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[Ibrahim90]

@ skm1091: well, for the record: no, he didn't ban Swords for free people--not that I'm aware of (and slave were by default banned weapons, save as gladiators and personal retainers). And it would not have gone over well in Republican Rome: it was still the place that had a shit-fit when Mark Antony tried to crown Caesar as King. Also, this was the age of Cicero: the man believed that carrying swords for self defense is a right--one that must never be attacked. this attitude persisted in the Imperial period. here's a quote by Seneca the younger:

quemadmodum gladius neminem occidit: occidentis telum est.

basically: the sword isn't a killer: it's a killer's tool. it's worth noting that he's describing other people's opinions, implying it was more typical (his opinion is unknown).

[Travis Retriever]

Ludwig von Mises: "Every collectivist assumes a different source for the collective will, according to his own political, religious and national convictions." - Socialism

[evensgrey]

Thunderf00t back to debunking hysteria about a product that doesn't make any sense to begin with.

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[Ibrahim90]

Thunderf00t back to debunking hysteria about a product that doesn't make any sense to begin with.

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Now for thunderf00t to just stick to that: he's easily one of the best in these. his political videos have largely been disasters.

[Ibrahim90]

Genius:

http://ec.libsyn.com/p/d/8/4/d84cdd1ed5669488/skeptoid-4018.mp3?d13a76d516d9dec20c3d276ce028ed5089ab1ce3dae902ea1d06c88733d6cf5bc459&c_id=1312167

[MrBogosity]

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[MrBogosity]

Genius:

http://ec.libsyn.com/p/d/8/4/d84cdd1ed5669488/skeptoid-4018.mp3?d13a76d516d9dec20c3d276ce028ed5089ab1ce3dae902ea1d06c88733d6cf5bc459&c_id=1312167

Well, Darat's in charge of the forum, so that means it'll be perfectly fine for people to accuse Libertarians of Federal crimes while moderating them if they defend themselves...

[Travis Retriever]

http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-reasons-system-rigged-a-guide-grads/
http://www.cracked.com/article_21131_6-disturbing-things-i-learned-writing-your-textbooks.html
What's that Wong & JF?  You're saying the single most socialized/corporatized industry (college education & entry into the job market by proxy) in all of America is a fucking rigged & overpriced POS? And the textbooks in addition to being known for being overpriced as fuck are also total shit? SAY IT AIN'T SO!!!!!

[BogosityForumUser]

And the textbooks in addition to being known for being overpriced as fuck are also total shit? SAY IT AIN'T SO!!!!!

That is why I love my field.  More than half of the books are in the public domain and the other half are dirt cheap.  The class I am teaching requires the book for $30 and people have found it for as little as $5 used.  Another requires $150 worth of books if you get them in the bookstore but as a department we all use the same book for the same subject matter.  This means that some students end up using the same books they bought for one semester all eight semesters.  Although, I have a perfect example of what you are talking about: the Philosophy department uses a copy of Plato's Republic that costs $10 or you can get it in a compilation for $50 that multiple classes use; Classical Studies uses a version found in a compilation that costs $100 and is only used for one class.

[evensgrey]

That is why I love my field.  More than half of the books are in the public domain and the other half are dirt cheap.  The class I am teaching requires the book for $30 and people have found it for as little as $5 used.  Another requires $150 worth of books if you get them in the bookstore but as a department we all use the same book for the same subject matter.  This means that some students end up using the same books they bought for one semester all eight semesters.  Although, I have a perfect example of what you are talking about: the Philosophy department uses a copy of Plato's Republic that costs $10 or you can get it in a compilation for $50 that multiple classes use; Classical Studies uses a version found in a compilation that costs $100 and is only used for one class.

I had a physics class where the prof put his own book on the list of texts (although it was really quite cheap). I took a physiology course where the textbook, which was authored by two different Ph.D.'s and someone who was supposed to be a specialist science textbook editor, began with 2 1/2 chapters of complete rubbish, including a complete failure to understand the difference between mass and weight. (And if you don't understand that as a scientist in an area when you need to measure both, why should I trust anything you say about anything?)

The only major exception was the second statistics course I took, which used what we were told, at least, was the standard scientific statistics reference book used everywhere by everyone that we would use for the rest of our careers for all real statistics work.

In Organic Chemistry II we had a choice of textbooks, a cheaper one that was all that course needed, or a more expensive one (Solomon's 5th ed. at that time, for those familiar with the books in the area) that would take us through any and all organic chemistry we might encounter as undergrads, and most of the rest that was in any textbook anywhere at any level.

[MrBogosity]

I had a physics class where the prof put his own book on the list of texts (although it was really quite cheap).

I guess that would depend on the professor. How awesome would it be to take a biology class taught by Kenneth Miller? And I wouldn't object one bit to him using his own textbook!

The only major exception was the second statistics course I took, which used what we were told, at least, was the standard scientific statistics reference book used everywhere by everyone that we would use for the rest of our careers for all real statistics work.

I remember my various English and Literature classes throughout High School and College. Each time, they gave me what they said was the definitive guidebook for documentation style (how to cite sources etc.). Every single class had a different book, and they all differed from each other.

[Ibrahim90]

That is why I love my field.  More than half of the books are in the public domain and the other half are dirt cheap.  The class I am teaching requires the book for $30 and people have found it for as little as $5 used.  Another requires $150 worth of books if you get them in the bookstore but as a department we all use the same book for the same subject matter.  This means that some students end up using the same books they bought for one semester all eight semesters.  Although, I have a perfect example of what you are talking about: the Philosophy department uses a copy of Plato's Republic that costs $10 or you can get it in a compilation for $50 that multiple classes use; Classical Studies uses a version found in a compilation that costs $100 and is only used for one class.

same here for Geology: demand is low, and books are plentiful (especially used), so books in total never exceeded $100-200 for three classes (often more than one book is needed). the other departments were a different story.

the quality of the books is a different story though: the most expensive one I bought on record, is the mineralogy textbook. man was it a piece of shit. You'd think three guys proofreading each other (all native English speakers) and are known mineralogists would know how to write a concise, accurate summation of the topic. they can't. they had all these obtuse references that were hard to follow (or just inaccurate), and they just never got to the point for many pages. the most infamous example all of us could tell you was when they spent two pages comparing crystal structures to knitting or Crochet...God was that painful. we ended up just not reading the book, and everyone sold their copy back--save one friend who just burned it. so great was the sell-back that prices dropped by 80%--much, much more than your typical Geology textbook.

the best book we got (if we took the class--few did, and it wasn't mandatory), hardly anyone paid for: it was supposed to be an arm and a leg (up to $200), but worth every penny, and written by the foremost expert on the topic (now deceased). People just said fuck it, and obtained it by way of a book smuggler for free (or in return for favors--please keep your heads out of the gutter )--he having a contact in the form of the professor who taught the class the book was for (and was his graduate adviser). when the professor told us what book was the best, he'd mention the price, then would say: "I know that *name omitted* is giving these very illegal free copies of the book: I don't recommend you getting it". talk about plausible deniability...needless to say, everyone went.

[FeatheredTerror]

While on the subject of bad textbooks, my very first semester of college I took psychology as a blow-off class, and the textbook was one of the most godawful things I've ever subjected my eyes to. The author was a faculty member at the community college I was attending at the time (thankfully, he wasn't my instructor), and damn, he could not write for shit. I never checked to see if proofreaders were listed, but if there were, I suspect they would have been the aforementioned non-English speakers. Typos and spelling mistakes abounded, and his writing style was maddeningly convoluted. A prime example was the book's account of the David Reimer affair. I was actually interested in the story, since I'd read a little about it and wanted to know more. Unfortunately, the narrative was so disjointed and hard to follow that it only left me confused. I know it wasn't an English textbook, but if you're going to tell a story, you should at least try to make it coherent. I and the rest of my class were understandably relieved when the teacher decided to stop assigning readings from it.

[evensgrey]

I guess that would depend on the professor. How awesome would it be to take a biology class taught by Kenneth Miller? And I wouldn't object one bit to him using his own textbook!

I would, actually, but for a reason you probably didn't consider: Kenneth Miller has written only one textbook (at least, as far as I can find reference to), and it's a highschool biology textbook.  I would expect a category greater depth for the textbook used in any post-secondary course.

[tnu]

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