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For instance, I read like to read up on subjects like Biology, Anatomy and Physiology, Pyschology, or American History. But I dont want to read through a huge pricey textbook. Is there anything out there in a small size and less pricey?
Many colleges have libraries that they allow the local residents to use, and check out books. I know my kids could borrow their textbooks from their college libraries so you could try that. Also, if you don't mind reading an older version you can get them used on-line.
I like the "review" books, doesn't give that much details but a good overlook at the subjects. Kind of like encyclopedias, lots of info but not very detailed.
You might find some older editions, but in general textbook companies charge an arm and a leg regardless of format. Mainly because textbooks are a must purchase item for students so they have no choice but to pay. You're also seeing a lot more "updated" editions every year or so with no added material, just a reshuffling and renumbering of everything so you can't use last year's textbook in this year's class.
I had a thermo course a couple years ago the first time the prof assigned homework no one got anything right. That's when we found that, within a class of 15 people, we had the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th edition of the same book. And in each edition the chapters had been rearranged and problem sets renumbered. So if the prof said "read chapter 4" it could possibly be any of ten chapters or parts of chapters or if he said work chapter 4, problem 5, it could be any of a hundred different problems to search for. Really designed to spoil the used textbook market.
I've bought older versions of textbooks on Amazon for as cheap as $1.00 (plus $3.99 shipping). If the version isn't the one colleges are currently using, you can usually get the books for quite cheap.
There are a lot of smaller non-fiction books on science subjects that are very interestingly written. Heaps and heaps. They mix science and fact with anecdote and prose-like writing. The easiest way to locate a few is probably to go into your local book store and just browse the non-fiction section. The subject covered is usually pretty easy to identify.
Just off the top of my head, there's a good book called Four Wings and a Prayer, about the annual migration of monarch butterflies from their over-wintering ground in Mexico to their breeding grounds in the northeast. The Secret Lives of Lobsters - all about the lives and habits of lobsters. Dinner at Mr. Jefferson's is an engaging read about the early years of the United States. Anything by Mark Kurlansky is great. He sets the standard for this kind of writing, for me. I'd start with a book called COD , by Kurlansky - it's very small, but is one of the best books you'll ever read.
There are literally thousands of non-fiction books that are smaller and less pricey than textbooks, but present a wealth of facts (and do so in a way that's interesting to read). I used to read only fiction, but since I was introduced to a few of these books in a graduate course years ago, these non-fiction books are my favorite kind of book to read. They ruined me for fictional stories - real life is so much more interesting.
Some books you'd likely enjoy which deal with varying realms of science but are not 'textbooks':
Critical Path, R Buckminster Fuller
Design For The Real World, Victor Papanek
The Flying Circus of Physics, Jearl Walker
The Body Electric, Robert O. Becker
The Pleasure of Finding Things Out, Richard Feynman
Surely You're Joking Mr Feynman, Richard Feynman
Look up 'MOOC' for free online classes. One example of a MOOC is Coursera. Another is EdX. They have lots of science, history, etc. They are free so if you are dissatisfied, you can quit with no loss except your time.
There are lots of really good math and physics (re-)published by Dover. The vast majority are at the undergraduate or begining graduate level.
For more advanced topics, there are plenty of free books available online, and you can find most of them by searching for the title and .pdf.
DanielWayne's links are really good. I found myself downloading a dozen or so books from the second link. The first link is a great resource for papers, but I already have all of the relevant papers in my favorite fields (for now, anyway).
I'm still frustrated by the fact that there are many topics that are extremely hard to find online, though. Some of my favorite sub-fields of mathematics hardly show up at all outside of research papers and physical books (which, unfortunately, cost a bunch of money). Most of my favorite textbooks are not available online, and the books that are available aren't quite as good. If I wanted to teach someone college-leverl or master's-level mathematics, for example, I'd want to have a good university library nearby. That's just my preference, though.
There are lots of really good math and physics (re-)published by Dover. The vast majority are at the undergraduate or begining graduate level.
For more advanced topics, there are plenty of free books available online, and you can find most of them by searching for the title and .pdf.
DanielWayne's links are really good. I found myself downloading a dozen or so books from the second link. The first link is a great resource for papers, but I already have all of the relevant papers in my favorite fields (for now, anyway).
I'm still frustrated by the fact that there are many topics that are extremely hard to find online, though. Some of my favorite sub-fields of mathematics hardly show up at all outside of research papers and physical books (which, unfortunately, cost a bunch of money). Most of my favorite textbooks are not available online, and the books that are available aren't quite as good. If I wanted to teach someone college-leverl or master's-level mathematics, for example, I'd want to have a good university library nearby. That's just my preference, though.
Have you tried ABE BOOKs - you could search by topic. I don't know if they would have anything you are looking for, but a search can't hurt.
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