BOOK REVIEWS 269 and Dr. S. K. Komatsu in a long paper endearour to unravel the mystery of the bonding of iron by the Transferrin proteins found in a variety of physiological fluids. Three later reviews are expanded from contributions to the European Cyanamid symposium on 'Soft and Hard Acid and Bases' (SHAB) a general report of the symposium was published in Chemical & oengineering News] (31.5.65). Professor S. Ahrland, one of the pioneers of the SHAB concept, discusses the factors contributing to the formation and strength of increasingly covalent bonds between "soft" ion acceptors and a variety of "hard" (compact ion) and "Soft" donors. Dr. R. F. Hudson - as would be expected of a onetime disciple of M. J. S. Dewar - correlates a theoretical examination of nucleophilic displacement reactions in the transition state with the equilibria of complex formation and the SHAB concept. Dr. Jorgensen's second contribution to this volume indicates how the 'softness' of inorganic ions may rely less on electronegativity and ionisation energy than on polarisability and density of adjacent excited states. Finally, in a separate and moderately theoretical review, R. J. P. •rilliams and J. D. Hale (Oxford) attempt to clarify the classification of SHAB in inorganic reactions. In passing it might be mentioned that three of the contributors presented main lectures at the SHAB symposium in London in March this year. One is becoming a little sceptical of the rapidly rising birthrate in scientific publications: there have been many new journals in the most specialised fields and even more serial reviews of the "Recent Progress in..." or "Annual Reports of..." type. But where a topic extends fight across the frontiers of modern inorganic chem- istry, chemical physics - including crystallography and spectroscopy - and bio- chemistry, harnessing thereby academic study and technological interest, one is forced to concede the rightness of not preventing this particular conception and indeed wish the precocious infant every success. G.F. PHILLIPS. NOMENCLATURE OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. Butterworths, London. SECTIONS A and B. 2nd edn. Pp. v q- 86. (1966). 25s. SECTION C. Pp. xv q- 260. (1965). 47/6. For the past six years the British standby for settling disputed nomenclature has been the 'Chemical Society Handbook for Authors' (Special publication No. 14, 1960). This includes, inter alia, the UK/US agreement on carbohydrate and organo- phosphate nomenclature, republication of, and commentary on, the (1957) IUPAC rules for hydrocarbons (Section A) and heterocyclics (B), and Chemical Society practice in extending and amending the remaining sections of the (1930) Liege rules, i.e. simple (IV) and complex (V) functions, radicals (VI) and numbering (VII). Now the nomen- clature of compounds with characteristic groups containing C, H, N, O, halogen, S, Se and/or Te are given definitive authority by this publication of Section C of the IUPAC rules. Hereby sections IV, V and VII of the Liege rules, and the 1949-51 revision of Section VI, are superseded - and to that degree pp. 107-117 of the 'Hand- book' have been overtaken and greatly extended. In general, the IUPAC Commission on the 'Nomenclature of Organic Chemistry' has continued its practice of codifying satisfactory existing nomenclature in preference to elaborating novel systems. •rhere distinct Beilstein and Chemical Abstracts (CA)

27O JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS conventions are well established, these alternatives are allowed peaceful coexistence without prejudice. Thus, both Stelzner and CA (so called 'replacement') systems are given for the naming of heterocycles from the corresponding homocyclic compound: for divalent atom replacement the CA version avoids specifying hydrogenation at the heteroatom site and uses the H notation for (any) adjacent position. Similarly, although 2- and 4-pyridone are well established names, more complex heterocyclic ketones are given both the CA (indicated H) and European (dihydro-oxo-) notations. Otherwise, deviations - except for tutorial or diagnostic purposes - are frowned upon and should be kept to the minimum. Equally, needless coining of new trivial names is discouraged, although many traditional terms are retained. There is a very compre- hensive list of over 700 radical names (with formulae) compiled from sections A, B and C and including halogen, oxo, amino and nitro substituents this list contains about 100 more radicals, and the main index considerably more items, than in the CS Handbook (loc. cit.). For convenience, rather than explicit recommendation, the IUPAC rules and examples employ the conventions of CA with regard to spelling, elision of vowels and consonants, citation of locants, punctuation and italicizing. The first 60 pages of Section C are devoted to an explanation of general principles of organic nomenclature. Preference is given to substitutive forms (with special consideration of characteristic groups and seniority of substituents and ring systems) but also defined are the less favoured radicofunctional (principal group employed as a discrete noun), additive and subtractive (signifying addition or removal of atoms in a fundamental system), conjunctive (the conjunction of cyclic and acyclic com- ponents without expressing either as a radical), replacement (hetero analogs of acyclic or alicyclic molecules), multiplicative (assemblies of identical units), radical and ionic nomenclature systems. The remaining nine sub-sections illustrate how these general principles are applied to a variety of organic compounds that may contain halogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, selenium and tellurium atoms. At the same time opportunity has been taken to effect minor revision of the text of the IUPAC 1957 publication of the rules in sections A and B and for steroids: these amendments are set out (in three pages) in section C, obviating repurchase by owners of the former volume. The collected publication of these definitive rules of consistent nomenclature should guide all organic chemists - whether their employment is academic or applied, in research or regulation reflects the results of international cooperation assists wider understanding among specialists of many tongues and should absolve reasonable doubt from chemical taxonomy. G. F. PHILLIPS.