Chemical Society Reviews Editorial Board Jean-Pierre Sauvage (CNRS, Strasbourg) [Chair] Vicenzo Balzani (Bologna) Ed C. Constable (Basel) Chris Elschenbroich (Marburg) Tim C. Gallagher (Bristol) Editorial Office Martin Sugden (Managing Editor) David Bradley; Peter Whittington (Production) Debbie Halls (Editorial Secretary) http://chemistry .rsc.org/rsc tel: +44 (0)1223 420066 Chemical Society Reviews publishes concise, succinct and lightly referenced articles that provide an introductory overview to topics of current interest in chemistry. The articles appeal to the general research chemist as well as to the expert in the field and provide an essential starting point for further reading. Advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and experienced re- searchers should all benefit from reading Chemical Society Reviews. Chemical Society Reviews (ISSN 0306-0012) is published bimonthly by the Royal Society of Chemistry, Thomas Graham House, Science Park, Cambridge, UK CB4 4WF.1997 subscription rate: El30 (USA $234). Customers in Canada will be charged the sterling price plus a surcharge to cover GST. Individuals can subscribe for &45 (USA $80) providing their institutional library takes a full price subscription. All orders accompanied by payment should be sent directly to The Royal Society of Chemistry, Turpin Distribution Services Ltd, Blackhorse Road, Letchworth, UK SG6 IHN. (NB Turpin Distribution Services Ltd., distributors, is wholly owned by the Royal Society of Chemistry.) Payment should be by cheque in pounds sterling payable on a UK clearing bank or in US dollars payable on a US clearing bank.Second class postage is paid at Zdenek Herman (Prague) Horst Kunz (Mainz) John P. Maier (Basel) D. Mike P. Mingos (Imperial) Jeremy K. M. Sanders (Cambridge) Royal Society of Chemistry Thomas Graham House Science Park Cambridge UK CB4 4WF csr@ rsc .org fax: +44(0) 1223 420247 The Editorial Board commissions articles that encourage international, interdisciplinary dialogues in chemical research. The Board welcomes any suggestions for new articles. A guide for authors and synopsis form can be found in the first issue of this year’s volume or on the RSC’s World-Wide Web home page (URL above).Alternatively, they can be requested from the Managing Editor, in paper or electronic form (postal and e- mail address above). Jamaica NY 1141-9998. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by Publications Expediting Services Inc., 200 Meacham Avenue, Elmont, NY 11003 and at additional mailing offices. US Postmaster: send address changes to Chemical Society Review, c/o Publication Expediting Services Inc., 200 Meacham Ave- nue, Elmont NY 11003. All dispatches outside UK by bulk airmail within Europe and Accelerated Surface Post outside Europe. 0The Royal Society of Chemistry, 1997 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers. Typeset and printed in Great Britain by Black Bear Press Limited.