Outline of Medical Parasitology. By John E. Larsh, Jr. 342 pp, with 64 illustrations by Adele Spiegler. Paper. $6.95. Blakiston Division, McGraw-Hill Book Co., 330 W 42nd St, New York 10036, 1964
The programmed text, Medical Parasitology, is essentially a stepwise array of "fill-in-the-blank" statements. The student writes in a word or phrase, compares each answer with one provided, corrects accordingly, and proceeds to the next "frame." About one third of the 900odd frames relate to parasitic protozoa and the rest to metazoan parasites excluding arthropods. Disclaiming comprehensive scope, the preface states that "the emphasis is on morphology, life cycles, and laboratory diagnosis, with some attention to preventive measures; there is minimal coverage of symptomatology and no coverage of treatment. Students are therefore expected to use the standard textbooks to supplement the material covered in the programmed textbook and in the laboratory." The merits of programmed instruction aside, I cannot