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Weekly Picks

Weekly Picks (2026-09-02)

Doing digital methods
Author: Rogers, Richard, 1965-
Subject: Internet research AND Social media
Publication Info: Sage, 2024
ISBN: 9781529764321
Library Holding: 5/F B4 Library and Information Science, ZA 4228 Rog 2024
How do we study the pressing issues of our time through social media and search engines? This second edition by Richard Rogers answers that question with clarity. It offers critical social media research frameworks, practical techniques for analyzing TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter, plus explorations of algorithmic auditing, YouTube's content removal politics, and Facebook's fake news problem. Both accessible and rigorous, this book equips researchers—from beginners to experts—with essential tools to conduct sound studies in today's rapidly evolving digital landscape. An indispensable guide, highly recommended.
Statistics in corpus linguistics research : a new approach
Author: Wallis, Sean
Subject: Computational linguistics AND Statistical methods
Publication Info: Routledge, 2026
ISBN: 9781041031871
Library Holding: 2/F C2 Language & Literature, P 128 C68 Wal 2026
Statistics often intimidates corpus linguists—but this revised second edition changes that. Sean Wallis breaks significance tests down through a visual approach, helping researchers understand how tests perform with real data. A new chapter introduces the extended MOVER method for accurate confidence intervals. The book guides readers in posing meaningful research questions, using confidence intervals correctly, selecting significance tests, measuring effect sizes, and evaluating experimental results. With sample datasets, clear visuals, and downloadable online resources, it suits everyone from students to seasoned researchers. Both practical and rigorous, this is an indispensable companion for modern linguistic data analysis. Highly recommended.
经济学家的恶习 = The vices of economists : the virtues of the bourgeoisie
Author: McCloskey, Deirdre N.
Subject: Economics--History AND Economists
Publication Info: 广西师范大学出版社, 2025
ISBN: 9787559871732
Library Holding: 4/F A1 Business Administration, HB 87 McC 2025
Economics has long been called the "dismal science"—but this book flips that image. Celebrated economist Deirdre McCloskey sharply exposes three "vices": significance testing that ignores individual difference, blackboard economics detached from reality, and social engineering that oversimplifies human nature. She dissects the arrogance concealed in these habits and urges economics to return to its humane roots, embracing humanism, humility, freedom, and the feminine perspective. Written with wit and accessibility, the book reconnects numbers with real people. Both beginners and professionals will find its critical insights thought-provoking. A refreshing, razor-sharp read—highly recommended.
遏制腐敗: 實現可持續變革的實用策略 = Curbing corruption: practical strategies for sustainable change
Author: Spector, Bertram I.
Subject: Corruption AND Prevention
Publication Info: 上海人民出版社, 2025
ISBN: 9787208199880
Library Holding: G/F B3 New Arrivals, JF 1525 C66 Spe 2025
Around the world, many anti-corruption efforts achieve little despite enormous investment—why? This book offers a sharp answer: traditional legal and institutional reforms are too easily circumvented by officials, powerful citizens, and profit-driven businesspeople. Author Bertram Spector blends twenty-five years of experience across forty countries with insights from social psychology, ethics, and negotiation research. Rather than merely adding more rules, he targets the underlying motivations of key individuals and groups, deploying social norms, moral internalization, and negotiation tactics to drive lasting behavioral change. Bridging theory and practice with rich case studies, this volume is an essential guide for policymakers, NGOs, students, and researchers. Highly recommended.
没有民主的政治 : 1815-1914 : 英國政府的觀念與關注 = Politics without democracy 1815-1914 : perception and preoccupation in British government
Author: Bentley, Michael, 1948-
Subject: Great Britain AND Politics and government
Publication Info: 商務印書館, 2025
ISBN: 9787100242493
Library Holding: G/F B3 New Arrivals, JN 216 Ben 2025
Nineteenth-century Britain is often hailed as a model of democratization—yet this book reveals a far messier reality. Celebrated historian Michael Bentley overturns conventional class analysis, adopting a "high politics" view from above to retell the years 1815–1914. From Wellington's Catholic emancipation and Peel's contentious repeal of the Corn Laws, to the lifelong rivalry of Gladstone and Disraeli, he shows that political struggle turned less on class conflict than on divisions within the same class and the interplay of political ideas and policies. Sharp, witty, and intellectually demanding, this book rewards readers with a fresh understanding of British political history. Richly recommended.
伏尔泰与启蒙之战 : 1750-1770 = [Voltaire and the Battle of Enlightenment: 1750–1770]
Author: 石芳, 1987-
Subject: Voltaire AND Enlightenment
Publication Info: 商务印书馆, 2025
ISBN: 9787100253277
Library Holding: 2/F A3 Education & Arts, B 2177 Shi 2025
The Enlightenment was not just philosophy—it was a fierce war of public opinion. In this vividly argued study, historian Shi Fang places Voltaire at the center of a two-decade struggle between "philosophes" and their "anti-philosophe" opponents. Through image-making, witty mockery, alliances with the powerful, seizing the Académie française, and recruiting younger disciples, the philosophes turned criticism, public debate, and open polemics into cultural authority and, ultimately, a revolution of the mind. Rich with anecdotes and animal fables drawn from the polemical literature, this well-researched narrative reveals how Enlightenment thinking spread from intellectual combat into a Europe-wide social movement. Engaging and rigorous—highly recommended.
Critical thinking : an introduction to reasoning well
Author: Watson, Jamie Carlin
Subject: Critical thinking AND Logic
Publication Info: Bloomsbury Academic, 2024
ISBN: 9781350232945
Library Holding: G/F B3 New Arrivals, BC 177 Wat 2024
"Is milk good for your bones?" "Is the Earth round?" How do we know—and can we ever be certain? In an age of disinformation, thinking clearly matters more than ever. This third edition is a beginner-friendly guide to critical thinking, adding two timely chapters on reasoning amid conspiracy theories and fake news, teaching you to resist persuasive, evidence-free emoting. It moves step by step through argument structure, deductive and inductive reasoning, truth tables, and logical fallacies—illustrated with real-life examples like weather forecasting, a murder mystery, and the Ouija board. With a glossary, exercises, and further reading, it equips you to reason well in and out of the classroom. Engaging and accessible—highly recommended.
大學的讀法 : 中國大學的理念與實踐 = Understanding Chinese universities: ideas and practice
Author: 陳平原, 1954-
Subject: Education, Higher AND Universities and colleges
Publication Info: 香港中文大學出版社, 2025
ISBN: 9789882373938
Library Holding: 2/F A3 Education & Arts, LA 1133 Che 2025
At a time when universities grow rigid and their foundations are challenged, how should we "read" the modern university? This collection distills three decades of Professor Chen Pingyuan's reflections at Peking University. It moves along two paths: re-examining a century of stories—from the spirit of old Peking University and the mythical Qinghua Academy to Southwest Associated University's wartime resilience—and probing contemporary issues like ranking anxiety, declining public trust, and the fate of the humanities. Chen insists that universities live by spirit, not by metrics on evaluation forms. At once scholarly and essayistic, this is essential reading for anyone concerned with the past, present, and future of China's universities.
Academic writing skills for international students
Author: Read, Siew Hean
Subject: Academic writing AND Textbooks for foreign speakers
Publication Info: Bloomsbury Academic, 2024
ISBN: 9781350427877
Library Holding: 2/F A3 Education & Arts, LB 2369 Rea 2024
Does writing academic assignments in English make you feel uneasy? This book is exactly for you—international students for whom English is a second language. Author Siew Hean Read guides you through a series of text analyses that break down the linguistic and rhetorical features of academic writing, helping you structure paragraphs, build compelling arguments, and follow academic conventions with confidence. The revised second edition is easier to navigate, with an expanded introduction, a writing checklist, more examples, practical activities, and new content on avoiding plagiarism. Ideal for self-study, this guide supports students on pre-sessional courses and degree programs alike. Clear, practical, and encouraging—highly recommended.
第一次 : 30件开创性作品的艺术史 = Art firsts : the story of art in 30 pioneering works
Author: Trend, Nick
Subject: Art--History AND Art appreciation
Publication Info: 社会科学文献出版社, 2024
ISBN: 9787522837307
Library Holding: 2/F A3 Education & Arts, N 5300 Tre 2024
Have you ever wondered about the groundbreaking "firsts" in art history? Who painted the first kiss, the first smile, or the first embrace? This book takes the bold idea of "the first time" as its thread, weaving together thirty pioneering works—from the first kiss and true perspective to visible brushstrokes, feminist painting, and the birth of abstraction. British art historian Nick Trend recounts why and how each "first" happened, and how it transformed the way art is made and understood. Lively storytelling and accessible prose lead readers into the stories behind beloved paintings, offering both delight and depth. A truly engaging way to rediscover art history—highly recommended.
Master academic English : essential vocabulary, reading comprehension & more
Author: Bolen, Jackie
Subject: English language AND Foreign speakers
Publication Info: Jackie Bolen, 2024
ISBN: 9798875815225
Library Holding: 2/F C2 Language & Literature, PE 1128 Bol 2024
In an English-taught university, classroom discussion, talking with professors, and attending conferences can test your English more than any exam. This book gathers hundreds of idioms, phrases, and expressions genuinely used in academic settings, bridging the gap between textbook English and real-world fluency. Drawing on over twenty years of ESL/EFL teaching, author Jackie Bolen introduces each item through context-rich dialogues, followed by a simple explanation and practice exercises with answers for self-checking. Whether you're preparing for TOEFL, TOEIC, or IELTS, or hoping to speak confidently in seminars, this practical guide helps you build academic vocabulary fast and regain your confidence. Accessible, effective, and highly recommended.
Scaling responsible AI : from enthusiasm to execution
Author: Russell, Noelle
Subject: Artificial intelligence AND Business ethics
Publication Info: John Wiley & Sons, 2025
ISBN: 9781394289646
Library Holding: G/F B3 New Arrivals, Q 335 Rus 2025
Artificial intelligence is like an alluring cub—but like a growing tiger, its risks are formidable. How do we enjoy AI's rewards while upholding ethics? Noelle Russell, an AI strategist who has worked at Microsoft, IBM, AWS, Amazon Alexa, and Accenture, delivers a practical guide for organizational leaders. Her executable framework helps you mitigate bias, ensure accuracy, protect privacy and cybersecurity, and foster an ethical AI culture across teams and leadership—while seeing through the hype to identify genuine AI value. Avoiding compliance disasters and wasted resources, Russell guides firms toward innovation and competitive advantage, done responsibly. Clear-eyed, grounded, and highly actionable—essential reading for any serious leader. Highly recommended.