Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Students are eager to know which textbooks I am using so that they can investigate their purchase options. I am all in favor of the free market! In theory, it should bring down prices.

Here are my picks for Summer, 2008:

May, 2008, Intersession

0279 *BIOL 4503 TROPICAL ECOLOGY LECT MTWTh 9:00 AM- 11:40 ITV 05/12-06/06 TERDAL E SL 129

0284 *BIOL 4503 TROPICAL ECOLOGY LECT MTWThF 9:00 AM- 11:40 ITV 05/12-06/06 TERDAL E NSM 209

0278 *BIOL 4503 TROPICAL ECOLOGY LECT MTWThF 9:00 AM- 11:40 ITV 05/12-06/06 TERDAL E BA-G114

Kricher, John. 1997. A neotropical companion, 2e. Princeton University Press.

New, $30, Amazon.com $20, used from $12.

0343 *BIOL 4501 TROPICAL ECOLOGY LAB ONLINE 05/12-06/06 TERDAL E BA-D143
NOTE: 32 hours field work Offline email terdal@nsuok.edu. Refer to further
instructions regarding online classes in the “Online” section of this schedule.

NOTE: this class may be cancelled due to low enrollment. Please check with the instructor before purchasing texts.

Option A: Sibley, David A. 2003. The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America (Paperback). Knopf.
New, $20; Amazon, $14; used $7.

Option B: Beletsky, L. 2004. Belize: And Northern Guatemala (Travellers' Wildlife Guides) (Paperback). Interlink.

New $28, Amazon $19, used $10.

There are some additional suggested texts for students taking option B. Please email me for more details.

June, 2008

0337 *BIOL 4522 ECOLOGCIAL METHODS ONLINE 06/09-07/03 TERDAL E BA-D143
NOTE: 32 hours field work Offline email terdal@nsuok.edu.

Sutherland, William J. (ed.) 2006. Ecological Census Techniques: a handbook (paperback), 2e. Cambridge.

New $57, Amazon $51, used $50 (be sure to get the 2e, not the much older 1e!)

June and July, 2008

0335 *BIOL 3413 ENVIRONMENTAL PROB ONLINE 06/09-07/31 TERDAL E BA-D143

In the past, I used a single, comprehensive textbook. It was as dull as my lectures. This summer, we are doing a summer reading activity, using four mass-market books in lieu of a single tome.

In the order in which we will read them:

Angier, Natalie. 2008. The Canon. Mariner Books.

Paperback: new, $16; Amazon, $11; used, $10

Diamond, Jared. 2005. Collapse. Penguin Books.

Paperback: new $17; Amazon, $12; used, $5.

Barcott, Bruce. 2008. The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw. Random House.

Hardback: new $26; Amazon, $18; used, $16.

Weisman, Alan. 2007. The World without us. Thomas Dunne Books.

Hardback: new $25; Amazon, $17; used, $7.

I'll post on Fall classes later. For now, I plan to use these same texts for Environmental Problems in the fall, but there should be a paperback edition of The World Without Us by then.

Sources of books:

The campus bookstore may be the most convenient. If you prefer to shop online, I use amazon.com and powells.com. Amazon.com is often cheaper for new books. The advantage, as I see it, of powells.com is in buying used books. They buy them and then sell them to you. When amazon.com sells used books, they are really just a middle-man and so take less responsibility. They are kind of like ebay in that regard. I have not used ebay.com for textbooks but would welcome your input. I know other students like other websites, including some which offer international editions at big discounts. Let's start a discussion on the best way to buy textbooks!