This volume was first published by Inter-Disciplinary Press in 2012. A collection of papers presented at the 2nd Global Conference on Experiential Learning in Virtual Worlds, held in Prague, Czech Republic. Presenters discussed their research on the impact of utilizing virtual worlds for educational purposes. Presenters also discussed the influence virtual worlds have on concepts such as identity, learning and interaction.

Earth Perfect? Nature, Utopia and the Garden is an eclectic, yet rigorous reflection on the relationship--historical, present and future--between humanity and the garden. Through the lens of Utopian Studies--the interdisciplinary field that encompasses fictions all the way through to actual political projects, and urban ideals; in a nutshell, addressing the human natural drive towards the ideal--Earth Perfect? brings together a selection of inspiring essays, each contributed by foremost writers from the fields of architecture, history of art, classics, cultural studies, farming, geography, horticulture, landscape architecture, law, literature, philosophy, urban planning and the natural sciences. Through these joined voices, the garden emerges as a site of contestation and a repository for symbolic, spiritual, social, political and ecological meaning. Questions such as: "what is the role of the garden in defining humanity's ideal relationship with nature?" and "how should we garden in the face of catastrophic ecological decline?" are addressed through wideranging case studies, including ancient Roman Gardens in Pompeii, Hieronymus Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights, the Gardens of Versailles, organic farming in New England and Bohemia's secret gardens, as well as landscape in contemporary architecture. Issues relating to the utopian garden are explored thematically rather than chronologically, and organised in six chapters: "Being in nature", "inscribing the garden", "green/house", "The garden politic", "economies of the garden" and "how then shall we garden?". each essay is both individual in scope and part of the wider discourse of the book as a whole, and each is lusciously illustrated, bringing to life the subject with diverse visual material ranging from photography to historical documents, maps and artworks.

The royal Parisian botanical garden, the Jardin du Roi, was a jewel in the crown of the French Old Regime, praised by both rulers and scientific practitioners. Yet unlike many such institutions, the Jardin not only survived the French Revolution but by 1800 had become the world's leading public establishment of natural history: the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle. E. C. Spary traces the scientific, administrative, and political strategies that enabled the foundation of the Muséum, arguing that agriculture and animal breeding rank alongside classification and collections in explaining why natural history was important for French rulers. But the Muséum's success was also a consequence of its employees' Revolutionary rhetoric: by displaying the natural order, they suggested, the institution could assist in fashioning a self-educating, self-policing Republican people. Natural history was presented as an indispensable source of national prosperity and individual virtue. Spary's fascinating account opens a new chapter in the history of France, science, and the Enlightenment.

Ebenezer Howard is recognised as a pioneer of town planning throughout the industrialised world; Britain's new towns, deriving from the garden cities he founded, are his monument. But Howard was more than a town planner. He was first and foremost a social reformer, and his garden city was intended to be merely the first step towards a new social and industrial order based on common ownership of land. This is the first comprehensive study of Howard's theories, which the author traces back to their origins in English puritan dissent and forward to Howard's attempt to build his new society in microcosm at Letchworth and Welwyn.

In the digital era, users from around the world are constantly connected over a global network, where they have the ability to connect, share, and collaborate like never before. To make the most of this new environment, researchers and software developers must understand users’ needs and expectations. Social Media and Networking: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications explores the burgeoning global community made possible by Web 2.0 technologies and a universal, interconnected society. With four volumes of chapters related to digital media, online engagement, and virtual environments, this multi-volume reference is an essential source for software developers, web designers, researchers, students, and IT specialists interested in the growing field of digital media and engagement. This four-volume reference includes various chapters covering topics related to Web 2.0, e-governance, social media activism, internet privacy, digital and virtual communities, e-business, customer relationship management, and more.

One hundred kilometers from Seville, there is a small village, Marinaleda, that for the last thirty years has been at the center of a long struggle to create a communist utopia. In a story reminiscent of the Asterix books, Dan Hancox explores the reality behind the community where no one has a mortgage, sport is played in the Che Guevara stadium and there are monthly "Red Sundays" where everyone works together to clean up the neighbourhood. In particular he tells the story of the village mayor, Sanchez Gordillo, who in 2012 became a household name in Spain after leading raids on local supermarkets to feed the Andalucian unemployed.

The ever-growing creation of new internet technologies has led to a growing trend and use of scenario-based virtual environments and serious games in education. Along with these new technologies, there is an increasing interest in how students can be effectively assessed when using these virtual environments. Cases on the Assessment of Scenario and Game-Based Virtual Worlds in Higher Education is a comprehensive collection that provides aspects of assessment in virtual worlds combined with lessons learned from critical reflection. These case studies present successes, challenges, and innovations to be utilized as a framework for practitioners and researchers to base their own effective forms of scenario-based learning. This publication would be of particular interest to practice-based disciplines such as education, nursing, medicine, and social work.

Utopia is a work of fiction and socio-political satire by Thomas More published in 1516 in Latin. The book is a frame narrative primarily depicting a fictional island society and its religious, social and political customs. Many aspects of More's description of Utopia are reminiscent of life in monasteries.