The average young person in the UK will spend 10,000 hours gaming by the age of twenty-one. What's causing this mass exodus? According to world-renowned game designer Jane McGonigal the answer is simple: videogames are fulfilling genuine human needs. Drawing on positive psychology, cognitive science and sociology, Reality is Broken shows how game designers have hit on core truths about what makes us happy, and utilized these discoveries to astonishing effect in virtual environments. But why, McGonigal asks, should we use the power of games for escapist entertainment alone? In this groundbreaking exploration of the power and future of gaming, she reveals how gamers have become expert problem solvers and collaborators, and shows how we can use the lessons of game design to socially positive ends, be it in our own lives, our communities or our businesses. Written for gamers and non-gamers alike, Reality is Broken sends a clear and provocative message: the future will belong to those who can understand, design and play games.

    Thanks to it, you will be able to UNLEASH the full power of your Amazon Echo, Echo Dot and Amazon Tap. AND you will find my email address at the end of the book, so feel free to ask me any questions you might have about Alexa. What is Amazon Echo Dot and Alexa Let me help you figure out what this this exciting technology is all about, so you can enjoy it too! Amazon Echo is a speaker connected to the internet that you can control with your voice. Alexa is the built-in vocal assistant of Amazon Echo. Alexa lets you play music, control your lights, ask for the weather and more. What you will learn: Step-by-step instructions on how to set up your device Get to know about all the things that Amazon Echo can do Get customized News, Traffic and Weather updates Connect your Google Calendar to your device Everything you need to know about Alexa in a single HIGH-QUALITY book Stream music from your favorite audio sources: iPhone, Android, Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, iHeartRadio, TuneIn Get ACTIONABLE ADVICE on how to build your smart home Control your lights, TV and room temperature with your voice Explore the complete list of Alexa-enabled devices organized per category Have fun by playing with 500 Easter Eggs Learn How IFTTT and Yonomi help you to better control your home Get to know the 20 most useful Alexa Skills Learn how Amazon Echo was created Written By An Alexa Lover For (future) Alexa Lovers How to troubleshoot your Echo Learn how Alexa works behind the scenes Explore the future of Alexa And much, much more! This is the only Amazon Echo book you will ever need Get your copy today! This book will save you hours figuring out how Echo works. I am sharing all my hacks so you can go from Beginner to Expert in an hour. I wish that upon reading this book, you will realise this exciting times that we live in. That you will see all the possibilities that the Amazon Echo has to offer. The time for innovation is now, and it is up to you to enjoy it now. Through the book, you will come to see Echo for what it is and what it can be. I am exploring in depth numerous topics such as Playing Music, Building your Smart Home, Using Alexa Skills and more. This book will help save you many hours trying to figure out what the Echo can do. Bonus Sign up to my free weekly newsletter to get the best new Alexa Skills in your inbox. Table of Contents 1. Preface 2. The Genesis of Amazon Echo 3. How Does Alexa Work? 4.

    Incorporated in the textbook are useful illustrations and exceptional photographs of complex sailing concepts. There are also quizzes at the end of each chapter, and a glossary to help those new to sailing to navigate their way through the extensive nautical terminology.

    Every new reader's brain possesses the extraordinary capacity to rearrange itself beyond its original abilities in order to understand written symbols. But how does the brain learn to read? As world-renowned cognitive neuroscientist and scholar of reading Maryanne Wolf explains in this impassioned book, we taught our brain to read only a few thousand years ago, and in the process changed the intellectual evolution of our species.Wolf tells us that the brain that examined tiny clay tablets in the cuneiform script of the Sumerians is configured differently from the brain that reads alphabets or of one literate in today's technology.There are critical implications to such an evolving brain. Just as writing reduced the need for memory, the proliferation of information and the particular requirements of digital culture may short-circuit some of written language's unique contributions—with potentially profound consequences for our future.Turning her attention to the development of the individual reading brain, Wolf draws on her expertise in dyslexia to investigate what happens when the brain finds it difficult to read. Interweaving her vast knowledge of neuroscience, psychology, literature, and linguistics, Wolf takes the reader from the brains of a pre-literate Homer to a literacy-ambivalent Plato, from an infant listening to Goodnight Moon to an expert reader of Proust, and finally to an often misunderstood child with dyslexia whose gifts may be as real as the challenges he or she faces.As we come to appreciate how the evolution and development of reading have changed the very arrangement of our brain and our intellectual life, we begin to realize with ever greater comprehension that we truly are what we read. Ambitious, provocative, and rich with examples, Proust and the Squid celebrates reading, one of the single most remarkable inventions in history. Once embarked on this magnificent story of the reading brain, you will never again take for granted your ability to absorb the written word.

    With clear and witty writing, this book examines the science behind many popular myths, revealing why many "truths" we think we know, we don't really know at all.

    This book can be cut, drawn in, folded into shapes and will even take you to the fourth dimension. So join stand-up mathematician Matt Parker on a journey through narcissistic numbers, optimal dating algorithms, at least two different kinds of infinity and more.

    Now she’s turning her attention to solving your worst problems—one troublesome word at a time.Are you feeling "all right" or "alright"? Does "biweekly" mean twice a week or every two weeks? Do you run a gauntlet or a gantlet? Is a pair of twins four people or two? The English language is always changing, and that means we are left with words and phrases that are only sort of wrong (or worse, have different definitions depending on where you look them up). How do you know which to use? Grammar Girl to the rescue! This handy reference guide contains the full 411 on 101 words that have given you trouble before—but will never again. Full of clear, straightforward definitions and fun quotations from pop culture icons such as Gregory House and J. K. Rowling, as well as from classical writers such as Mark Twain and Benjamin Franklin, this highly-useable guidebook takes the guesswork out of your writing, so you’ll never be at a loss for words again.

    Its author's engaging voice is one reason, and the compelling subjects he addresses is another; the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, the history and future of the universe. But it is also true that in the years since its publication, readers have repeatedly told Professor Hawking of their great difficulty in understanding some of the book's most important concepts. This is the origin of and the reason for A Briefer History of Time: its author's wish to make its content more accessible to readers - as well as to bring it up-to-date with the latest scientific observations and findings.Although this book is literally somewhat "briefer", it actually expands on the great subjects of the original. Purely technical concepts, such as the mathematics of chaotic boundary conditions, are gone. Conversely, subjects of wide interest that were difficult to follow because they were interspersed throughout the book have now been given entire chapters of their own, including relativity, curved space, and quantum theory.This reorganization has allowed the authors to expand areas of special interest and recent progress, from the latest developments in string theory to exciting developments in the search for a complete unified theory of all the forces of physics. Like prior editions of the book - but even more so - A Briefer History of Time will guide nonscientists everywhere in the ongoing search for the tantalizing secrets at the heart of time and space. Thirty-seven full-color illustrations enhance the text and make A Briefer History of Time an exhilarating addition in its own right to the literature of science.

    Pose the same question to students and many will use words like "boring", "useless", and even "humiliating". In  Becoming the Math Teacher You Wish You'd Had , author Tracy Zager helps teachers close this gap by making math class more like mathematics. Tracy has spent years working with highly skilled math teachers in a diverse range of settings and grades. You'll find this book jam-packed with new ideas from these vibrant classrooms.  How to Teach Student-Centered Mathematics: Zager outlines a problem-solving approach to mathematics for elementary and middle school educators looking for new ways to inspire student learningBig Ideas, Practical Application: This math book contains dozens of practical and accessible teaching techniques that focus on fundamental math concepts, including strategies that simulate connection of big ideas; rich tasks that encourage students to wonder, generalize, hypothesize, and persevere; and routines to teach students how to collaborateKey Topics for Elementary and Middle School Teachers:  Becoming the Math Teacher You Wish You'd Had  offers fresh perspectives on common challenges, from formative assessment to classroom management for elementary and middle school teachersAll teachers can move towards increasingly authentic and delightful mathematics teaching and learning. This important book helps develop instructional techniques that will make the math classes we teach so much better than the math classes we took.

    A look at over 400 of the best historical movies (and some of the worst) purporting to be ‘factual’ or ‘based on actual events’; and how Hollywood has distorted, altered, manipulated, exaggerated, even falsified history under the all-encompassing premise…based on a true story…

    It now has 600,000 to a million page hits daily. Every now and then, Munroe would get emails asking him to arbitrate a science debate. 'My friend and I were arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck by lightning, and we agreed that you should resolve it . . . ' He liked these questions so much that he started up What If. If your cells suddenly lost the power to divide, how long would you survive? How dangerous is it, really, to be in a swimming pool in a thunderstorm? If we hooked turbines to people exercising in gyms, how much power could we produce? What if everyone only had one soulmate?When (if ever) did the sun go down on the British empire? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live?What would happen if the moon went away?In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, studded with memorable cartoons and infographics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion. Far more than a book for geeks, WHAT IF: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel much the smarter for having read.

    But the law touches every area of our lives: from intimate family matters to the biggest issues in our society.Our unfamiliarity is dangerous because it makes us vulnerable to media spin, political lies and the kind of misinformation that frequently comes from other loud-mouthed amateurs and those with vested interests. This 'fake law' allows the powerful and the ignorant to corrupt justice without our knowledge - worse, we risk letting them make us complicit.Thankfully, the Secret Barrister is back to reveal the stupidity, malice and incompetence behind many of the biggest legal stories of recent years. In Fake Law, the Secret Barrister debunks the lies and builds an hilarious, alarming and eye-opening defence against the abuse of our law, our rights and our democracy.

    The Religions Book is also perfect for religion and philosophy students.

    From the 100 Years War to the Gulf Wars, and from the wisdom of Aristotle to the Civil Rights movement, this book distils the major events in human history into easily digestible chunks. Each essay is accompanied by an image - or a clear diagram to illustrate complex ideas - and will plug the gaps in your knowledge of the most important eras, movements and events in the history of humankind. World History in Minutes is the perfect introduction to this expansive subject. Contents include: Neanderthals, Babylonians, Attilla the Hun, Abyssinian Empire, Magna Carta, Black Death, Inca, Henry VIII Reformation, Ulster Plantations, Rousseau and the Enlightenment, Declaration of Independence, French Revolution, Tonga Civil War, Universal Suffrage, Spanish Influenza, Great Depression, Pearl Harbour, The Space Age, Civil Rights, Environmentalism, Oligarchs and Tiger Economies.

    Their hits, including Golden Brown, No More Heroes and Always The Sun, were written against a background of spectacular success, dismal failure, drug dependency, financial ruin, infighting and misfortune. Understandably, the band have been loath to reveal the true meaning behind their songs, instead revelling in the mystery and confusion they created. As a response to David Buckley's one-sided biography of the band (No Mercy, Hodder & Stoughton, 1997), Hugh Cornwell, founding member and songwriter, is determined to set the record straight, displace the myths and explain for the first time the real stories behind The Stranglers, his departure and the origins of all their songs.