The time seems ripe for a critical compendium of that segment of the
biological universe we call viruses. Virology, as a science, having
passed only recently through its descriptive phase of naming and num-
bering, has probably reached that stage at which relatively few
new-truly new-viruses will be discovered. Triggered by the intellectual
probes and techniques of molecular biology, genetics, bio- chemical
cytology, and high resolution microscopy and spec- troscopy, the field
has experienced a genuine information explosion. Few serious attempts
have been made to chronicle these events. This comprehensive series,
which will comprise some 6000 pages in a total of about 18 volumes,
represents a commitment by a large group of active investigators to
analyze, digest, and expostulate on the great mass of data relating to
viruses, much of which is now amorphous and disjointed, and scattered
throughout a wide literature. In this way, we hope to place the entire
field in perspective, and to develop an invalua- ble reference and
sourcebook for researchers and students at all levels. This series is
designed as a continuum that can be entered anywhere, but which also
provides a logical progression of developing facts and integrated
concepts.