Textbook for MAT125, 126, 127, 131, and 132
The text for MAT125, 126, 127, 131, and 132 (and also AMS151 and AMS161) is
Single Variable Calculus(Stony Brook Edition 4), by James Stewart.
These courses also use WebAssign for homework problems
and access to WebAssign is required in these courses.
Note that Webassign access is free for the first two weeks and includes an electronic text. So you don't have to do anything right away.
You can purchase the textbook and webassign together or separately; buying
them together tends to be less expensive, but not always.
You have several options:
- Purchase Cengage Unlimited. [cost: $119.99]
This is a digital subscription service, which gives you access to the (electronic) textbook for this course, and also WebAssign. It also gives you access to the text in any other course using a Cengage text (these include courses in many subjects-- see an explicit list here. But not all courses use Cengage texts, so check first!)
You have the option of renting or purchasing a physical text. Furthermore, you can select up to 6 texts to use for another year, which also gives you WebAssign access. Go to the publisher's site to purchase. - Buy a physical text and webassign access for several
semesters. [cost: $169]
This option is called an "ePack" on the publisher's site. - Buy several semesters of Webassign access with an electronic
text. [Cost: $125]
This is called "Webassign Instant Access" on the publisher's site You can also buy this from within WebAssign for the same price. I don't know why anyone would choose this option over the Unlimited one. - Buy only one semster of access to Webassign, with an electronic text. [cost: $100] This can only be done within Webassign. As long as none of your other courses use Cengage texts, this could be a good option for students who are taking MAT132 and MAT127, but is typically not a good idea for students in MAT125 and MAT131 (because they usually also take MAT126 or MAT132 afterwards). Many students in MAT126 also take MAT127, in which case it would be better to purchase multi-term access; others stop with MAT126, and should buy only one semester.
- Buy webassign without an e-book. [cost: $60-80]
Students can buy the webassign-only access direct from within WebAssign. In this case, the cost is $60 for a single term, or $80 for multiple terms. But you don't get access to a textbook (but see below).
If you don't buy the e-book with webassign, or a physical book from the
publisher, the Stony Brook edition of the text is identical to the
book
(Stewart's
Single Variable Calculus: Concepts, 4th ed, with
WebAssign) except for the cover because we made a
deal with the publisher to reduce the price for Stony Brook students. This
is (or was) the same textbook used in Calculus courses at Suffolk County
Community College, just with the different cover.
This might be helpful if you can find a used copy of the text, but these
seem to cost
about $40-60 online (without webassign). So this may not be the
most cost-effective solution.
However, the 3rd edition is very similar to the 4th edition (although the
homework problems have different numbers, and some sections have
changed a little). Used copies of the 3rd edition can be found
for
about $5. This might be a good option if you want a paper
text for reference, and purchase WebAssign separately.