after 22 years of editing this review (160), has decided to turn the job over to another author. It is with a deep sense of responsibility and dedication that I hereby accept this challenge. The workers in the field of thermal analysis, as well as myself, should be eternally grateful to Dr. Murphy for his devoted and accurate reporting of thermal analysis activities as they occurred through the years. I only hope that I can continue this tradition in the manner and spirit that he did.As usual, this review covers the almost 2-year period from January 1980 through November 1981. Unfortunately, not all of the thermal analysis papers can be described here, due to their magnitude. An attempt has been made, however, to include representative studies in all of the thermal analysis areas as well as, in my judgement, new and novel ideas and developments. Due to space limitations, very few review articles (of which there are many), books, and meetings are included here.