New Library Books with Widespread Appeal

The following new books will hopefully be of interest to all disciplines across the college curriculum. Please remember that if you are looking for a particular subject or would like help in finding useful books or articles, please just ask a member of Library staff who will be delighted to help you find what looking for.

Your UndergraduateDissertation: The Essential Guide for Success (SAGE Study Skills Series)  by Nicholas Walliman808.66378 WAL

This is a refreshing and inspiring book, of equal value to both the anxious and the ambitious student' 

- Lucinda Becker, Department of English Literature, University of Reading

In the second edition of this best-selling guide, Nicholas Walliman provides expert, step-by-step advice on managing and developing a successful undergraduate project. This book takes you through each stage of your dissertation, answering questions including:

* How do I choose an appropriate topic for my dissertation?

 * How do I write a research proposal?

* What's a literature review, how do I conduct it and how do I write it up?

* How can I ensure I'm an ethical researcher?

* What methods of data collection are appropriate for my research question?

 * Once I have collected my data, what do I do?

* What's the best structure for my dissertation?

Full of examples from real student projects, interdisciplinary case studies and illustrated with cartoons to make you smile along the way, this book will tell you all you need to know to write a brilliant dissertation.

Introducing the Creative Industries: From Theory to Practice

by Rosamund Davies ,Gauti Sigthorsson  338.477 DAV

"Creativity used to be the difficult concept to define - now it has probably been overtaken by the concept 'creative industries'. However, this text does a sterling job at identifying, outlining and defining the many elements that go to make up this booming sector of industry. What makes it particularly interesting is that it includes the view of the creative industries from the perspective of working in it, then the definitions of what products and producers are involved, and ends with the broader picture of the creative economy and predictions for future trends. Add to this that they include both theory and practice, and this really is an all-round guide to the vast domain that is loosely titled 'the creative industries' - Angela Birchall, School of Media, Music & Performance, Salford University With so much talk about the creative industries, do we really know what they are, what they produce, and who works in them? This ground-breaking textbook takes the student through the history, trends, products and markets of the creative industries, showing how success depends on a mix of ideas, tactics and talent. When understanding social networks and cultural economy is just as important as hands-on skills or an entrepreneurial spirit, Introducing the Creative Industries shows students how to use theories, concepts and practical skills to get ahead in their course and professional life. Creatively imagined and beautifully written, this book: * interweaves concepts and practices in an easy-to-read layout on every page * uses cultural economy to teach the essential concepts and thinkers * integrates case studies from fashion and gaming to journalism and music * shows students strategies for navigating the links between skills, industries, creativity and markets. This book will expand students' horizons in this fast-moving industry, showing them how to spot opportunities and use their knowledge and savvy to take advantage of them. It is an essential guidebook for students of creativity in media and communication, design, creative industries and business.

Life After New Media: Mediation as a Vital Process 

302.23 KEM

In Life after New Media, Sarah Kember and Joanna Zylinska make a case for a significant shift in our understanding of new media. They argue that we should move beyond our fascination with objects--computers, smart phones, iPods, Kindles--to an examination of the interlocking technical, social, and biological processes of mediation. Doing so, they say, reveals that life itself can be understood as mediated--subject to the same processes of reproduction, transformation, flattening, and patenting undergone by other media forms. By Kember and Zylinska's account, the dispersal of media and technology into our biological and social lives intensifies our entanglement with nonhuman entities. Mediation--all-encompassing and indivisible--becomes for them a key trope for understanding our being in the technological world. Drawing on the work of Bergson and Derrida while displaying a rigorous playfulness toward philosophy, Kember and Zylinska examine the multiple flows of mediation. Importantly, they also consider the ethical necessity of making a "cut" to any media processes in order to contain them. Considering topics that range from media-enacted cosmic events to the intelligent home, they propose a new way of "doing" media studies that is simultaneously critical and creative, and that performs an encounter between theory and practice.

The Art of Critical Making: Rhode Island School of Design on Creative Practice

by John Maeda707.11745 MAE

Describes the world′s leading approach to art and design taught at Rhode Island School of Design At Rhode Island School of Design students are immersed in a culture where making questions, ideas, and objects, using and inventing materials, and activating experience all serve to define a form of critical thinking—albeit with one′s hands—i.e. "critical making." The Art of Critical Making , by RISD faculty and staff, describes fundamental aspects of RISD′s approach to "critical making" and how this can lead to innovation. The process of making taught at RISD is deeply introspective, passionate, and often provocative. This book illuminates how RISD nurtures the creative process, from brief or prompt to outcome, along with guidance on the critical questions and research that enable making great works of art and design. Explores the conceptual process, idea research, critical questions, and iteration that RISD faculty employ to educate students to generate thoughtful work Authors are from the faculty and staff of the Rhode Island School of Design, which consistently ranks as the number one fine arts and design college in the United States The Art of Critical Making shows you how context, materials, thought processes, and self–evaluation are applied in this educational environment to prepare creative individuals to produce dynamic, memorable, and meaningful works.

Resilience: facing down rejection and criticism on the road to success

by Mark McGuinness 331.702MCG

If you want to achieve something original and meaningful with your life, you MUST learn to deal with rejection and criticism. If you're an artist of any kind your work will be rejected by editors, curators and other gatekeepers. And each time you put it in front of the public, you expose yourself to criticism. If you're an entrepreneur you face rejection by (potential) customers, partners and investors. Those same people won't hesitate to criticize you if they are unhappy (justified or not).If you're chasing your dream job you'll receive your share of rejection letters. And once you land the job, taking flak when things go wrong is part of the deal. If you're an athlete or sports player it's a battle to get on the team. And you'll hear about it from all sides - your coach, your team-mates and (so-called) supporters - if they think your performance isn't up to scratch. If you're a campaigner for change you face inertia, resistance and hostility from everyone with an investment in the status quo. No wonder most people choose not to rock the boat. Between them, rejection and criticism can rob you of your dream. Many people set out on their chosen path full of hope and inspiration, only to turn back because they couldn't deal with the emotional impact of crushing rejections and vicious criticism. If you want to avoid joining the legions of also-rans, you'll need to find practical, effective ways to deal with rejection and criticism. Anyone who says 'don't take it so personally' doesn't understand what it's like when you are hit by a major rejection or biting criticism. At least to begin with, it's almost impossible NOT to take it personally (for very good psychological reasons). To deal with rejection and criticism, you need to acknowledge the pain - and find ways to bounce back from the impact. In short, you need to develop resilience. In Resilience, Mark McGuinness explains why your reactions to rejection and criticism are completely understandable - and how to deal with them effectively. Through stories from his own experience, as well as those of famous people who faced rejection and criticism on the road to their success, he will show you that you are far from alone in suffering from rejection and criticism. And he draws on years of experience as a coach to give you practical advice that has been road-tested with hundreds of people facing similar challenges to you.

You will learn:

• Why rejection and criticism hurt so much

• Several ways you may be making rejection worse (without realising it)

• How to keep going in spite of multiple rejections

• Why your inner critic is (potentially) your best friend

• When to ignore the critics - and when to listen

• Whether (and how) to respond to insults and abuse

• Why success is harder than it looks - and how to deal with it

This is not a theoretical book - it's packed with practical tips and techniques you can apply to your own challenges right away. Whether you're just setting out, in the middle of your journey, or dealing with the unexpected challenges of success, Resilience will show you how to keep moving forward. Resilience will take you a few hours to read; its lessons will help you for the rest of your life.

Big Art / Small Art

by Tristan Manco 709.22 MAN  

Scale is being taken to new extremes in art: big and bold on the one hand, intricate and intimate on the other. This book includes profiles of forty-five contemporary artists who are revolutionizing our approach to scale with works that provoke questions, arouse emotions and offer fresh perspectives, from beautifully carved leaves.

Scale is being taken to new extremes in art: big and bold on the one hand, intricate and intimate on the other. This book is divided into two sections big art and small art and includes profiles of forty-five contemporary artists who are revolutionizing our approach to scale with works that provoke questions, arouse emotions and offer fresh perspectives, from beautifully carved leaves (Lorenzo Manuel Durán, Spain) and micro reproductions of artists at work in their studio (Joe Fig, USA) to giant mechanical kinetic sculptures (Theo Jansen, Netherlands) and immersive galaxies of shimmering spheres (Nike Savvas, Australia).