Selected Topics in Inorganic Chemistry is a comprehensive textbook discussing theoretical aspects of Inorganic Chemistry. Uniqueness of the book lies in treatment of all fundamental concepts, such as, Structure of Atom, Chemical Bonding, Inner Transition Elements and Coordination Chemistry, with a modern approach. Illustration of text with relevant line diagrams and tabular presentation of data makes understanding of concepts lucid and simple. The book is designed for B.Sc. (Honours) and M.Sc. students.

This book is for the postgraduate students of chemistry aspiring to crack competitive examinations such as CSIR-NET, GATE, SLET/SET and PhD entrance examinations. Presently, admission to PhD programs in premier institutions like IITs, NITs, CSIR laboratories, central universities and state universities is based on either NET/GATE certificate or PhD entrance examinations. Further, the minimum eligibility criteria laid by UGC for the direct recruitment of Assistant Professors in the higher educational institutions is a postgraduate degree with NET/SLET/SET certificate. Thus, the students are bound to pass these examinations to pursue a bright career either in research or in academic teaching. The cut off for qualifying these exams is 40 to 50%. However, the qualifying percentage of the candidates appearing for these examinations is around 5% only. Therefore, an attempt has been made by authors to develop study material pertaining to the syllabus of these exams along with the solved problems from the previous year question papers which will guide the students to qualify easily.

Each number is the catalogue of a specific school or college of the University.

Chemistry is a branch of science which deals with the preparation, properties, structures and composition of substances. The prominence of chemistry is well known. Knowledge of chemistry will help to understand the natural processes, geochemical concepts, biochemical reactions, and environment. Developments in chemistry lead the discovery of immense number of chemical compounds with great applications. Broadly, chemistry can be classified into three braches viz., inorganic, organic and physical chemistry. Inorganic chemistry deals the preparation, properties and structure of all elements and their compounds except carbon and its compounds. Organic chemistry studies the synthesis, structure and properties of organic compounds. Physical chemistry concerned the physical property of chemical compounds.

While searching the syllabi for the spectral aspects of Inorganic compounds and metal complexes, we come across some important chapters in chemistry in almost all Universities in India and abroad. Laser Raman spectroscopy, Supramolecular chemistry, Nanochemistry and Sonochemistry are found either as separate papers or as chapters in a paper in B.Sc., M.Sc. and M.Phil. syllabi. So we thought of including these chapters along with the inorganic aspects of spectroscopy like Nuclear Quadrupole spectroscopy, ORD and CD of Inorganic compounds, Mass spectra of inorganic compounds and Photoelectron spectroscopy. The limited knowledge of Laser chemistry and Raman spectroscopy leads to the less understanding of Laser Raman spectroscopy. Hence chapters on Laser chemistry and Fundamentals of Raman spectroscopy are included in this book. These chapters were once considered as specialization in chemistry but due to advancement in chemistry, they find place in the regular curriculum. The book is written in a simple language with more advanced and latest informations. Diagrams and tables are given for the better understanding of the subject matter. The book provides a comprehensive and indepth coverage of the subject. There is a shortage of suitable text books for these chapters and this book may fill the gap and will mostly be useful to all the B.Sc. and M.Sc. students and M.Phil. Scholars globally. This book is an outcome of very long teaching and research experience of the authors in the field of Inorganic chemistry. Apart from the subject study, this book may also be used for writing the competitive examinations like UGC–NET, Civil Services Examination and so on. This book is also useful for the interdisciplinary students studying physics and biological sciences.

The properties of materials at high temperature play a vital role in their processing and practical use. The real properties of materials at elevated temperatures are very often governed by defects in their structure. Lattice defects may consist of point defects like vacancies, interstitial atoms or substituted atoms. These classes are discussed in general and specifically for oxides, nitrides, carbides and sulfides. Defect aggregates, shear structures and adaptive structures are also described. Special attention is paid to hydrogen defects which seem to play an important role in several materials.Defects in solids lead to transport properties such as diffusion and conductivity. These themes are thoroughly treated in this book, with examples from various materials being provided. Special attention is paid to the transport properties of grain boundaries. In high temperature corrosion and other types of oxidation, the diffusion of atoms through the reaction products is often the rate limiting step of the reaction. This book takes the reader from the theoretical treatment of defects to applications in high temperature corrosion. Reactions between metals and pure oxygen lead to the formation of oxides on the surface, and the reaction rates may often be related to the diffusion coefficients of the oxide. However, in practical use alloys are subjected to other severe gaseous atmospheres which may often lead to accelerated attack on the material. The severest condition, namely where a salt deposit is combined with oxidizing gases, is called hot corrosion. This and other types of corrosion are also covered. Finally, a chapter is devoted to the prevention of corrosive attack on materials by the addition of rare earth metals.The book has been published in honour of Professor Per Kofstad on the occasion of his 60th birthday. Professor Kofstad has for many years been active in the field of high temperature chemistry in all its aspects, from basic and theoretical work to its application in high temperature corrosion of metals and alloys. The various chapters have been contributed by his friends and colleagues, all of whom are international experts in the field.

A New York Times Notable Book for 2011 A Globe and Mail Best Books of the Year 2011 Title A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction of 2011 title Virtually all human societies were once organized tribally, yet over time most developed new political institutions which included a central state that could keep the peace and uniform laws that applied to all citizens. Some went on to create governments that were accountable to their constituents. We take these institutions for granted, but they are absent or are unable to perform in many of today’s developing countries—with often disastrous consequences for the rest of the world. Francis Fukuyama, author of the bestselling The End of History and the Last Man and one of our most important political thinkers, provides a sweeping account of how today’s basic political institutions developed. The first of a major two-volume work, The Origins of Political Order begins with politics among our primate ancestors and follows the story through the emergence of tribal societies, the growth of the first modern state in China, the beginning of the rule of law in India and the Middle East, and the development of political accountability in Europe up until the eve of the French Revolution. Drawing on a vast body of knowledge—history, evolutionary biology, archaeology, and economics—Fukuyama has produced a brilliant, provocative work that offers fresh insights on the origins of democratic societies and raises essential questions about the nature of politics and its discontents.