Available open access digitally under CC-BY-NC-ND licence.How do we hold onto friends and communities in a world that feels increasingly fragmented?This timely collection explores how social connection unfolds across personal, physical, community and digital spaces. From loneliness to belonging, the collection explores the broader social forces that shape our interactions. Packed with fresh insights and accessible research, the contributors bridge theory and practice.

More authors. More stories. The same bestselling universe.It's the Twenty-Second Century. Humanity has taken its first steps into the galaxy, and we've found ourselves in a vast playground of alien races, environments, and cultures. As the newest players on the universal stage, though, our position is readily apparent—we're at the bottom of the food chain.Welcome back to the Four Horsemen universe, where only a willingness to fight and die for money separat...

Using molecular methods for plant disease diagnosis provides diagnosticians with a number of advantages over more traditional methods. They can allow the identification of morphologically similar species, for example, or the detection of infection prior to symptom formation. Not only can molecular tools help by increasing the efficacy, accuracy and speed of diagnosis; their common technological basis provides further benefits, especially where resources are limited and traditional skills a...

"A noted explorer once asked, 'Who knows if there are secrets lurking in the unseen corners of hyperspace?' The answer is simple. There are!" — Colonel Terrance Van Zant, Commanding Officer, Swamp Eagle SecurityTaylor Van Zant has a lot on his mind.Like everyone in Jacksonville, North Florida, the early-twenties bartender from Riverside saw his world upended when his brother, Terry, an interstellar mercenary and lo...

Brothers look out for brothers. Usually…With the Merc Guild opening up contracts again, it's Zuul eat Zuul to get one as there are far more companies looking for work than there are contracts to be had. So when Taylor Van Zant gets an inside line on a 30-million-credit contract for Swamp Eagle Security, he races to Karma to throw his hat in the ring.Unfortunately, Taylor arrives to find that the other North Florida mercenary company—the River Hawk ...

It's hard to live when you're on the run…Taylor Van Zant, the owner of Swamp Eagle Security, thought he was doing a good thing when he destroyed the slave ring operating out of Droxis, even though the slavers blew up the red diamond mine there as they tried to escape.Unfortunately, the mine belonged to the synthetic intelligence running the Merchant Guild, and it was…displeased with the mine's destruction, so it put out a death contract on all the members o...

The Carousel of Hombros is the second chapter in the fantasy series 'The Kingdom of Wizards - The Seals of Altior'. It is a book that encompasses simplicity of description and liveliness of action. A tale that immerses the reader, in a medieval fantasy world where battles, magic and spells are the protagonists.The spell has been dissolved.The magical barrier at the border of the kingdom of Ignis has fallen. The ruins of Arx Lupus are the scene of a new and terrible battle in...

When storms roar and orcas are on the prowl, it's the seal gardens of the Great Bear Sea that provide safety and shelter.Ian McAllister's glorious photographs reveal the beauty and mystery of this rarely seen place of refuge for sea lions, otters, a variety of seals and other sea mammals. This is the third title in the My Great Bear Rainforest series.

Hello I am Popo. I am a polar bear. Nice to meet you! I have many names like Snowpo, Popo, Babing bear, Bai Xiong, but you can just call me Snow or Po if you like. I hope we can be friends. I am king of the bears and originally I came from Norway, but now I live in London although I have lived even in Taiwan too! I stay with my family. My dad has stinky feet. My mummy is perfect. I wrote this book to tell you about my adventures with my big brother Tycoon Seal. He's got a lot of names too....

When storms roar and orcas are on the prowl, it's the seal gardens of the Great Bear Sea that provide safety and shelter.Ian McAllister's glorious photographs reveal the beauty and mystery of this rarely seen place of refuge for sea lions, otters, a variety of seals and other sea mammals. This is the third title in the My Great Bear Rainforest series.