Rapidly growing cognitive technologies (such as word processors, web browsers, cell phones, and personal data assistants) aid learning, memory, and problem solving, and contribute to every part of modern life from interviewing crime witnesses to learning a foreign language to calling one's mother. This collection of essays on cognitive technology examines the interaction between the human mind and the tools people create to enhance it, studying which technologies assist cognition the most and what features are most effective. It also considers the point at which the technological enhancement of human ability begins to restrict that very ability, such as the risk of some cognitive technologies impairing cognition or creating disadvantages for individuals or groups. This collection of 11 essays discusses the most recent psychological research in cognitive technology, showcasing the paradigms and theories that have driven the development of new cognitive technologies. It explores the impact of technology on cognitive psychology, the classroom, and social interaction and group problem solving. Topics covered include the distracting characteristics of new technologies (such as the effects of cell phone use on driving ability and of distracting advertisements on problem solving), the study of mass media through assessing memories for media experiences, the media's role in advancing gender and racial prejudices, and the misuse of cognitive technology through identity theft and cyberterrorism. Each essay concludes with a bibliography.

It's been said that the best revenge is a life well lived. Pollyanna's Revenge: How Memory and Emotion Foster Happiness explores people's ability to stay strong in the face of adversity, to bounce back after failure, and to thrive in the direst of circumstances. This text combines empirical evidence gathered from around the world and narratives from places and people that exemplify the best and worst of life experiences. The reader will visit the fictional town of Mayberry, meet a convicted murderer who has asked God to forgive his sins, learn the tale of a bully that terrorized a Midwestern town for a decade, and get to know a true Pollyanna making the best of life in spite of significant health and emotional setbacks. Throughout the narrative sections of Pollyanna's Revenge, the authors provide evidence to show positive emotions or events outnumber and outlast negative emotions or events as well as provide examples of automatic, non-conscious mental processes that help people sustain their happiness. Summarizing 20 years of research in autobiographical memory, Pollyanna's Revenge describes a phenomenon; 'The Fading affect Bias' which is the tendency for negative emotions to fade faster than positive emotions. Pollyanna's Revenge is a book for readers interested in positive psychology. It provides a better understanding on how the processes of the mind help most people to lead a happier life.