1 I thank Andreas Blume for helpful references and Eddie Dekel and Duane Seppi for numerous discussions which influenced the views expressed here. I apologize to Ariel Rubinstein for using (a permutation of) the title of his book for the title of this essay.

The question concerning the possibility of a first order surface transition in a semi–infinite Blume–Capel model is addressed by means of low temperature expansions. It is found that such a transition can exist, according to mean field and cluster variation approximations, and contrarily to renormalization group results.

Two xanthones and two caged-prenylated xanthones, named cochinchinones A-D, respectively, and a synthetically known caged-prenylated xanthone, together with seven known compounds were isolated from the roots of Cratoxylum cochinchinense (Lour.) Blume. Their structures were assigned on the basis of analyses of spectroscopic data. Some of the compounds exhibited effective antioxidative properties.

It is well known that occupational exposure to pollens of flowering ornamental plants may elicit rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma, and contact urticaria (1). However, it was not until the 1980s that a foliage decorative plant, weeping fig (Ficus benjamina), was recognized as an important cause of occupational immediate mucosal and skin reactions, and, to a lesser degree, of similar symptoms in atopi...