scope. A wide vari- ety of fabrics and methods are given in detail. There is also an excellent section on the cleaning of hard sur- faces. An interesting section on the use of radioactive tracer technique in de- tergency studies is included. This book will be of great value to the novice in detergent evaluation, and for'the old timer pulls together in one convenient source a large amount of widelYe'scattered informa- tion. As the author points out the methods offered have all been used extensively and have demonstrated usefulness. The bibliography is extensive.-- A. J. FRa•z, Colgate-Palmoliye Go. "DIE SEIFE UND IHP. E HERSTEL- LUSO," by Theodore Hempel, Her- bert Manneck, Heinrich Schuck and Max Stein. 7 X 9!/•. inches, 706 pages, illustrated and indexed. Published by Verlag Fur chemische Industrie H. Ziolkowsky K.G.- Augsburg, Germany. Price D.M. 46 (abt. $11). The book gives an account of methods and equipment used by the German soap industry. Procedures used by small and medium sized plants. have been given preferred attenuon. Continuous methods such as they are employed by some of the larger German producers are not always included. As stated in the preface, the theoretical aspects of the field are intentionally ignored, and discussions of soap phases, rancidity, foam studies, micelie phe- nomena, etc., generally found in books of this type, are omitted. With regard to processing of raw materials and the different types of soap products much useful and ac- curate information has been made available to the reader. A great deal of space is devoted to the dis- cussion of soap plant and power house design. Apparatus such as kettles, crutchers, drying equip- ment, mills, plodders, presses, cool- ing frames, and conveying units are discussed in detail. Specific infor- mation on desigfi of soap •boiling ket- tles, plodder nozzles, etc., has been made available. Regarding proc- essing information the chapters on fat and soap bleaching appear of special interest. 'Soft soap making has been emphasized. Typical Ger- man developments such as the 'ap- plication of synthetic fatty acids from intermediates of the Fischer- Tropsch process or the use of methyl cellulose and carboxymethyl cellulose app. ear particularly valu- abl e. The Mazzoni process, which has found acceptance in Germany