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Algospeak

“A linguist explores how the internet is redefining our vocabulary. No cap—this bruh slaps and slays.” - Adam Grant, author of Think Again "Incisive and funny, this is a page turner from start to finish. Algospeak is a must read for anyone seeking to understand how we communicate today." - Taylor Lorenz, author of Extremely Online "Packed with fascinating facts, of-the-moment observations and a sparkling voice, Algospeak is a gift to any word nerd." - Amanda Montell, author of The Age of Magical Overthinking and Cultish From the rise of leetspeak and words such as “unalive” to the trend of adding “-core” to different influencer aesthetics, the internet has ushered in an unprecedented linguistic upheaval. We’re entering an entirely new era of etymology, heralded by the invisible forces driving social media algorithms. And with over 7 billion internet users uploading over 2.5 quintillion bytes of media every day, the sheer volume of potential new words is astounding. In Algospeak, online etymologist Adam Aleksic shines a light on the roots of words that we don’t realise have come from unexpected places – from incel culture, from the innovation of users trying to get around content moderation algorithms, from the marketing speak that has invaded our personal lives. New slang emerges and goes viral overnight. Accents are shaped or erased on YouTube. Grammatical rules, loopholes, and patterns surface and transform our interactions, social norms and habits. An energetic, astonishing journey into language and the internet, Algospeak reveals the bigger social story of how language shapes us, just as much as we shape it.

Fear Knot

Why do we fear Halloween candy but not vending machines? Why do “witch hunts” recur so often in history? How dangerous are serial killers, really? The Fear Knot examines our most common deeply held fears, unpacking which are valid and which are misguided, explaining the history of how our irrational fears developed, and how we can unlearn them. We live in a world seemingly rife with danger, a villainous stranger or new deadly bacteria lurking around every corner. So how do we sort through these fears, determining which are well-founded and which have been manufactured? How can our biases and psychology allow these fears to overtake us, and how can we learn to think logically in a world driven by sensationalism? In this lively and timely tour, psychologist Natashia Swalve and journalism professor Ruth DeFoster lead readers through the history and psychology behind our most visible and sensational cultural fears, beginning with the most personal—fear within our bodies—and moving outward to the home, our country, and finally to our broadest society-level fears. From micro fears, like how our fear of vaccines has led to measles epidemics, to the broad existential dread associated with climate change and gun violence, The Fear Knot examines the toll our fears take on us, on an individual and societal level. Exploring how shared culture, media consumption, and even our own brain can help drive incorrect beliefs about risk, Swalve and DeFoster help readers to make informed, evidence-based decisions about fear and risk— and along the way, to learn how to think critically, examine your own beliefs, and become confident consumers of media and popular culture. Combining psychology and journalism in short, light-hearted chapters, The Fear Knot gives readers a fresh look at Americans’ perceptions of risk and danger, with an emphasis on how to recognize misinformation or biases, updated to include the most recent fears that Americans face in the 21st century— and the real dangers that we may be ignoring.

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