Ecological Parasitology Electron Theory of Small Molecules

Nature Vol. 267 16 June 1977 653 panded with both sessile and planktonic stimulant for discussion and further Ecological marine animals. More such compari investigation. It is a little disappointing parasitology sons could have been enlightening. that in so extensive a series of reviews The great value of this book lies in there is a sad lack of coordinating Ecological Aspects of Parasitology. the descriptions of various organs from thought. Perhaps, though, that is what Edited by C. R. Kennedy. Pp. x+474. a parasitological viewpoint. Almost the book will help to produce. (North-Holland: Amsterdam and every author points out areas of ex R. W. Ashford Oxford, 1976.) Dfl 145; $57.95. tensive ignorance in his field, and it is clear that too few physiologists, bio chemists and physicians have a clear R. W. Ashford is Senior Lecturer in the PARASITISM is an ecological term, and Department of Pathology, University of idea of what ecology is about. The Papua, New Guinea. on secondment from parasitology is essentially an ecological book will surely be useful as a study. Some aspects of parasite ecology the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. have received extensive coverage for many years, especially those related to qualitative and quantitative epidemio for which he gives no references more logy, where the unit of study is the Electron theory recent than 1967. Indeed, if one looks infection rather than the parasite. through the text one gains the The stated object of this book is to of small molecules impression that the phrase "recent remedy the situation whereby some Introduction to the Electron Theory work" should really be synonymous aspects have received little attention. ot Small Molecules. By A. C. Hurley. with "ten-year-old work". This critic The aspects chosen in the first section Pp. 329. £12; $26.25. Electron Corre ism should not, of course, be con concern the parasite outside the host: lation in Small Molecules. By A. C. strued as a call for "trendiness", but dispersal (C. R. Kennedy), host loca Hurley. Pp. 276. £10.50; $23. (Aca there is work in the past five years in tion (A. J. Macinnis) and host se.Jection, demic: London and New York, 1977.) the areas quoted above (and indeed in (J. C. Holmes); entry into the host other areas in the book) to which the (D. W. T. Crompton), feeding (C. attention of the readCif should be called Arme), interaction between parasites THESE two books are perhaps meant to even in an introductory book like this. (D. Halvorsen), and host r·esponses to be read together. The author states in As one would expect from an author parasitic infection (D. Wakelin). The his preface to the Introduction that the of Dr Hurley's distinction, ther·e are a bulk of the book is in part two. Here, book consists of the "earlier and lot of good things in the Introduction. "Habitat" is seen as the immediate simpler chapters of what was originally There is, for example, a splendid surroundings of the parasite. There are conceived of as a comprehensiv·e one and precise account of Koopmans' two chapters on fish: skin (G. C. volume work". As such, the Introduc theorem, a very nice heuristic account Kearn) and gills (C. H. Fernando and tion is to provide what the author of the various cusp conditions in the C. Hanek); and the remaining chapters calls a "royal road from basic quantum wave function, some very helpful deal with the special features of para mechanics to the various theories material on the continuous groups in sitic life in different mammalian or which are now yielding such detailed the section on symmetry, a brief and avian organs and cells. In the final information on molecular interactions", clear account of the RKR method, chapter, R. M. Anderson discusses the some of which ar·e discussed in the and many more. There are, however, interaction of host and parasite Electron Correlation volume. some funny slips. The author says, for populations. The Introduction provides an example, that in the quadratic approxi With 24 authors covering so wide a account of the basic theory of potential mation to the potential, the equation field, consistency and uniformity are energy curves and surfaces, an outli:ne for nuclear vibrational motion in the not to be expected or even desired. If of the variational method for construct diatomic is the simple harmonic the intellectual verbosity of chapter ing approximate electronic wave func oscillator equation. But the student who one were maintained throughout, the tions and a short account of the has read his Eyring, Walter and Kim book would be hard indeed to read. (generalised) virial and Hellmann ball Quantum Chemistry knows that Particularly noteworthy is yet another Feynmann theorems. It also provides this is just not true. The equation definition of parasitism, first credited a brief, but self-contained account of (2.60) from which he begins his with elegant beauty, then, mercifully, molecular symmetry and quite ex account of the generalised Hellman discredited as being possibly applicable tended accounts of the determinantal Feynmann theorem seems to be to all organisms! approach and of molecular orbitals and simply wrong at an elementary level The rest of the book is clear and the Hartree-Fock method. The (see the author's own original paper, stimulating. The only truly unique accounts are presented chiefly in the Proc. R. Soc. A226, 170 or Appendix 1 feature of the parasitic habitat is the ccnt·ext of ·results for diatomic mole in Pople et a!. Jl Chern. Phys. 49, 2960; specific antagonistic reaction that it cules (although small polyatomics 1968), and in view of Dr Hurley's produces. This aspect is given extensive occasionally receive a passing mention) contributions to the foundations of this treatment. D. R. Arthur describes how and a chapter .each is devoted to part of the subject this (if the reviewer amputee mice, unable to groom, are detailed consideration of the hydrogen is not mistaken) is quite incredible. Be subject to massive infestations of lice; ion and of the hydrogen molecule. that as it may, the discussion in this D Wakelin gives a lucid comparison The book is regrettably something part of the book has nothing like the between the immune processes of of a disappointment to the reviewer, if subtlety or power of the discussion of invertebrates and vertebrates, and for no other reason than that it seems the same material oftiered by Epstein in A. D. Befus and R. B. Podesta describe so old-fashioned. A suspicion of this his recent book (The Variation Method the special immunological features of may be gleaned from the first few in Quantum Chemistry, Academic: the intestine. pages in which H becomes dear that the London, 1974); and Epstein's book is Most other aspects of parasite author is going to use c.g.s. units; but it not referred to at all. ecology have clear paraiJels in free is re-inforced, for example, by his At a somewhat different levd, the living organisms. Useful comparisons treatment of spin-coupling and of author's discussion of natural orbitals are made but unfortunately not ex- methods for solving the SCF equations, (continued on p654) © 1977 Nature Publishing Group.

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