Once there was no text messaging. No email and no social network sites like Facebook, Bebo and MySpace. The way we live has apparently been transformed by new ways of communicating. But where did these trends start? And if they can change our behaviour, can they also change the way we think?In Cyburbia James Harkin describes how the architecture of our digital lives was built over seventy years. In a brilliant narrative that encompasses the work of crackpots, inventors and visionar...

A witty and indispensable guide to modern-day buzzwords.Big Ideas explains where concepts like 'the long tail', 'urban tribes' and 'soft power' came from, what they mean, and what their critics say about them.It includes explanations of key terms such as:Maturialism: the name given to the new trend among middle-aged people of spending their money on expensive 'youth' gadgets and services, and the new habit ...

On 19 August 2014, a member of the jihadist rebel group known as ISIS uploaded a video to YouTube. Entitled 'Message to America', the clip depicted the final moments of the life of kidnapped American journalist James Foley - and the gruesome aftermath of his beheading at the hands of a masked executioner. Foley's murder - and the other choreographed killings that would follow - captured the world's attention, and Islamic State's campaign of kidnapping exploded into regional war.Bas...

As high street and main street businesses continue to suffer, there's a new rule in business: forget about the general audience and instead stake out an identifiable niche.Woolworths suffered from a lack of identity and found that low quality and low price wasn't enough; General Motors crashed as motorists failed to distinguish between cars in their range. Yet HBO, Moleskine and specialist media like The Economist have all succeeded by building their authority over narrow ...

*THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER*'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris EvansA bumper final edition of the most surprising, amazing, and hilarious facts on the planet from the clever-clogs at QI.QI is the smartest comedy show on British television. Here creator John Lloyd and QI Elves James Harkin and Anne Miller bring together 2,024 brain-tickling brand new fact...

'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris Evans1,411 QI Facts to Knock You Sideways, by John Lloyd, John Mitchinson and James Harkin, contains all-new facts from the QI team to astonish, delight and enlighten.1,227 QI Facts blew your socks off. 1,339 QI Facts made your jaw drop. Now the QI team return with this year's groaning sack of astonishment. Prepare to be knocked sideways...

'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris EvansThe fourth in QI's bestselling facts series - 1,234 QI Facts to Leave You Speechless is filled to the brim with astonishing facts that will leave you befuddled, bemused and bewildered.The QI team have blown your socks off, made your jaw drop and knocked you sideways. Now they return with 1,234 brand-new mind-blowing facts that will leave you utterl...

'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris Evans**1,227 QI Facts To Blow Your Socks Off by John Lloyd, John Mitchinson and James Harkin is a buffet groaning with mouth-watering nuggets from QI's first ten years.QI is the smartest comedy show on British television, but few people know that we're also a major legal hit in Australia, New Zealand, Israel and Africa and an illegal one on BitTorrent. We also ...

The Third Book of General Ignorance gathers together 180 questions, both new and previously featured on the BBC TV programme's popular 'General Ignorance' round, and show why, when it comes to general knowledge, none of us knows anything at all.Who invented the sandwich? What was the best thing before sliced bread? Who first ate frogs' legs? Which cat never changes its spots? What did Lady Godiva do? What can you legally do if you come across a Welshman in Chester...

EVERYTHING TO PLAY FOR - A NEW BOOK BY QI ELVES JAMES HARKIN AND ANNA PTASZYNSKI - IS AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER NOW'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris Evans1,399 QI Facts To Make Your Jaw Drop by John Lloyd, John Mitchinson and James Harkin is packed with even more fascinating facts.Whilst you're bending over to grab your ...

**SHORTLISTED FOR THE CHARLES TYRWHITT SPORTS BOOK AWARDS'** Top Bins! A personal best, a lap record and a hole in one for when rain has stopped play.' ALAN DAVIES'The trivia book of the season . . . magnificent.' SPECTATORDid you know that Henry VIII owned the first pair of football boots? Or that David Attenborough is responsible for yellow tennis balls?A Load of Old Balls is the curious s...

'I love these books ... the best books ever. Brilliant' Chris EvansThis is an astonishing trove of the strangest, funniest, and most improbable tidbits of knowledge from the clever lot at the hugely popular BBC quiz show QI.The sock-blasting, jaw-dropping, side-swiping phenomenon that is QI serves up a sparkling new selection of 1,342 facts to leave you flabbergasted.Did you know that:Trees sleep a...