Textbook Etiquette

While we're on the subject of old college textbooks:

One of my regrets in life (not a big regret, not anything I'm going to go back and change) is the fact that I never took a hard science class in college.  Didn't need to for a Bachelor of Science, apparently.

I WANTED to take physics.  But by the time I got around to thinking about it I no longer needed a science course to graduate.  I contemplated taking it as an elective during my final couple of years of college, but the prime rule of college electives was: Must fit into the required course schedule without difficulty.  And given that a) Between classroom and lab time you were on the hook for six hours of class a week and b) some of those six hours of class would be on a Friday it just never worked out for me*.

Wait, it gets worse.

After I'd graduated college I thought about taking Physics at a local community college.  Just for fun.  But it had to be Physics with Calculus.  Because Physics without Calculus would be a waste of my time.  Except I hadn't taken any Calculus since my freshman year of college - over five years before the idea of taking Physics crossed my mind - and couldn't remember a lick of it.

This is where we get to the heart of the story.  Because my boss and friend at the time was a math guy.  And, as a math guy, he had Calculus textbooks just floating around his apartment.  So he gave me one, to brush up on my Calculus before I went to take that Physics class. 

Except it's 11 years later, and I haven't taken that Physics class yet.  Haven't cracked the Calculus book since about 1997.  (Yes, I did look at it a few times.  Laugh away)

Haven't been in touch with the friend who gave it to me since around 2001.  So do I try to track it down and give it back to him?  Or is anyone interested in an old Calculus textbook?  I'm sure it's a good one.  Two for the price of one if you want a Management textbook as well.

*  One of the big pluses to Oregon State's business program, at least back in my day, was the fact that all upper level courses were four credit courses and, therefore, met twice a week for two hours per session (with the exception of Finance, which was required, and perhaps one or two others which were not required of me so I disregarded).  This meant that you EITHER had class Tuesday/Thursday OR Monday/Wednesday, and, depending on your other courses that term, could EASILY have Fridays off, so you could start your drinking on Thursday nights, which was usually the night the Business Professors would make guest appearances at the local bars, because it was mostly the business students out drinking then.  Not that I ever drank in college (Hi Mom!) but, you know, I heard rumors and stuff.

Comments

[abigail]

I think he's long forgotten it and won't mind if you give it to me. Seriously ;) One of the exams I have to take next is calculus-based probability so I need to brush up on my calc, and I took a combined calc/physics class in college so I don't have a good calculus book.

I'll loan you some physics books if you're interested.. I don't have any intro books though :) (I was a math/physics major, if I haven't already shared that humorous piece of information)