Second Life Events

Your Favorite Music from the Movies

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:43 GMT

Today's programme features the soundtracks of some of the Academy Award Winners of the past. Lord of the Rings, The English Patient, Master and Commander, American Grafitti, Forrest Gump and several more you are bound to recognise. Enjoy..

Radio Riel produces this program in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the program now at http://main.radioriel.org . Today's music originates from the music library of Soliel Snook.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

May Basket Day Hunt

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:23 GMT

When: May 1-June 17, 2010

Start Location: L'Amour Gift Store

Currently Seeing Vendors: Please see additional information to participate

In the honor of May Basket Day I would like to host

a grid wide hunt. If you are a store, creator or vendor

who would like to enter I welcome your entry just

fill out the form. 􀀑

I would like items that you do not have in your store for

sell. Something you created special for the hunt!

Flowers, clothing, jewelry, art, furniture, textures, lamps,

rugs, pets, hard to find items. If you make it put it in the hunt.

Take part in this wonderful spring event…..

Send forms to:

Ocean Firecaster

A tradition for many hundreds of years, May Day Baskets are popular

among children and meant to demonstrate the joy of gift giving.

The history of May Day dates back to pre-Christian Europe as a

tribute to Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers. Flower-centric

festivals are customary still today. Often popular among children,

the first day of May has slowly evolved into a celebration of giving,

once referred to as “bringing in the May.”

The tradition of May Day begins with a basket or container brimming

with flowers and small gifts. The May Day basket is quietly and

secretly placed on the doorstep of a neighbor or loved one,

demonstrating the gift of giving without receiving.

Children and adults alike can participate in the joy of the holiday

by making a special basket for a friend. Gather fresh spring flowers

and small branches or twigs to fill a decorative container that is

sure to delight its recipient. Try these quick-and-easy ideas to

create a charming May Day basket.

Ocean Firecaster Coordinator Of The May Basket Hunt

In the honor of May Basket Day I would like to host a grid wide hunt. If you are a store, creator or vendor who would like to enter I welcome your entry just fill out the form. 􀀑
I would like items that you do not have in your store for sell. Something you created special for the hunt! Flowers, clothing, jewelry, art, furniture, textures, lamps, rugs, pets, hard to find items. If you make it put it in the hunt. Take part in this wonderful spring event…..
Send forms to:Ocean Firecaster A tradition for many hundreds of years, May Day Baskets are popular among children and meant to demonstrate the joy of gift giving.

The history of May Day dates back to pre-Christian Europe as a tribute to Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers. Flower-centric festivals are customary still today. Often popular among children, the first day of May has slowly evolved into a celebration of giving, once referred to as “bringing in the May.”
The tradition of May Day begins with a basket or container brimming with flowers and small gifts. The May Day basket is quietly and secretly placed on the doorstep of a neighbor or loved one, demonstrating the gift of giving without receiving. Children and adults alike can participate in the joy of the holiday by making a special basket for a friend. Gather fresh spring flowers and small branches or twigs to fill a decorative container that is sure to delight its recipient. Try these quick-and-easy ideas to create a charming May Day basket.
Ocean Firecaster Coordinator Of The May Basket Hunt

Ghostly Impressions Hunt

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:13 GMT

When: May 1-June 4, 2010

Start Location: ANGEL'S HAVEN MAIN STORE

Currently Seeing Vendors: Please see additional information to participate

Ghostly Expressions Hunt

Coordinator of Ghostly Expressions: Trinity Frequency

I would like to welcome you to join us in the search for an answer:

PLEASE create new note card, fill out the application

and return toTrinity Frequency.

If you have any questions regarding this application

process, please do not hesitate to contact me.

If you are a creator, vendor or artist of SL fill

out the note cardnwith your information attached.

Upon visiting your store I will assign you with

a store number and group invite.

You make creator a number of items to be given away as in

the form of Collectibles, Antiques, Household Items, Clothing,

Pets, Outdoor Items, Jewerly, Food Items, AO's, Gestures and

anything else you can think of…no limits to what you can give

away…..Just as long as it's not already a part of your store.

Make this item special for your hunt…no one wants to find

what they could buy. Send your entery to me only

Trinity Frequency

Deadline is April 23th 2010

Name:

Name of your store:

Item you are giving away:

What your store sells:

Landmark:

SLURL:

Rating of your stores location:

You will receive a HUNT KIT if you’ve been accepted. Inside,

you'll find your GHOSTLY EXPRESSIONS HUNT sign.

Please rezz the sign in a prominent spot near the landing point,

and again near your store entrance if you’re a distance

away from the landing spot. You're asked to rezz the sign

no later than 3 weeks from the start of the hunt.

~ADULT CONTENT VENDORS~ If your store is on the adult grid,

please note that as well on your application.

Once the deadline for the application is closed,

then the ‘object' will be passed to each vendor,

along with the LM to the next store.

Spread the word around SL to join Ghostly Expressions

Ghostly Expressions HuntCoordinator of Ghostly Expressions: Trinity FrequencyI would like to welcome you to join us in the search for an answer:
PLEASE create new note card, fill out the application and return toTrinity Frequency. If you have any questions regarding this application process, please do not hesitate to contact me. If you are a creator, vendor or artist of SL fill out the note cardnwith your information attached. Upon visiting your store I will assign you with a store number and group invite.
You make creator a number of items to be given away as inthe form of Collectibles, Antiques, Household Items, Clothing,Pets, Outdoor Items, Jewerly, Food Items, AO's, Gestures andanything else you can think of…no limits to what you can give away…..Just as long as it's not already a part of your store.Make this item special for your hunt…no one wants to findwhat they could buy. Send your entery to me onlyTrinity Frequency
Deadline is April 23th 2010
Name:
Name of your store:
Item you are giving away:
What your store sells:
Landmark:
SLURL:
Rating of your stores location:
You will receive a HUNT KIT if you’ve been accepted. Inside, you'll find your GHOSTLY EXPRESSIONS HUNT sign. Please rezz the sign in a prominent spot near the landing point, and again near your store entrance if you’re a distance away from the landing spot. You're asked to rezz the sign no later than 3 weeks from the start of the hunt.
~ADULT CONTENT VENDORS~ If your store is on the adult grid, please note that as well on your application.
Once the deadline for the application is closed, then the ‘object' will be passed to each vendor, along with the LM to the next store.
Spread the word around SL to join Ghostly Expressions

Bliss Couture Lovers Hunt

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:06 GMT

When: February 8-21, 2010

Where: Bliss Couture

Bliss Couture proudly presents its Lovers Hunt beginning February 8th! This will be the first Bliss Couture couples hunt that will feature items for males as well as female hunters. During this Valentine month what better way to spend time with your loved one than by participating in a couples hunt? Amutey Decuir, Owner of Bliss Couture, will not only have this fabulous hunt from February 8th through the 21st, she will also have a gorgeous Valentine gift for members only. The members only February Valentine's dress is a dazzling short dress and definitely a gift that your significant other would love to see you in. In order to receive this very generous group gift you must join the in-world Bliss Couture group, so what are you waiting for, go ahead and join now!

WEDNESDAY 10 Feb @ 6pm: Romance on Their Minds

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:43 GMT

Join Marian Dragovar and Derry McMahon in SL New England for romance stories! Time to get revved up for Valentine's Day!! Guys and Gals, Gals and Gals, Love among the Fae, all sorts of love stories. LMs for the Nantucket Theatre in New England will be sent before the stories.

Off The Shelf interview with Sharon Lee and Steve Miller

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 23:57 GMT

This weeks interview will be with science fiction authors, Sharon Lee and Steve Miller.
Best known for their novels and short stories set in the Liaden Universe, Sharon And Steve have been involved in most aspects of the industry not just as authors but as publishers both traditional and electronic, Bookshop owners and of course active members of the science fiction community.

Their latest novel Saltation will be published In April by Baen Books,

You can listen to Off the Shelf via any of the following methods:

Direct link to the show on Archive.org, where you can listen to it as a stream or download the audio file directly
Subscribe on iTunes
Subscribe using our RSS feed

Filed under: Bookstacks News, off the shelf

From the Library: Musica Ex Machinis

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 18:00 GMT

Today Elrik Merlin presents a varied programme of music from (and sometimes by) machines. And we mean musical machines in the broadest sense, from glass harmonicas, Victorian musical boxes and the mighty Symphonion, to steam organs, pianolas and barrel pianos (and the modern Cybraphon) on the one hand, but touching the capabilities of early computers and synthesisers on the other.

However, despite the inclusion of some music from electronic instruments, this is not really a programme of classic electronica - although there is some - and a fair amount of the material is in a fairly traditional vein, including recordings of mechanical instruments of the Victorian era that might have been heard in the parlour, public house or at the fairground. There are, however, good examples of classic(al) synth performances from Isao Tomita and Wendy Carlos, including some narrative descriptions of the latter's early experiments with the medium and the more recent Switched-On Bach 2000.

On a (much) lighter note there are electronic pieces in a Victorian style from Magnatune artist Professor Armchair, and fairly recent electronic whimsy from Jean-Jacques Perrey, long-time collaborator with Gershon Kingsley on some of the earliest synthesiser albums 40 years ago (yes, it's really that long).

There is also some of the first "computer music" ever recorded, created by programming an IBM 7090 and including a rendition of Daisy, Daisy that was the inspiration for the piece appearing in Stanley Kubrick's film 2001.

Pictured: the Telharmonium, shown in Telharmonium Hall in 1897: possibly the world's first electronic instrument. No recordings exist. Image from Wikipedia.

From the Library is produced by Radio Riel in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the programme now at http://main.radioriel.org - or click here to link straight to your player if your browser is set up to do so. Today's programme is presented by Elrik Merlin.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

March Madness Hunt

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 14:24 GMT

When: March 10-25, 2010

Group: *~* march madness group*~*

Starting Location: ICARUS HOME & LIGHTING

Sweet Valentine Hunt at Onar Shopping Mall

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 10:21 GMT

When: February 5-15, 2010

Looking For: 25 Red Hearts

Location: ONAR – Clothing- Jewelery

The rules are :

- Each heart contains a piece of a puzzle. You should, therefore, find them all to put this puzzle together !

- They are numbered so that you know if you have them all

- The pieces are given on a random basis.

Those who will be able to piece this puzzle together will win an additional prize consisting of a very nice mystery gift !

However, do not believe the hearts will be easy to find…. you will have to search quite a lot and enjoy our shops at the same time…

As soon as you have the puzzle ready, please send a pic of it to Anyraya Braveheart by IM to get your winner gift !

Additionally, should there be several winners, we will place their names into a drawing for L$1000 and L$500 in gifts. For this occasion, a great DJ party will be held at the club (wooohooo). The hunt lasts through February 15th. The drawing will take place within a week of the hunt's end.

So, please play nice and limit your selections to one per avatar per package.

The rules are :- Each heart contains a piece of a puzzle. You should, therefore, find them all to put this puzzle together ! - They are numbered so that you know if you have them all - The pieces are given on a random basis. Those who will be able to piece this puzzle together will win an additional prize consisting of a very nice mystery gift !However, do not believe the hearts will be easy to find…. you will have to search quite a lot and enjoy our shops at the same time…
As soon as you have the puzzle ready, please send a pic of it to Anyraya Braveheart by IM to get your winner gift !
Additionally, should there be several winners, we will place their names into a drawing for L$1000 and L$500 in gifts. For this occasion, a great DJ party will be held at the club (wooohooo). The hunt lasts through February 15th. The drawing will take place within a week of the hunt's end.
So, please play nice and limit your selections to one per avatar per package.

Bejambled Jewelry Outlet Valentines Hunt

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 10:13 GMT

When: February 6-21, 2010

Locations: Bejambled Jewelry Outlet – West ; Bejambled Jewelry Outlet – South; Bejambled Jewelry Outlet – East

Blog: http://www.bejamble.net/bjo/index.php

The rules are :

- Each gem contains one word. You should find all of them to build a sentence.

- The gems are numbered so that you know if you have them all

- The words are given on a random basis.

Those who will be able to give the complete sentence will win an additional prize consisting of a very nice mystery gift !

However, do not believe the gems will be easy to find…. you will have to search quite a lot which will give you the opportunity to enjoy our shops at the same time…

As soon as you have the full sentence ready, please send it to Anyraya Braveheart to get your winner gift !

Additionally, should there be several winners, we will place their names into a drawing for L$1000. The hunt lasts through February 21st. The drawing will take place within a week of the hunt's end.

The rules are :- Each gem contains one word. You should find all of them to build a sentence. - The gems are numbered so that you know if you have them all - The words are given on a random basis. Those who will be able to give the complete sentence will win an additional prize consisting of a very nice mystery gift !However, do not believe the gems will be easy to find…. you will have to search quite a lot which will give you the opportunity to enjoy our shops at the same time…
As soon as you have the full sentence ready, please send it to Anyraya Braveheart to get your winner gift !
Additionally, should there be several winners, we will place their names into a drawing for L$1000. The hunt lasts through February 21st. The drawing will take place within a week of the hunt's end.

THIS WEEK at the WOI Library: Feb 7 - 14

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 08:12 GMT

Jules Verne, A.A. Milne, Charles DeLint, and an antidote if sappy romance has got your emotional blood- sugar soaring, all this week . . .

All Stories read live in voice. All times are SLT.

Monday, February 8 at 7:00pm: "Adventures with Pooh Bear" with Caledonia Skytower

Tuesday, February 9 at 7:00pm: An Evening of Charles DeLint with Aoife Lorefield

Wednesday, February 10 at 7:00pm: Part III: Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne with Onyx Plutonian

Thursday, February 11 at 7:00pm: Tales with the DE-lightful and FAB-ulous Elegia Underwood, Steelhead's Eccentric Dragoness.

Sunday, February 14 at 3:00pm: Anti-Valentine's Day Stories with Derry McMahon & Friends

And here are some other WOI Storytelling events taking place across the Grid to benefit Project Children:

Sunday, February 7 at 3:00pm: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea with Derry McMahon & Onyx Plutonian at the Jules Verne Undersea Library in The Fruit Islands

Wednesday, February 10 at 6:00pm: The WOI Storytellers Return to SL New England with Marian Dragovar and Friends.

Stories all read Live in VOICE. IM the Storytellers for Landmarks to readings not taking place at the WOI Library, OR at the Library click on the Celtic Cross Window Ornament or the Large Green Leather Book by the Librarian's desk for a notecard with this schedule and embedded landmarks.

New Horizons Open Mic Poetry on Fridays

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:05 GMT

Recurring Event
First start: 2010-02-12 19:00:00 CST
Duration: 3600
Where: Philosophy Island in SL SLURL: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Philosophy%20Island/109/114/21
Event Status: confirmed
Event Description: New Horizons open mic poetry 5 PM SLT Fridays Never say, you can never find a New Horizon, Poetry should always bring you to your new horizon, And New Horizons is the home of the Newest poetry event in SL, So always Look for New Horizon's first, every Friday at 5 PM SLT http://slurl.com/secondlife/Philosophy%20Island/109/114/21

Jazz by the Canal on Saturdays (2nd)

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:05 GMT

Recurring Event
First start: 2010-01-09 23:30:00 CST
Duration: 5400
Where: Le Vieux Canal Jazz Club, New Toulouse Algiers
Event Status: confirmed

Elegia Underwood with Fabulous Stories! on 2/11

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:04 GMT

When: Thu Feb 11, 2010 7pm to 8pm PST

Where: West of Ireland Library
Event Status: confirmed

Adventures with Pooh Bear on 2/8

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:03 GMT

When: Mon Feb 8, 2010 7pm to 8pm PST

Where: West of Ireland Library and Cultural Center
Event Status: confirmed
Event Description: Caledonia shares selected Adventures of Pooh Bear and the denizens of the Hundred Acre Wood: Rabbit, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, Eeyore, and Tigger too! Read live in Voice.

Ringo Robonaught Live - Exhibit Opening on 2/7

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 06:02 GMT

When: Sun Feb 7, 2010 2pm to 3pm PST

Where: Library Art Gallery in SL
Event Status: confirmed

By Whitman, Biweekly! February 9th

Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:12 GMT

By Whitman, Biweekly!
Tuesday February 9th, 4pm SLT
Caledon Library, on the Hub in Victoria City
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Caledon%20Victoria%20City/160/117/23

A Discussion led by Dame Kghia Gheardi of the works of Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass is one of the works at the foundations of American poetry. Its expansive attempt to capture the spirit and landscape of the 19th century United States has influenced an entire culture's self-concept, and its rich language continues to inspire readers today as it has for the century and a half of its existence.

"By Whitman, BI-Weekly" will provide an opportunity to look closely at this beloved work. Each time we'll spend an hour discussing its context and examining the poetry of the 1855 first edition.

The series will also give those who love Leaves of Grass, and those who would like to learn more, an opportunity to explore Whitman's vigorous and heartfelt poetry together.

Below is the text we'll discuss this week:

SAUNTERING the pavement or riding the country byroad here then are
faces,
Faces of friendship, precision, caution, suavity, ideality,
The spiritual prescient face, the always welcome common benevolent face,
The face of the singing of music, the grand faces of natural lawyers and judges
broad at the backtop,
The faces of hunters and fishers, bulged at the brows . . . . the shaved blanched
faces of orthodox citizens,
The pure extravagant yearning questioning artist's face,
The welcome ugly face of some beautiful soul . . . . the handsome detested or
despised face,
The sacred faces of infants . . . . the illuminated face of the mother of many children,
The face of an amour . . . . the face of veneration,
The face as of a dream . . . . the face of an immobile rock,
The face withdrawn of its good and bad . . a castrated face,
A wild hawk . . his wings clipped by the clipper,
A stallion that yielded at last to the thongs and knife of the gelder.

Sauntering the pavement or crossing the ceaseless ferry, here then are faces;
I see them and complain not and am content with all.

Do you suppose I could be content with all if I thought them their own finale?

This now is too lamentable a face for a man;
Some abject louse asking leave to be . . cringing for it,
Some milknosed maggot blessing what lets it wrig to its hole.

This face is a dog's snout sniffing for garbage;
Snakes nest in that mouth . . I hear the sibilant threat.

This face is a haze more chill than the arctic sea,
Its sleepy and wobbling icebergs crunch as they go.

This is a face of bitter herbs . . . . this an emetic . . . . they need no label,
And more of the drugshelf . . laudanum, caoutchouc, or hog's lard.

This face is an epilepsy advertising and doing business . . . . its wordless tongue
gives out the unearthly cry,
Its veins down the neck distend . . . . its eyes roll till they show nothing but their
whites,
Its teeth grit . . the palms of the hands are cut by the turned-in nails,
The man falls struggling and foaming to the ground while he speculates well.

This face is bitten by vermin and worms,
And this is some murderer's knife with a halfpulled scabbard.

This face owes to the sexton his dismalest fee,
An unceasing deathbell tolls there.

Those are really men! . . . . the bosses and tufts of the great round globe.

Features of my equals, would you trick me with your creased and cadaverous
march?
Well then you cannot trick me.

I see your rounded never-erased flow,
I see neath the rims of your haggard and mean disguises.
Splay and twist as you like . . . . poke with the tangling fores of fishes or rats,
You'll be unmuzzled . . . . you certainly will.

I saw the face of the most smeared and slobbering idiot they had at the asylum,
And I knew for my consolation what they knew not;
I knew of the agents that emptied and broke my brother,
The same wait to clear the rubbish from the fallen tenement;
And I shall look again in a score or two of ages,
And I shall meet the real landlord perfect and unharmed, every inch as good as
myself.

The Lord advances and yet advances:
Always the shadow in front . . . . always the reached hand bringing up the laggards.

Out of this face emerge banners and horses . . . . O superb! . . . . I see what is
coming,
I see the high pioneercaps . . . . I see the staves of runners clearing the way,
I hear victorious drums.

This face is a lifeboat;
This is the face commanding and bearded . . . . it asks no odds of the rest;
This face is flavored fruit ready for eating;
This face of a healthy honest boy is the programme of all good.

These faces bear testimony slumbering or awake,
They show their descent from the Master himself.

Off the word I have spoken I except not one . . . . red white or black, all are deific,
In each house is the ovum . . . . it comes forth after a thousand years.

Spots or cracks at the windows do not disturb me,
Tall and sufficient stand behind and make signs to me;
I read the promise and patiently wait.

This is a fullgrown lily's face,
She speaks to the limber-hip'd man near the garden pickets,
Come here, she blushingly cries . . . . Come nigh to me limber-hip'd man and give me
your finger and thumb,
Stand at my side till I lean as high as I can upon you,
Fill me with albescent honey . . . . bend down to me,
Rub to me with your chafing beard . . rub to my breast and shoulders.

The old face of the mother of many children:
Whist! I am fully content.
Lulled and late is the smoke of the Sabbath morning,
It hangs low over the rows of trees by the fences,
It hangs thin by the sassafras, the wildcherry and the catbrier under them.

I saw the rich ladies in full dress at the soiree,
I heard what the run of poets were saying so long,
Heard who sprang in crimson youth from the white froth and the water-blue.

Behold a woman!
She looks out from her quaker cap . . . . her face is clearer and more beautiful than
the sky.

She sits in an armchair under the shaded porch of the farmhouse,
The sun just shines on her old white head.

Her ample gown is of creamhued linen,
Her grandsons raised the flax, and her granddaughters spun it with the distaff and
the wheel.

The melodious character of the earth!
The finish beyond which philosophy cannot go and does not wish to go!
The justified mother of men!

From the Library: Spiritual Sunday...The Celts

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:01 GMT

Today, Radio Riel celebrates the spirit of the Celts.

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Radio Riel produces this program in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the program now at http://main.radioriel.org . Today's music originates from the music library of Gabrielle Riel.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

The ZBS Radio Hour: Moon Over Morocco Part 4

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 02:00 GMT

This week on the ZBS Radio Hour, at 11am repeated at 7pm SLT (Sat 7pm & Sun 3am GMT),* we present the fourth episode of Moon Over Morocco - a classic adventure serial in ten hour-long episodes - part Casablanca, part Arabian Nights. Jack has passed through the Peacock Gates - and disappeared into another dimension. Where is he? What's happening to him? And what is the Comtessa de Zazeenia up to?

The environments in Moon Over Morocco were recorded by author "Meatball" Fulton while traveling around that country. Listen on headphones! You'll hear the Medina, the Casbah, the music of the snake charmers, the lonely call to prayer from the minaret of the mosque, the dogs of Tangier as the moon becomes full, the music of the desert tribes recorded in the Sahara and Berber music recorded at festivals in the Grand Atlas and Rif Mountains. Music was recorded by Paul Bowles.

Featuring Robert Lesser as Kasbah Kelly, Dave Adams as the pianist Mojo Sam and Taurean Blacque as the storyteller Mustafa.

If you enjoy Moon Over Morocco, you can obtain it, and many other recordings, on CD or as mp3 downloads from the ZBS.org web site.

Join us this and every Saturday for the ZBS Radio Hour - audio adventure at its best from ZBS Foundation. To listen, come to our listening party at Radio Riel HQ in Edison Hypatia, or tune in at home on Radio Riel's Main Stream on http://main.radioriel.org - or click here to launch your player immediately if your browser is configured to do so.

*A note on timing: The show will begin after the end of the track playing at the top of the hour (we like to complete pieces of music). As a result the programme may start up to a few minutes after the hour.

Easter Egg Madness

Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:41 GMT

When: March 14-April 10, 2010

Start Location: III Mainstore & TrashFashBlog

From the Library: Big Band & Swing... And More

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:00 GMT

In today's programme, Elrik Merlin will be playing both historical and modern recordings of Big Band and Swing, with a touch of Ragtime and Trad Jazz. Instrumental and vocal numbers are included along with some big hits from the 20s to 40s.

From the Library is produced by Radio Riel in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the programme now at http://main.radioriel.org - or click here to link straight to your player if your browser is set up to do so. Today's programme is presented by Elrik Merlin.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

Sexy Kisses Hunt

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:33 GMT

When: February 8-March 8, 2010

Searching For: 69 Kisses

Location: Elle Mode Gallery

Irish Blessings Hunt

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 11:47 GMT

When: February 10 – March 17, 2010

Group for Hunters: Irish Blessings Hunters

Blog: http://irishblessingshunt.wordpress.com/

Group for Hunters:Irish Blessings Hunters

Number of shamrocks to find: 48

Starting location: Celtic / Irish Shop

Building Blocks Hunt

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 11:44 GMT

When: March 1 – 29, 2010

Group for hunters: Building Blocks Hunters

Blog: http://buildingblockshunt.wordpress.com/

Hunt Object: Sculpted Hammer

Gifts: Many full perm textures, sculpties and scripts as well as original builds

When: March 1 – 29, 2010

Multitasking and the Vapors: Connecting the Dots

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 05:36 GMT

CONNECTING THE DOTS: MULTITASKING AND THE VAPORS

By Robert Bloomfield

I saw Digital Nation last night, the PBS Frontline episode that claims to be about ‘life on the virtual frontier.’ Actually, I only saw the first part of it, and simply couldn’t take it anymore. The emotional thrust of the piece is clearly that life on the virtual frontier is frightening, dysfunctional, and spells the end of all that is good and wholesome. Now, maybe they sprinkle in some hopeful stories, and end on upbeat, but I didn’t stick around to find out.

Now, broadcast television tends to traffic in hope and fear, and the emphasis of this show seemed to be pretty heavy on fear. Hell, handbaskets, you know the drill. As a business professor, though, I traffic in goals and tactics, opportunity and challenges. This is very much the language Sam Driver used today to discuss enterprise applications of virtual worlds, or as he calls them, immersive software platforms.

I want to close today’s show by emphasizing the shortcomings of the hope-and-fear perspective, and to make my point I will talk about a topic that comes up very early in the episode: multitasking.
In Digital Nation, Stanford Processor Clifford Nass tells us that young people who were obsessive multitaskers thought they were great at it, but in fact they really weren’t, and it had other harmful effects on their cognition. These self-proclaimed experts took more time to switch from one task to another then less-frequent multitaskers. Despite their confidence in their abilities, paying attention to an additional task dramatically reduced multitaskers’ performance on other tasks. For example, students were presented with a test of their recollections after a lecture, and they should have been able to get 100% of the questions right, but multitaskers scored only 75%.

Digital Nation presented this information, to my eyes, as a package of doom and gloom. How will our kids compete in a global workplace if they get sucked into multitasking? I don’t think the researchers are asking the right question. I think most people would agree that multitasking is hard, and as a teacher I can guarantee that people who are paying attention to me and something else will recall less of what I say than people who are paying attention only to me. Hey, I mean you, listen up! Thank you. Now back to my point…I think the show did a nice job of showing that young people, who are overly confident about just about all aspects of their lives, are also overconfident about their ability to multitask. It was also effective in showing that people who are multitasking for no good reason aren’t doing themselves much good.

But if we switch to a perspective of goals and tactics, challenges and opportunities, I think a different story emerges. First, before even talking about the research, we need to focus on the goals of multitasking. Does it ever have a valid purpose in the workplace? In many cases, the answer is yes. I don’t believe one can be a successful caterer, NFL quarterback, or talk show host, for that matter, without being able to attend to many different things at once. Digital Nation is that it focuses on settings in which we don’t believe multitasking serves a useful goal. I don’t see a compelling business or educational case for texting with your friends while in the lecture hall, or worse yet, while driving. More generally, let’s ask this question: what if your job demands that you can attend to multiple media channels at once? In this case, not multitasking is simply not an option. So then we need to think about the challenges.

The first challenge is simply that multitasking is very hard. I don’t see much reason to think that kids who simply multitask because its fun have identified the most efficient ways to handle multiple inputs. Clearly we have a lot to learn. The second challenge is a bit more pernicious, and here I draw from the source for the Digital Nation’s discussion of multitasking: Cognitive Control in Media Multitaskers, an article published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, by Clifford Nass along with Eyal Ophir and Anthony Wagner.

The key finding is as follows:

Individuals who frequently use multiple media approach fundamental information-processing activities differently than do those who consume multiple media streams much less frequently: their breadth-biased media consumption behavior is indeed mirrored by breadth-biased cognitive control. [High Media Multitaskers] have greater difficulty filtering out irrelevant stimuli from their environment (as seen in the filter task and AX-CPT with distractors), they are less likely to ignore irrelevant representations in memory (two- and three-back tasks), and they are less effective in suppressing the activation of irrelevant task sets (task-switching). This last result is particularly striking given the central role attributed to task-switching in multitasking (25).

These results suggest that heavy media multitaskers are distracted by the multiple streams of media they are consuming, or, alternatively, that those who infrequently multitask are more effective at volitionally allocating their attention in the face of distractions. This may be a difference in orientation rather than a deficit; that is, although the data reveal negative effects in HMMs on performance of tasks that require cognitive control, it remains possible that future tests of higher-order cognition will uncover benefits, other than cognitive control, of heavy media multitasking, or will uncover skills specifically exhibited by HMMs not involving cognitive control.

The present data suggest that [Low Media Multitaskers] have a greater tendency for top-down attentional control, and thus they may find it easier to attentionally focus on a single task in the face of distractions. By contrast, HMMs are more likely to respond to stimuli outside the realm of their immediate task, and thus may have a greater tendency for bottom-up attentional control and a bias toward exploratory, rather than exploitative, information processing (26, 27). If so, they may be sacrificing performance on the primary task to let in other sources of information.

Nass and his co-authors are describing what you might call a form of cognitive leakage. As a professor, I face a similar challenge. I tend to lecture a lot to my students, of course. Sometimes that tendency leaks into my home life, and I start lecturing my wife and kids. Oops. It’s something I need to watch out for, but it isn’t the end of the world. At home we can come up with ways to let my family remind me I am not on campus. In the case of multi-tasking, we might need to search for ways to redefine job requirements. For example, we might want to concentrate multi-tasking duties with certain employees, so that the cognitive style that is forced upon them is useful, rather than detrimental, throughout the day. We might want to find ways to ease the transition from multitasking to focused cognition.

These are challenges, but they needn’t be frightening. So as we look ahead to the virtual workplace, which I promise you will involve more multitasking, we are going to have a number of challenges to overcome. But these are challenges, they aren’t boogymen. So let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work on solutions. But despite how it might improve television ratings, let’s not get the vapors, ok?

Der Maestro!

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:05 GMT

During his lifetime Beethoven's influence on Classical Music was so great that he was referred to as "The Maestro". Despite later deafness and social turmoil he is today one of the most recognised composers in the world, his 5th Symphony opening possibly being THE most recognisable musical phrase ever.

Today's broadcast features his symphonies, as well as a selection of concertos and better known piano pieces.

Radio Riel produces this program in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the program now at http://music.radioriel.org. Today's music originates from the music library of Edward Pearse.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

State of Machinima - Community Forum

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 03:52 GMT

Metanomics Community Forum

On this week's community forum: The State of Machinima – Jayjay Zifanwe and Chantal Harvey join us on Thursday, Feb. 4 at 12 pm PST (SL Time) at the Metanomics studio in Second Life. You can also watch it streamed live on the net from our Community Forum page.

During the community forum, Jayjay Zifanwe and Chantal Harvey will discuss the University of Western Australia's contest, The UWA Machinima challenge. The winners of its L$90,000 prize will be announced on February 8, 2010. Chantal Harvey is a finalist in that competition and the primary force behind the MaMachinima International Festival which occurs February 20, 2010.

Join us to talk about this uniquely virtual art form with two innovators from our community.

Shortlisted entries are displayed on the University of Western Australia (UWA) Second Life Blog.

Winners of this L$90,000 challenge will be announced on the 8th of February (details below) following the deliberations of an international panel helmed by the Vice Chancellor of the University of Western Australia (RL), Professor Alan Robson, and the doyen of all things SL, Torley Linden.

In no particular order, the finalists are:
MASTERDARK FOOTMAN, Dallas, Texas, USA (The Heart of UWA)

COLEMARIE SOLEIL, Florida USA (UWA Machinima Challenge Submission)

PYEWACKET BELLMAN, New York City, USA (University of Western Australia in Second Life)

CHANTAL HARVEY, Maastricht, Netherlands (University of Western Australia in Second Life)

CISKO VANDEVERRE, Belin, Germany

SOPHIA YATES, Lancaster, Massachusetts, USA (The Challenge – Architecture, Teaching, Research Arts on the UWA sims)

IONO ALLEN, Paris, France (Seek Wisdom)

GLASZ DECUIR, San Sebastian, Spain (MachinimUWA: UWA in Second Life, Achieving International Excellence)

LASLOPANTOMIK YAO, Barcelona, Spain (MachinimUWA)

BRADLEY DORCHESTER, Perth, Australia MachinimUWA: Art Architecture, Research, Teaching

NOVA DYSZEL, Toronto, Canada UWA in SL Challange

MASTERDARK FOOTMAN, Dallas, Texas, USA (UWA Jan 2010)

SOPHIA YATES, Lancaster, Massachusetts, USA (Second Life Virtual University of Western Australia )

More on the MaMachinima International Festival:

The MMIF is an event for the celebration, promotion and education of machinima arts creation. Not a contest, no awards, but a way of sharing knowledge, experiences and fun. The MMIF was initiated by Dutch machinimatographer Chantal Harvey, aiming to create a community of machinimatographers around the world.

From the Library: Happy Birthday Felix Mendelssohn

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:45 GMT

Today's program on Radio Riel's Main stream celebrates the birthday, and the work of the German composer, pianist and conductor, Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy. The man we know as Felix Mendelssohn was born on February 3, 1809. In honor of his 201st Birthday, we present a retrospective of his best known works, such as his Symphonies, Overtures, Concertos, and Gabrielle's personal favorite, his musical rendering of William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

Radio Riel produces this program in conjunction with the Alexandrian Free Library Consortium of Second Life. You can listen to the program now at http://main.radioriel.org . Today's music originates from the music library of Gabrielle Riel.

For more information on the Alexandrian Free Library, current exhibits and the work of Consortium members in general, please visit the Alexandrian Free Library website, or one of their branches in-world.

ANASTASIA ADDER Noon Saturday @ Celestial Jazz

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:00 GMT

Lovely, sultry and sweet with a voice like warm honey, Anastasia Adder brings her gifts to Celestial Jazz. Join us at Noon this Saturday for the Jazz/Soul selections from this delightful artist all the way from France.

Get a taste of her talents by visiting her myspace:

http://www.myspace.com/anastasiaadder

See You Saturday!

. . .Keep looking up! See you among the stars!!

Filed under: Awen, Bookstacks News, Celestial Jazz, events, Music, Virtually Speaking Tagged: ANASTASIA ADDER, bookstacks, Celestial, Dilana Lewellyn, Jazz, Soul

Thursday - February 4th at 7:00pm

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:05 GMT