During the past two decades several texts in the areas of stereochemistry
and conformational analysis have been published, including
Stereochemistry of Carbon Compounds (Eliel, McGraw-Hill, 1962)
and Con formationa2 Analysis (Eliel, Allinger, Angyal, and Morrison,
Interscience, 1965). While the writing of these books’was stimulated
by the high level of research activity in the area of stereochemistry,
it has, in turn, spurred further activity. As a result, many of the
details found in these texts are already inadequate or out of date,
although the student in stereochemistry and conformational analysis
may still learn the basic concepts of the subject from them.