Targeted to both students and professionals in the field, the primer Fiber Optic Essentials covers the principles, theories and applications of the technology. The 282-page reference discusses the role of optics in daily life and details fiber optic communications standards. It includes chapters on fibers, cables, connectors, transmitters, modulators, noise and optical link design, while concluding with time lines tracing the history of optics and appendices that cover definitions, acronyms, measurement conversions and physical constants. A section on medical applications addresses biosensors, endoscopes, laser fibers and fiber optic illuminators. Charts, diagrams references and an index are provided. Casimer M. DeCusatis and Carolyn J. Sher DeCusatis; Academic Press, an imprint of Elsevier, Burlington, Mass., 2006; $49.95.