Textbook of Physiology and Biochemistry

and H. Scarborough. Fourth Edition. (Pp. xi + 1065; illustrated. 63s.) Edinburgh and London: E. & S. Livingstone, 1959. SINCE first published in 1950 new editions of this textbook have appeared regularly at three yearly intervals and have won for the book a place of high preference among undergraduate medical students. The reasons for this popularity are clear. The combined efforts of a biochemist, a physiologist, and a clinician have led to a very balanced and up-to-date account of the fundamentals of physiology and biochemistry in a single volume. There is a refreshing emphasis on human physiology. The standard of illustration is excellent and there are many beautiful records and graphs which should encourage the student to think of physiology in terms of experimental evidence. The text is extremely readable and clear and is very rarely split by headings and sub-headings. The latter may account for the book's lesser popularity among postgraduate students reading for higher degrees, who might prefer more classification of the text to facilitate quicker revision and reference. The present edition retains the character and style of the earlier editions, though in an attempt to keep up to date portions of many chapters have been rewritten and some new illustrations, including a few in colour, have been added. This has fortunately been achieved without an increase in bulk. In fact, the present edition is three pages shorter, though three shillings dearer than the third edition. I.C.R.