“McGonigal is a clear, methodical writer, and her ideas are well argued. Assertions are backed by countless psychological studies.” —The Boston Globe “Powerful and provocative . . . McGonigal makes a persuasive case that games have a lot to teach us about how to make our lives, and the world, better.” —San Jose Mercury News “Jane McGonigal's insights have the elegant, compact, deadly simplicity of plutonium, and the same explosive force.” —Cory Doctorow, author of Little Brother A visionary game designer reveals how we can harness the power of games to boost global happiness. With 174 million gamers in the United States alone, we now live in a world where every generation will be a gamer generation. But why, Jane McGonigal asks, should games be used for escapist entertainment alone? In this groundbreaking book, she shows how we can leverage the power of games to fix what is wrong with the real world-from social problems like depression and obesity to global issues like poverty and climate change-and introduces us to cutting-edge games that are already changing the business, education, and nonprofit worlds. Written for gamers and non-gamers alike, Reality Is Broken shows that the future will belong to those who can understand, design, and play games. Jane McGonigal is also the author of SuperBetter: A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Stronger, Happier, Braver and More Resilient.

Presents over 125 games, including picture puzzles, scrambled comics, riddle searches, logic defiers, memory contests, connect-the-dots, out-of-orders, mazes, crisscrosses, and rebuses.

An examination of young people's everyday new media practices—including video-game playing, text-messaging, digital media production, and social media use. Conventional wisdom about young people's use of digital technology often equates generational identity with technology identity: today's teens seem constantly plugged in to video games, social networking sites, and text messaging. Yet there is little actual research that investigates the intricate dynamics of youths' social and recreational use of digital media. Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out fills this gap, reporting on an ambitious three-year ethnographic investigation into how young people are living and learning with new media in varied settings—at home, in after-school programs, and in online spaces. Integrating twenty-three case studies—which include Harry Potter podcasting, video-game playing, music sharing, and online romantic breakups—in a unique collaborative authorship style, Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out is distinctive for its combination of in-depth description of specific group dynamics with conceptual analysis.

This book expands on the argument that spectator sports, despite their problems, have become a central function of American universities.

Java Programming, From The Ground Up, with its flexible organization, teaches Java in a way that is refreshing, fun, interesting and still has all the appropriate programming pieces for students to learn. The motivation behind this writing is to bring a logical, readable, entertaining approach to keep your students involved. Each chapter has a Bigger Picture section at the end of the chapter to provide a variety of interesting related topics in computer science. The writing style is conversational and not overly technical so it addresses programming concepts appropriately. Because of the flexibile organization of the text, it can be used for a one or two semester introductory Java programming class, as well as using Java as a second language. The text contains a large variety of carefully designed exercises that are more effective than the competition.

Kick up your training sessions a notch! If you want to make group learning more fun and effective, this is the resource for you. Training expert Elaine Biech, author of Training for Dummies, challenged some of the world’s best game designers to create never-before-seen games using popular training toys and tools from Trainer’s Warehouse, the nation’s leading supplier of learning resources. Whether you’re a full-time workplace learning professional or occasional trainer, this collection contains the most ingenious and inventive collections of learning games. The collection uses a host of common and readily available tools and toys, from throwables and tactiles, to white boards on a stick and noise-making boomwackers. This book will appeal to anyone who delivers training and education—and presenters, too—the games run the gamut from short energizers, icebreakers and closers, to more involved group and team-building activities.

More American children recognize Super Mario, the hero of one of Nintendo’s video games, than Mickey Mouse. The Japanese company has come to earn more money than the big three computer giants or all Hollywood movie studios combined. Now Sheff tells of the Nintendo invasion–a tale of innovation and cutthroat tactics.