Table of contents

In 1591 Queen Elizabeth 1 founded Trinity College, Dublin (T.C.D.), by royal charter, the sole monument of that age in the city. The site is that of the Augustinian monastery of All Hallows, confiscated by Henry VIII, the buildings passing into the possession of the Mayor and Corporation. The new university received both location and structures from that civic power.

Among the many courses provided here, in this College of nearly 600 students, all of whom are working for a Certificate in Education of the University of Birmingham Institute, are a supplementary course in science for two-year trained teachers who are seconded by their authorities to us for one year, and a three year 'wing' course for students who wish to become specialist teachers of science in secondary schools. This latter is the course I wish to discuss. It can be assumed that these young men and women are being prepared to teach science in secondary modern schools (although about half do take their first appointments in grammar schools).

A. L. Mackay in the letter published in the September Bulletin pointed out that The Institute of Physics and The Physical Society is established, amongst other things, for the elevation of the profession of physics and that when search is made for bodies advancing the profession of physicists, the field is seen to be almost empty. He further suggested that this is the arena in which the Institute and Society should be playing its major role. I suggest the situation is more serious than this and that action is called for on a wider front than that affecting only physicists.

Edited by J. B. Birks London: Heywood & Co. Ltd. 1963. Pp. x + 364. Price 60s.

This interesting book, edited by J. B. Birks, is a memorial of the Rutherford Jubilee International Conference held at Manchester in September 1961 to commemorate the concept by Rutherford of the nuclear atom and the formulation of its structure and the quantum theory of radiation by Niels Bohr. Speeches delivered at the commemoration session of the Conference by Sir Ernest Marsden, Sir Charles Darwin, Professor E.N.de C. Andrade and Niels Bohr are reproduced.

Edited by C. Domb London: Athlone Press. 1963. Pp.118. Price 25s.

It has recently been the turn of King's College, London, to recall the centenary of its association with James Clerk Maxwell. The College commemorated the event by a series of six lectures; the book under review is a record of these lectures, which were given in 1962.

By Advisory Editors: D. E. Barnes, R. Batchelor, A. G. Maddock, J. A. Smedley and Denis Taylor London: George Newnes Ltd. 1962. Pp. x + 886. Price 160s.

The compiling of any encyclopaedia worthy of the name is a formidable task; this volume has obviously been no exception. The vital statistics are impressive—886 pages covering topics from A.E.R.E. to zirkelite written by 82 authors and supervised by five advisory editors.

By H. M. Rosenberg London: Oxford University Press. 1963. Pp. xvi + 420. Price 63s.

This, the author tells us in his preface, is a book of simple explanations. The author believes—and justifiably in many instances—that the wood of solid state physics is often rendered invisible by the mathematical trees.

By V. N. Shevchik Oxford: Pergamon Press. 1963. Pp. xxxi + 253. Price 70s.

The book had its origin in a course of lectures given by the author in the Radiophysical Department of Saratov State University. It is based on the state of knowledge in the thermionic part of the microwave electronics field in 1957.

By Dale R. Corson and Paul Lorrain London: W. H. Freeman and Co. Ltd. 1962. Pp. xiv + 552. Price 68s.

The title of this book fairly indicates its scope; such topics as experimental techniques, instruments, current flow in networks, are not dealt with. Vector methods are used throughout.

By Conrad L. Longmire London: John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1963. Pp. xi + 296. Price 75s.

The literature on plasma physics is of course growing rapidly, but the general standard of textbooks in this field is so far commendably high with some rare exceptions. The present work is of a high standard and the general treatment is satisfactorily elegant.

By D. Frank-Kamenetskii London: Oldbourne Book Co. Ltd. 1963. Pp. xi + 337. Price $14.

This edition from the Russian is produced by the Israel Program for Scientific Translation at Jerusalem. The original is dated from Moscow in 1959, and acknowledges help from British and American as well as Russian authorities in the appropriate field.

By P. M. Millman London: Rout ledge and Kegan Paid. 1963. Pp. 117. Price 14s.

This little book has the courage to call upon an untrained public to learn from it within 115 pages about physical problems ranging from the circumterrestrial to the extragalactic. Obviously many of the topics can only arouse the frustration of a whetted but unsatisfied appetite.

Second Edition By H. J. J. Braddick London: Chapman & Hall Ltd. 1963. Pp. xxiii + 480. Price 45s.

The first edition of Dr. Braddick's book, published nine years ago, quickly earned a very respected place among those books, all too few, that deal with the practical aspects of experimental physics. Dr. Braddick has now produced a second edition, which includes techniques that have been developed in the meantime.

By Herbert S. Wilf London: John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1962. Pp. xii + 284. Price 60s.

The preface to this book indicates that it has been written for physicists and engineers whereas the description on the book cover insists that it has been written as if for mathematicians because of the type of illustrative example used. It certainly is a book which will appeal to mathematicians rather than physicists.

By R. Wooldridge and J. F. Ractliffe London: The English Universities Press Ltd. 1963. Pp. x + 131. Price 25s.

Before a problem can be presented to an electronic digital computer it must be expressed in the form of a series of instructions written in an acceptable programming language. In the past, every new model of computer has required a different language and this has been a thorn in the flesh, particularly of the casual user.

By M. Gardner London: Collier-Macmillan Ltd. 1962. Pp. 182. Price 55s.

As the author remarks in his introduction, 'So many popular books on relativity have been written that the reader may wonder: Why another one?'. He goes on to provide his own three answers: 1. There is a need for a modern exposition which includes an account of recent theoretical developments and experimental tests.

Edited by Daniel Gershenson and Daniel Greenberg New York: Blaisdell Publishing Company. 1963. Pp. 155. Price: paperbound $1.95; clothbound $2.95.

The title-page of this book informs us that it is Volume I of 'a series of volumes containing papers devoted to the history of physics and to the influence of physics on human thought and affairs through the ages'. This is a worthy aim, though the implied issue of a number of books seems a slightly odd way of going about it, if one may judge from the present assemblage.

By I. R. Williams and M. W. Williams London: George Newnes Ltd. 1962. Pp. vii + 280. Price 42s.

This book was written to provide background information on nuclear physics for those concerned with practical applications such as the uses of radioisotopes and reactors. The approach is basically non-mathematical, as befits a wide non-specialist audience.

By S. Tolansky London: Longmans Green and Co. Ltd. 1963. Pp. x + 452. Price 30s.

The appearance of a fifth edition of this well-known text is a testimony to its continuing utility and popularity. Since the publication of the previous edition in 1956, the physics of nuclei and of elementary particles has greatly advanced, partly by the accretion of much factual detail, and partly by the discovery of what appear to be new symmetries in nature.