Choice 评论

This dictionary of 2,000 entries complements L.H. Stevenson and B. Wyman's Facts on File Dictionary of Environmental Science (CH, Mar'92). It is similar in that coverage is broad and diverse, recent terminology is prominent, extensive cross-referencing is used, and pronunciation guides and bibliographies are lacking. It differs from the Facts on File work in the emphasis on international interpretation, as the reviewer found in the definition of the Clean Air Act; it also differs in the emphasis, as stated in the preface, on "four major areas of study: the physical world, the biological world, the built environment, and the agro-economic infrastructure." The book under review seems to be a US edition of Collins Reference Dictionary: Environmental Science, by Gareth Jones et al. (London, 1990), reviewed by Francesca Greenoak as "Dictionary of Environmental Science" (Times Educational Supplement, May 18, 1990, p B9). Greenoak described it as an "exciting amalgam" that "is an apt reflection of the concerns of the late 20th century." Greenoak discussed brevity of information and the "cross-patch tangle" of cross-references. Her mention of a blind cross-reference led the present reviewer to find the same blind lead only partially corrected in the US edition. For students or librarians needing quick information, the dictionary will be very useful. Recommended.-T. C. Trawick, Troy State University