Sometimes the price of Academic Books make you go more ouch than you thought possible...

BLOT: (03 Jun 2011 - 04:48:13 PM)

Sometimes the price of Academic Books make you go more ouch than you thought possible...

I work in an academic library. One that has a lot of science and engineering materials and requests. There are only three things you need to know. Everything Academic costs more money. Everything hardcore science/engineering costs more money. Everything composed of pure, dry data costs more money. That's cubed, by the way. What does this look like in the real world?

Some fun bonus facts? First, this book is volume 44 subvolume B. That means there is a subvolume A. And, presumably, at least 43 other volumes. I have not looked up the cost on the others. I'm preserving life's little mysteries. Second, note that the Amazon Marketplace has a copy of this edition listed for one penny cheaper than Amazon's. I wonder if that's a calculated move? "Let's list a fifty-four hundred dollar book for a penny cheaper and we'll be sure to snatch up the sell!" Those eagle eyes who spot the $4000 book? That's subvolume C. This is for Group III elements. Group III. Subvolumes B and C. Group III. Hot damn, America.

And while I am well aware that thousands and thousands of dollars worth of research and prep went into this data, and am not actually complaining about the price (besides, most of this resides digitally, now, in a database to which you would have to be subscribed for many years to reach the entire print set cost), I can't help but think that people at liberal arts colleges, with their nice volumes barely breaking the edge of the three digit category, have no idea.

OTHER BLOTS THIS MONTH: June 2011