Touch matters. It is fundamental to how we know ourselves and each other, and it is central to how we communicate. Digital touch is embedded in many technologies, from wearable devices and gaming hardware to tactile robots and future technologies. What would it be like if we could hug or touch digitally across distance? How might this shape our sense of connection? How might we establish trust or protect our privacy and safety? Digital Touch is a timely and original book that addresses such questions. Offering a rich account of digital touch, the book introduces the key issues and debates, as well as the design and ethical challenges raised by digital touch. Using clear, accessible examples and creative scenarios, the book shows how touch – how we touch, as well as what, whom and when we touch – is being profoundly reshaped by our use of technologies. Above all, it highlights the importance of digital touch in our daily lives and how it will impact our relationships and way of life in the future. The first work of its kind, Digital Touch is the go-to book for anyone wanting to get to grips with this crucial emerging topic, especially students and scholars of Digital Media and Communication Studies, Digital Humanities, Sensory Studies, and Science and Technology Studies.

Disc characteristics: DVD Region Universal.

When you’re a new parent, the miracle of life might not always feel so miraculous. Maybe your latest 2:00 a.m., 2:45 a.m., and 3:30 a.m. wake-up calls have left you wondering how “sleep like a baby” ever became a figure of speech—and what the options are for restoring your sanity. Or your child just left bite marks on someone, and you’re wondering how to handle it. First-time mom Tracy Cutchlow knows what you’re going through. In Zero to Five: 70 Essential Parenting Tips Based on Science (and What I’ve Learned So Far), she takes dozens of parenting tips based on scientific research and distills them into something you can easily digest during one of your two-minute-long breaks in the day. The pages are beautifully illustrated by award-winning photojournalist Betty Udesen. Combining the warmth of a best friend with a straightforward style, Tracy addresses questions such as: Should I talk to my pregnant belly / newborn? Is that going to feel weird? (Yes, and absolutely.) How do I help baby sleep well? (Start with the 45-minute rule.) How can I instill a love of learning in my child? (By using specific types of praise and criticism.) What will boost my child’s success in school? (Play that requires self-control, like make-believe.) My baby loves videos and cell-phone games. That’s cool, right? (If you play, too.) What tamps down temper tantrums? (Naming emotions out loud.) My sweet baby just hit a playmate / lied to me about un-potting the plant / talked back. Now what? (Choose one of three logical consequences.) How do I get through an entire day of this? (With help. Lots of help.) Who knew babies were so funny? (They are!) Whether you read the book front to back or skip around, Zero to Five will help you make the best of the tantrums (yours and baby’s), moments of pure joy, and other surprises along the totally-worth-it journey of parenting.

The way we nurture our babies, from their earliest moments, has a lifelong effect on their health and happiness. What many of us have known instinctively is now a matter of science. Study after study proves that how we hold, feed, play with and settle our babies is a major factor in their long-term wellbeing. Dr Howard Chilton has been a neonatologist (a babies' physician) for over thirty years. He has seen numerous baby-care fads come and go, but has always held to the philosophy now proved by science: you can't give your baby too much love. In Your Cherished Baby, Dr Chilton introduces mothers to a complete approach for settling, feeding and engaging their 0-2 infants. He explains the neurological processes of both baby and mother in this early bonding period. He debunks the myth of baby routines, provides a compelling explanation for colic and excessive crying, and argues for the introduction of varied foods to aid the development of a child's palette and to guard against obesity later in life. Most prevalent to many a sleep-deprived parent, Dr Chilton presents a practical alternative to controlled crying, a currently popular sleep settling technique that he regards as inhumane. Accessible, compassionate and occasionally controversial, Your Cherished Baby is the essential guide to giving babies the best possible start in life.

In the only book on baby care based on an understanding of how a newborn interprets the world, occupational therapist Megan Faure and nursing specialist Ann Richardson explain how parents can help their newborn cope with his new environment. Offering age-appropriate advice on sleeping, eating, and early learning, as well as the basic sensory principles, Baby Sense is the perfect tool for every parent who has ever wondered why a baby is crying--and how to soothe him.

There’s nothing more magical than interacting with a child, especially when you know you’re encouraging them to say their first true words. Starting as early as birth, you can begin to talk, play, and read with your child and become actively involved in the initial stages of communication. Talk, Play, And Read With Me Daddy will not only guide you, but provide you and your child with many stimulating activities and games that are developmentally appropriate and designed to help enhance your child’s speech and language skills. There are many interactive activities for infants (e.g., Making Sounds, Tubby Time, Playful Reading), toddlers (e.g., Sorting Fun, Picnic Time, My Fun Box), and preschoolers (e.g., Listen Up, Story Telling, Searching for Shapes). These fun-filled learning games can be played when you and your child have a few extra minutes during daily routines, playtime, or story time. You can also use this book when you are on the move, so make sure you carry it wherever you go.