Why are new textbooks so expansive???

Maybe they cover many more topics now?

Cycloptichorn

Probably because it helps defray the costs towards researching, collecting data and publishing the next edition.

n1(s) -n1(c)= -pr
n2(s) -pr=p
got it?

Ok, you are not a ******* moron!

Really? Is this your final answer?

SCience texts are always in danger of becoming obsolete even before they are published. As a teacher, I used to use foundational books or some recent methods book as a source. In man y courses I wouldnt use a text at all, but a list of literature sources as a course bibliography and I would request reprints from the authors(This is all a simple approved download now. We use the scientific literature journals a lot more than texts now. SO, with all the costs involved in publishing and writing the books, they are amortized on a briefer cost basis that alone has driven texts to numbers of 200% what they were just 10 years ago.A 125$ text isnt a big deal anymore. SO the value of used books is also high..
Newer creeping things are e-books (still not a big deal in science texts because of the graphics needs), self published books, or collections of downloaded papers that would be collected from journals of the peevious year and would be, for most sciences, quite up-to-date.

Currency is the key. I have a collection of science books (mostly chem, geology and biology) from the 1920's throughthe 1960's. There were so many revolutions in that pweriod that several classic texts would go through new editions as frequently as every two years, and sometimes the authors foreoword apologizes for the complete 180 degree change in certain sections of their texts . All due to scientific discoveries.
A real revolution for me was the evidence and rapid acceptance of Global Tectonics and Sea Floor spreading just after World War II. ALl the magnetometric work used to detect subs in the ATlantic began a big change in how the earth was looked at . Several classic texts became obsolete in 5 years or less and the changes kept on coming into the 1970's. Costs began to rise in geology texts quite early.

very implausible, since the large price difference.

real answer is profits.
when a text is being sold to schools, education departments or whoever make decisions about use of the book the pubisher loss leads with the first edition to entice decision makers. "Look heres a good book and its real cheap"
Once the book is accepted and part of a required cirriculum second edition prices skyrocket cause the chances are next to none that the book will be dropped from the cirriculum.
Btw thats exactly what i said in my previous post. and you are correct i am not a moron!
n1 sales - n1 costs = neg profit
n2 sales - neg profit of n1 = profit

I don 't think this would explain why some lower division economics, or science classes textbooks cost so much. These are classes that basically teaches the same thing from quarter/semester to quarter/semester. For example, concepts like the "production possibility frontier", or " diminishing return" are concepts taught in every econ classes at a introductory level. Why do these textbooks cost so much when the purpose is teaching similar stuff? The price different between a newer edition, and an older edition is too great.

Are you sure about that?

Is there any contractual agreement that the school will buy the next edition of the book? If not, why can 't the school switch to a different supplier, or uses the same edition they already have( since it is common for students sell their books to the school bookstore after they took their courses)?

It's called controlled demand. They've been getting away with this for many decades - even when I went to college - about five lifetimes ago.

That is also my solution with the fewest words: "controlling the demand".

Can you perhaps give a more detail explanation for what you mean by "controlled demand"?

You should read your title of the thread a little more carefully and re-evaluate my answer

Cycloptichorn

I wouldnt know about economics but introductory texts in my field are equally incorporating new information. However, I looked up a couple of Historical and Physical GEolog texts and have found that the costs of these are less subject to price increases. There is a classical Phys Geo text that had cost about 30 dollars when I was a student and costs about 5o dollars today. SO, without further checking, Id say that my submission re: advanced texts is correct. There also is a proliferation of specialty texts which may be actually controlling the overall market. I would use a text on radioisotopes for a class and today there are several texts on specific radioisotope groups and specific age dating based upon recent peer reviewed evidence.

Don't students own scanners??

Get a copy of the expensive new text.
Cut it up.
Scan the pages. (Order some pizzas and take turns)
Save the file.
Everybody gets a copy on their flashdrive.
Go out for beers.

Joe(might as well be the same as movies and music.)Nation

yes but scanners are expensive



and are they expansive enough

dj(casting a wide net for some comedy gold)jd

I could expound on expense,
but I needs to dispense
with these elastic band shorts
I is wearing.

I shall return in a trice
and we can discuss price,
but right now I must be expantsive.

Joe(cymbal crash!)Nation

you gonna be here all week?

what are the drink specials?

how's the veal?

"Controlled demand" is when there are demands on something a class of people must have (no choice for survival) so the retail price has very little to do with the product's cost to produce; ergo students must have the textbook or fail the class.

In support of this thesis, there's an interesting article in today's newspaper about a cancer drug that costs $93,000 to extend the life of a patient for three months. Medicare is going to pick up the tab, because they do not base health care on cost; "controlled demand."