AI, Uber-Textbooks, and Knowing Your Own Strengths

By Dave Harris

Is there is a danger that LLMs (or other AI) will create an “uber-textbook” using the work of individual authors, basically stealing the best of all the individual work of scholars for profit, while paying the authors nothing? This question came up in the November 6, 2024 TAA Conversation Circle on royalties, and I wanted to touch on it again, after writing a related piece this past spring.

The previous piece argued (1) that current AI is too limited to do good intellectual work, and, (2) regardless of the capability of AI, that it’s important to take one’s own interests, desires, and personal experience into account because writing and research are personally uplifting positive experiences worth having, even if you’re not necessarily selling your work.

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Cengage Group Announces First Half Fiscal Year 2025 Results

Cengage Group, a leading global education and technology company, reported its financial results for the second quarter and first half of Fiscal Year 2025, ended September 30, 2024.

Adjusted Cash Revenue for the first half of Fiscal Year 2025 was $841 million, flat against a high comparative which benefitted from earlier ordering and favorable timing of several large deals. Adjusted Cash EBITDA for the first half of Fiscal Year 2025 was $323 million, an increase of 8 percent over the first half of Fiscal Year 2024. Operating cash flow was $128 million, more than double the $60 million in the prior period.

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TAA Member Seeks Participants for Personality, Decision-Making Survey for New Book

TAA member Dr. Derrick Darden is seeking participants interested in completing a short, 3-minute, anonymous survey for his new book, Understanding Personality Traits and Decision-Making Styles. The purpose of the survey is “to explore people’s personality traits and decision-making styles. Our goal is to gather valuable insights to help individuals better understand their strengths and challenges in making choices and navigating life. Your participation in this survey will contribute to our understanding of human behavior and decision-making processes. Your input is valuable to us, and we appreciate your time and effort in helping us with our research.”

Complete Survey

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Should You Index Your Own Textbook?

By Ken Saladin

Most authors may not want to index their own textbooks. Indexing has to be done quickly when paginated proofs become available, yet it comes at a time when we’re very busy proofreading the final pages, writing front matter, and getting the book to press. It also must look, to most, like a tedious chore. It may seem better left to a professional indexer, even if the cost is borne by the author.

Even aside from the cost, there are good reasons to leave it to the pros. Indexing is a complex skill that requires understanding of not just the book’s subject matter, but its audience, the publisher’s practices, and the stylistic mechanics of good versus amateurish and dysfunctional indexes.

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Your Textbook Deserves Recognition: Nominate it for a TAA Textbook Award

You’ve put so much time and passion into your textbook. Now is the time for that work to be recognized by nominating it for one of TAA’s industry-respected awards:

  • Most Promising New Textbook Award: this award recognizes promising textbooks and learning materials in their first edition.
  • Textbook Excellence Award: this award recognizes excellence in current textbooks and learning materials.
  • McGuffey Longevity Award: this award recognizes long-standing textbooks and learning materials that have been in print for at least 15 years.

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Chemeketa Press Seeks Textbook Proposals

Chemeketa Press, a nonprofit textbook publisher located in Salem, Oregon that makes affordable, effective, engaging, and accessible textbooks, is seeking submissions of new textbook proposals and faculty editor grant applications through October 15, 2024.

Chemeketa Press publishes textbooks across a variety of disciplines.In this reading period, textbook proposals for original material or OER adaptation are sought, as well as faculty editors for two public domain series, the American Voices Collection and Primary Text Editions, and themed anthologies.

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