Physical Universe with Essential Study Partner CD-ROM and Online Learning Center Password Card

Rating:
Summary: Nice edition, but it is really necessary?
Review: For over thirty years, McGraw has been putting out various editions of this highly successful textbook. Now in its tenth iteration, McGraw has made an important extension. It added a CD (which was long overdue). Plus, the book gives access to an online resource called PowerWeb. Pretty snazzy! You can access whole bunches of material there which is simply not in the book.

Hopefully, this may help motivate some students to learn more effectively. But a disquieting counterargument has arisen in some quarters. Is a new edition really needed? Perhaps an earlier edition would suffice for most students. If so, this would let several buy second hand versions far more cheaply. But if the publisher goes to this edition, and it is made mandatory by a school, then it is far harder for students to find used versions. At least for a few years. And later? When those used editions start circulating, what if the publisher and school then go to a newer edition?

Rating:
Summary: From the Viewpoint of a Freshman High School Student.
Review: This title is a comprehensive look at many aspects of science. Its Study guide is very helpful in preparing for examinations. The book, however, has a complicated way of explaining material. This slight defect may be reduced with the help of the useful appendixes, and study guides.