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Wednesday, August 31, 2016

The Philosophy Class: Looking for Spinoza


By Gemma Cleanslate


I went over to Wainscot to register for the new year of classes at Professor Bergson’s lecture hall. I have been attending classes here for nine years. Sigh. I just can’t seem to graduate. There have been 614 lectures since the institution of the classes each year in Second Life and there have been 14 projects since the class began in 2009, September. The past lectures can all be found on line if you would like to see all the themes we have completed and talked about. http://thephilosophyclass.blogspot.com/
 I have not attended all the classes but they are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays like clockwork, with the exception of holidays . All are invited to check out the classes and join in on the lectures. Professor presents and then we discuss, sometimes vigorously and sometimes wandering off the subject but are quickly drawn back.
This year the professor, as usual, has a new and intriguing theme for us to delve into.
“In 2003 the famous neuroscientist Antonio Damasio published a book with the title: 'Looking for Spinoza - Joy, Sorrow and the Feeling Brain' The Dutch translation of the book got a rather more ambitious title:
"'Het Gelijk van Spinoza - Vreugde, Verdriet en het voelend brein' which could be translated as 'Spinoza was right - Joy, Sorrow and the Feeling Brain.'
"In this project we'll investigate what Damasio meant and how a philosopher, born in 1632, can contribute to our modern neuroscientific insights.
"But first we'll learn how the philosophical ideas of someone who lived more than 380 years ago are still controversial and closely related to our present situation. “
We will hope to see you in the lecture hall on the opening day, the first of September, Thursday at 1:00 http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Wainscot/204/195/38

Gemma Cleanslate

Monday, August 29, 2016

Gofundme Page For Frank


By Deaflegacy,

"I'm born hard of hearing with moderate to severe hearing loss. I'm the first one in a hearing family from the last three known generation," said Frank.

Frank (resident name f2004w) explained that according to his insurance company, it is considered cosmetic, even his parents had to pay the full price on his last one over ten years ago, even though he was insured under their family plan. They would cover it if only he took the procedure of getting a cochlear implant. But he finds no need for surgery because he can function fine with just hearing aids.
When Frank was asked if he was surprised that his boss is throwing a fundraiser, Frank said, "Yes! I was really surprised about that, I was thought nothing of it because it was more of my personal life problem than a work problem, he really went out of his way for setting this up."

Frank works at a car dealership that covers Audi, Subaru, Range Rover, Jaguar, and Volvo in one big building as a head porter, managing 15-plus porters. One of his bosses is Terry McQuaid, manager of Subaru,  the person who sets up the gofundme fundraiser (https://www.gofundme.com/2hcvpy33).

It is only currently only linked toward to GoFundMe, Frank is considering creating a certain mesh to help the fundraiser specifically for Second Life. Right now you can only find in Furry Fashion where you can click the board by the sandbox that gives you a direct link to GoFundMe fundraiser site.

When asked about the fundraisers, Frank said, "I didn't thought about it, I don't know any fundraising methods. So I mentioned it to the owner of Furry Fashion and within a few hours later I just been informed that there will be a fundraiser event Monday 29th of August for me.

Furry Fashion and a store named Treasured and Bully will be taking part for this fundraising event, "I will be also making a limited edition benches for fundraising as well."


A typical pair for a person with moderate to severe hearing loss hearing aid cost from $3,700 to $6,000 a pair. That is not including the cost of ear mold and hearing tests. The amount of the fundraiser at the moment is $2,865.

At this moment, I wish Frank all the luck in the world.  It's a shame that his insurance company thought the hearing aids are some kind of cosmetic thing but knowing my experiences with hearing aids, it is anything but cosmetic.
 
Deaflegacy

Monday, August 15, 2016

And the Award Goes to ...


By Gemma Cleanslate

Sunday I attended the Relay for Life WrapUp. I made sure to get there for the pre-party to be in the sim since it fills up.There were three backup areas to attend. The final speeches were laudatory to all who had participated and I know you will get to see the video or read the transcript that was done so quickly by Miss Cuddly Waffle
It was a great pleasure to hear Random Darrow, the chair of the 2016 relay announce that special recognition went to Bixyl Shuftan for his years of support in blogging the Relay and all its events in the SL Newser. What a thrill to hear that and he was really surprised at the unexpected announcement. Wonderful! 
Random‘s words, “Community Champion Award: A Community Champion describes a person who goes out of their way to do good things for his or her community.  A person who dedicates a large portion of their time serving others, selflessly and generously.   This is our opportunity to honor and acknowledge the contributions made to RFL of SL by those who aren’t necessarily even on a team or committee or even in the Volunteer group. It is our opportunity to let them know that their service to Relay has made an impact and is so very much appreciated.
"Our second award goes to BIXYL SHUFTAN and the SL Newser.  Bixyl is a member of the Sunbeamers team, but outside of the team Bixyl has been blogging since 2010 about RFL of SL throughout the years with his SL Newser. Bixyl we appreciate all the time you devote to highlight RFL of SL in your Newser.”
Go Bixyl!!!

Gemma Cleanslate

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Biller Longfall and the Jericho Hill Racing Association

By Bixyl Shuftan

In early June, racing in Second Life made the headlines when the Buddy Forsythe 100 took place, which was won by Biller Longfall. Auto racing in Second Life is nothing new, having gone on for years. Not long ago, Biller asked to talk to me about what goes on with racing in Second Life.

When we first talked, Biller stated he ran a racing group in Second Life. They were the Jericho Hill Racing Association, or JHRA, "We have races every Tuesday at 7 for Factory Stock, Wednesday at 3 for Super Cup, and Sunday at 6 for Gen 6 cars. Factory Stocks and Super Cups are the easiest, while you do more in Gen 6 cars, like pit stops and such." Their championship week was June 26-July 2.

Biller too me to a track at the Jerico Hill sim, which was over 2500 feet off the ground, "This is Flemington Speedway, based off (the) Flemington Speedway in New Jersey in real life. It handles a lot like Indianapolis, very fast and narrow in the corners. (It's) nearly, if not all the way, flat out." There were other tracks on the sim at different heights. He took me to another, the Irwindale Speedway, "based off the real thing, Which is located in Irwindale, California. This is actually the same track the Relay race was on." Jerico Hill currently has "over twelve unique different tracks. JHRA features a variety of oval tracks and a few road courses from builders all over SL, unlike any other racing league out there."

"Anthony Stuart from SLARCA, Kandy Tomorrow from KC, Willis Bailey from WB, a few JHRA originals, and potentially ones from Dowcha Foxdale and Sliver Motorsports in the near future. None of those guys are still around, but I thought a lot of their stuff needed to continue because otherwise, it's wasted siting in inventory. We race cars from R.I.R Racing and currently have partnership with them and the SRL Racing League."

Biller stated Jerrico Hill got it's start, "Back sometime in 2015, I was talking to one of my friends, Anthony Stuart. We were discussing what we thought was missing from SL racing, like realism, while at the same time, more calmer atmosphere. Then we brought Mango Darwinian on board. After many months of up and down, we finally got this thing kicked off and it's been steadily growing with interest ever since. Originally, we were going to do mini scale. But found it to be too problematic, so instead (we) formed partnerships."

"When racing events go on, it's so exciting. I love seeing races on this track."The number of racers per event can vary, As to how close races can be: very, "We've already had finishes of 0.205, 0.156, 0.052, and 0.130 seconds in the last four of five races so far.Side by side, it's very competitive. Good chunk of the field that is competitive to win any week. And what the funny part is, three of those came on Jericho Hill, which is a wide fast track. The fourth came at Flemington, which is a narrow fast track."

Of the cars used for the races, Biller stated, "Currently we use cars provided by our good friends at RIR. They are based off Stock Cars, like NASCAR. He showed me three, his cars having the number "4" and painted orange and black, "The first car is the Factory Stock car... they have steering and downforce options, it is by far the easiest car. But also very competitive. The Super Cup has Steering, Wedge, and Downforce. Hopefully soon, we can make it one setup, so anybody can jump in and go race."

Pointing out the third, "And then the Gen 6 car is my personal favorite. It's fast. It has Steering, Wedge, and Downforce settings... as well as damage. So if your car hits the wall, it will lower your wedge, which will make the car a lot harder to handle. It's also a car you pit in. No speed limit pit stops are fun to watch and to do."

He pointed out a feature that added realism to Second Life racing: draft, or a car having less wind resistance when just behind another car, "All three have draft, so you can ride behind another car and pick up some draft. You can bump draft even on certain tracks."

Biller took the Gen 6 car out out on the track for a few demonstration runs, the timer at the finish line giving his time and speed. His best was 15.446 seconds at 151 kilometers an hour, or 93 miles an hour. Four of his five laps differed by less than 10 kph, "It's really nice during races; it's really close."

Of the requirements needed to race, "Anybody is allowed to come race, just have to remove all scripts. I have no scripts on and I don't look so bad, right?" he chuckled. "We allow free demos in competition. No limit on that, just rez whatever car is scheduled for that race and just have fun."

I asked Biller with the Buddy Forsythe 100 over, what big racing events lay ahead. He answered, "Besides the championship races, beginning next season, we'll be doing a cool All-Star race at a new track, Charlotte Motor Speedway." Of the champtionship races, "We have four championships. Three of those are season based, and one is yearly. It's probably going to be intense. Beginning next season, we will expand the schedule to 12 weeks."

"We are always looking for partnership and I would love to branch off to other forms of racing, like open wheel, dirt, rally, or moto stuff... any progress or news would be announced on the JHRA website."

Their current normal schedule is Tuesday at 6:30 PM SL time, Wednesday at 3PM, and Sunday at 6PM. The week of August 21-27 has only one day of racing: the "All Star Week" on Aug. 23, with events at 4:30 and 6:30 PM SL time.

I would later see one of their racing events, with four other races besides Biller, including one woman: Becky Alder. In the first race, which consisted of 65 laps, Becky won by just 1.071 seconds. The champion of the Buddy Forsythe 100 didn't do so well, coming in a lap behind. Becky commented she didn't always do so well, "I go from the worst possible way to race last night to a win."

So if you feel like burning rubber, there's a number of places you can race around. And Biller and his friends will be happy to make a place for you.

The JHRA lobby is located at Jericho Hill (103/162/2569). Their website, once again, is at: https://jhraracing.wordpress.com/ .

*Addition* Biller would later say the schedule had changed somewhat, " Our new times are Tuesday at 6:30PM with Factory Stocks, Wednesday at 5:30PM with Super Cups, and Sunday at 6:30PM with new Xfinity cars."

Bixyl Shuftan