Generation Digital:
Politics, Commerce & Childhood in the Age of the Internet
by Kathryn Montgomery
HQ784 .M3 M66 2007
New Book Island, 2nd floor
The cover of this book, as you may notice, has a picture of a young girl on a cell phone. The photo represents the theme of the book - how technology has changed growing up in the world and its effect on childhood. Montgomery, professor at American University and co-founder of the Center for Media Education, brings an interesting point of view to the table, as a media analyst/scholar, advocate and parent of a millenial. In Generation Digital, she explores how the media landscape has transformed childhood, resulting in techno-savvy youth that balance multitasking with a variety electronic devices look easy. The author also looks at the parallel policy debates that seek to protect these children from the dangers of the Internet. All of this comes into play when examining digital marketing and how it has evolved into what it is today. Packed with a historical perspective and tons of references, this is a great place to begin when researching the digital generation.
Cheating:
Gaining Advantage in Videogames
by Mia Consalvo
GV1469.34 .C67 C66 2007
New Book Island, 2nd floor
When you see the word cheating on a book in an academic library, you probably think of crib sheets, secret signals during exams, or plagiarism. In this case, we’re talking about cheating in the digital environment - videogames.
Consalvo, associate professor of telecommunications at Ohio University, examines the cultural history of cheating in the context of videogames and the birth and expansion of an industry catering to gamers’ willingness to ‘beat the game.’ Her introduction uses a situation which perfectly exemplifies why some people cheat and others don’t: knowing about a gift before opening it. In her opinion, it takes the surprise and excitement away from receiving the present. She goes on to explore how players define cheating and the gaming community’s feelings and reactions to said devious actions. The author contends that the way in which we use videogames reflects ethics in other areas of life, not just the digital world.
Who says reference books have to be old and boring?
McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology
Tenth Edition
REF Q121 .M3 2007
Reference Collection, 2nd floor
Need to know more about lean manufacturing? Wondering what the heck dactyloscopy is? The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology provides those answers and more. This massive, twenty-volume encyclopedia covers everything related to science and technology. The new edition features articles by leading scientists from all over the world, include thirty-six Nobel Laureates. This is the definitive source for up-to-date information on all fields of science, from nanotechnology to fluid mechanics and everything in between.
And just so you know, dactyloscopy is the fancy way to say the study of fingerprints for the purposes of identification, if you can pronounce it.
Berkshire Encyclopedia of Extreme Sports
Edited by Douglas Booth & Holly Thorpe
REF GV749.7 .B47 2007
Reference Collection, 2nd floor
Extreme sports have gained significant popularity over past decade (didn’t they just host X-Games 12 or something?), and that attention has given way to the creation of this reference work. The Berkshire Encyclopedia of Extreme Sports not only looks at the sports themselves, but also the people involved and the sociology and psychology associated with these sports, such as injury and risk factors. In addition to the individual articles, it includes segments by groundbreaking athletes like Tony Hawk that recount their experiences of living on the edge. The articles also contain “Further Reading” for ideas on other sources of information.
