Humanities & Social Sciences Library

Always on : language in an online and mobile world
Naomi S. Baron
Oxford [u.a.] Oxford Univ. Press 2008
Call no.: P107.B265

Joint Winner of the 2008 Duke of Edinburgh ESU English Language Book Award

This book is about how online and mobile technologies influence the way we read, write, present ourselves as well as its effect on social relationships.

The author did a study on IM lingo and also looked into the effects of gender on IM speech and writing.
Does out of sight equates to out of mind? Interestingly, the chapter on IM research mentioned that the presence of digital natives “lingers through their words”, even as they post away messages on their computers.

Why are online social networking sites like Facebook so popular? According to Cassidy, Facebook allows users to maintain friendships with minimum effort. Moreover, for many people, Facebook enable them to see and be seen.  A comparison was made between Facebook and IM, both of which can be used for presentation of self and for managing social relationships. The author also explored the reasons behind other online platforms like blogs and wikipedia. 

For more information, read the review in Times Higher Education.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Nipponia –a quarterly magazine that introduces people worldwide to timely contemporary subjects and traditional culture in Japan– has ceased publication.  However, earlier print issues of Nipponia from issue 48 (2009) are still available at the Library.  You can also access the online version in English and Japanese.

If you are going to the Land of the Rising Sun for your student exchange programme, there are many books on Japanese culture such as kabuki, origami, chanoyu and others that are available in our Library.  Here’s a short listing of our offerings.  If you need further assistance with book searches, please check with staff at the Service Desks.

Joyful origami boxes
Tomoko Fuse.�
Edition:  1st ed.�
Tokyo, Japan : Japan Publications Trading Co. ; New York : Distributors, U.S., Kodansha America through Farrar, Straus & Giroux, [1996]
Call no.: TT870.F993
Location: Lee Wee Nam Library

Kabuki heroes on the Osaka stage, 1780-1830
C. Andrew Gerstle.�
London : British Museum Press, 2005
Call no.: PN2924.5.K3G383
Location: ADM Library

Tea of the sages : the art of sencha
Patricia J. Graham.
Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press, c1998.
Call no.: GT2910.G741
Location: Business Library

Japanese inn and travel : illustrated = Nihon no ryokan.
[Tokyo] : Japan Travel Bureau, 1990.
Call no.: DS821.J35 VOL.14
Location: Chinese Library

Popularity: 28% [?]