Book excerpt: Pesticide Profiles: Toxicity, Environmental Impact, and Fate is like three books in one-it is a profile containing specific information about 137 pesticides, a primer of environmental toxicology, and an extensive trade name index. Profiles of each pesticide contain regulatory information, toxicity assessments, environmental fate data, physical properties, and acceptable exposure limit values. What these values and data mean in terms of human toxicity is clearly interpreted as well. The book also describes the meaning of carcinogenicity and how it is assessed in non-technical terms the non-expert can understand. Readers with a technical background are provided with the data to make their own judgments. In addition to information about specific pesticides, there are sections on general classes of pesticides, such as organophosphates. This information allows readers to make inferences about any pesticide in a class, even if a profile is not provided. Pesticide Profiles: Toxicity, Environmental Impact, and Fate goes beyond the usual listings of toxicity values or environmental half-lives to offer a broad understanding to readers of various backgrounds and interests.