Everything To Play For asks if videogames can achieve egalitarian goals instead of fuelling hyper-materialist, reactionary agendas. Combining cultural theory and materialist critiques with accessible language and personal anecdotes, industry insider Marijam Did engages both novices and seasoned connoisseurs. From the innovations of Pong and Doom to the intricate multiplayer or narrative-driven games, the author highlights the multifaceted stories...

Drawing on science, philosophy, literature and the arts, and touching on aspects of life as diverse as language, work, school, chess, speed-dating, art, video games, psychiatry and the law, this book shows that far from being a threat to our humanity, computers provide a better means than ever before of understanding what it is.

Matsutake is the most valuable mushroom in the world - and a weed that grows in human-disturbed forests across the northern hemisphere. Through its ability to nurture trees, matsutake helps forests to grow in daunting places. It is also an edible delicacy in Japan, where it sometimes commands astronomical prices. In all its contradictions, matsutake offers insights into areas far beyond just mushrooms and addresses a crucial question: what manages...

It's a belief that unites the left and right, psychologists and philosophers, writers and historians. It drives the headlines that surround us and the laws that touch our lives. And its roots sink deep into Western thought: from Machiavelli to Hobbes, Freud to Pinker, the tacit assumption is that humans are bad. Humankind makes the case for a new argument: that it is realistic, as well as revolutionary, to assume that people are good. When we think...

Censorship of one form or another has existed almost as long as the written word, while definitions of what is 'acceptable' in published works have shifted over the centuries, and from culture to culture. 'Banned Books' explores why some of the world's most important literary classics and seminal non-fiction titles were once deemed too controversial for the public to read - whether for challenging racial or sexual norms, satirizing public figures,...

Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at the age of eight, Camilla Pang struggled to understand the world around her and the way people worked. Desperate for a solution, Camilla asked her mother if there was an instruction manual for humans that she could consult. But, without the blueprint to life she was hoping for, Camilla began to create her own. Now armed with a PhD in biochemistry, Camilla dismantles our obscure social customs and identifies...

'Instagram For Dummies' helps you navigate Instagram and all the updates coming to the platform. For new and experienced users, this book keeps you in the know, so you can post to your feed, create Reels and Stories, broadcast and watch live video, and so much more. This handy guide covers creating Reels to attract more followers, adding updates and stickers for stories, and the addition of multiple feeds so you can customise your experience.

A gripping Temperance Brennan novel from forensic anthropologist and bestselling crime thriller writer Kathy Reichs On a bitterly cold March night in Montreal, forensic anthropologist Dr Temperance Brennan is exhuming the remains of a nun in the grounds of an old church. Hours later, Tempe is called to the scene of a horrifying arson. A young family has perished, but there is no explanation, no motive, and no witnesses. From the charred remains of...

Murder for hire. Drug trafficking. Embezzlement. Money laundering. These might sound like plot lines of a thriller, but they are true stories from the short history of cryptocurrencies - digital currencies conceived by computer hackers and cryptographers that represent a completely new sort of financial transaction that could soon become mainstream. 'The End of Money' is your essential introduction to this transformative new technology that has governments,...

Here is a powerful, comprehensive guide for digital self-care and allyship from one of our leading activists for online equality, Seyi Akiwowo. Digital spaces are a positive force for change, connection and community, but left unregulated, they are not always safe. Globally, women are 27 times more likely than men to be harassed online. This is worse for Black women who are 84% more likely to face online abuse than white women. There has been a 71%...