Yes, this is actually a dictionary. It was surprisingly tedious to read, and reading the whole thing is probably one of the more stupid things I've done. On the other hand, once I got started, I just kinda slogged through it. It's actually been fairly useful, though, since it's given me a bit more of a rounded knowledge of the subject (at least in the abstract). I managed to surprise a friend with my knowledge of what a "crack spread" was. Oh joy. Ahem.
On the other hand, this is a pretty rubbish book. It's ten years old now, so many of the terms and derivative types are out of date. In the areas I have specialisation in, I can tell the definitions are pretty loose. There are equations which don't actually work. There are typos. This is not good for something which is trying to be definitive.
Posted 2007-08-02.