Kaleidoscope – Monarch Education Project

 

By Netera Landar

Teleport into Kaleidoscope – Monarch Education Project, and you are immediately transported to a thriving forest where Monarch butterflies gather on trees. A waterfall cascades down a rocky cliff into a lake. Black birds circle the area, and smaller birds hide among the trees, chirping for their mates. 

This sim is alive, dressed in nature’s comforting hills of green, wildflowers, and ferns. Among all this natural beauty, the true purpose of the sim is explained on park bulletin boards. At the landing point’s first info board, click the gift texture to receive a companion Monarch that will land on your head and remain with you as you venture through its domain. My Angel sisters, Sandy and Talia, and I enjoyed this little adventure months ago.

Walking down the leaf-covered path toward the second info board, you’ll learn about the Monarch butterfly’s life cycle and the remarkable changes it undergoes. Eggs are laid on milkweed plants and hatch in three to six days. Females can lay 300 or more eggs while flying north. The tiny caterpillar eats milkweed and develops through five growth stages, called instars. Monarchs undergo metamorphosis over four weeks. 

In the fall, millions of Monarch butterflies migrate south to Mexico and return north the following spring, according to the info board. Another point emphasized the importance of our involvement in planting milkweed and other flowering plants to help complete the butterflies’ life cycle.

 

Why Monarchs matter is that, like bees, birds, and bats, they pollinate crops and plants throughout the world. As pollinators, they transfer pollen from one flowering plant to another, fertilizing the plants and supporting their ability to produce seeds and fruit.

 

Further down the path, another information board outlines ways you can help Monarch butterflies both at home and in your community. It recommends creating a habitat by planting a butterfly garden. We already know to plant native milkweed.  

 

You can also purchase nectar plants and avoid pesticides, which can kill Monarch butterflies throughout their lifecycle. Were you aware that, as a citizen scientist, you can report your observations? Many of us already know that limiting our mowing schedule is beneficial. 

At the sim, learn about Monarchs’ migration patterns, head toward the waterfall, cross the bridge to look out toward the lake, and watch the Monarchs soar from one towering tree to the next. Continue down the wooden walkway to feel the mist of the waterfall. Go through the cascading water with your partner to find a cozy wooden nest to sit in.

Be sure to donate Lindens to support the sim’s educational project.

Pebble Isle (50, 85, 81) – Moderate 

Netera Landar

The Broken Dreams Project

By Deaflegacy

I came upon a memorial recently.  I took a look all over the location.  There are so many monuments here, and they are all about people whose lives were taken away before their time.  There are young people who passed on from AIDS, cancer, and suicide.  Some of the monuments pass out notecards, describing about each memorial.  There are some memorials about certain young adults.  Some memorials are about groups of people. 

These memorials have names on them. Each memorial comes with a notecard, giving us a description of what the particular memorial is all about. While the memorials are sad, they also serve as what they are meant to be – a memorial to those who passed away.

I have gotten notecards from three memorials.  The first one is from Jamey Rodemey's memorial.  The first paragraph is, “Jamey Rodemeyer (March 21, 1997 – September 18, 2011) was an openly bisexual teenager (although he referred to himself as gay on Tumblr and some You Tube videos, known for his activism against homophobia and his videos on You Tube to help victims of homophobic bullying. He committed suicide as a result of constant bullying and being called gay.”

The second one is from Ryan White's memorial.  The first paragraph is, “Ryan White was diagnosed with AIDS at age 13. He and his mother Jeanne White Ginder fought for his right to attend school, gaining international attention as a voice of reason about HIV/AIDS. At the age of 18, Ryan White died on April 8, 1990, just months before Congress passed the AIDS bill that bears his name – the Ryan White CARE (Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency) Act. The legislation has been reauthorized five times since – in 1996, 2000, 2006, 2009 and 2013 – and is now called the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program.”

The third one is from 2016 Pulse Nightclub Shooting memorial.  The first paragraph is, “During this difficult time, we offer heartfelt condolences to the families of the 49 victims who lost their lives during the Pulse tragedy. To the families and friends of the victims, your city is with you and will continue to be with you as you deal with this unimaginable tragedy.”

The memorial is there for a reason.  It's to help us remember people who have passed on.  As I head out from the memorial, I leave with a feeling of sadness. So many lives which ended too soon.


https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Reckless/202/41/22

Deaflegacy

Editor's Note: Somehow the wrong SURL got put it. It's been corrected.

Exploring eLab City

By Grey Lupindo

      While on another assignment for SL Newser a few weeks ago, I met Froggy (sanfroggy) a SL photographer whose home is located in eLab City.  She invited me to tour the city, which is located at eLab City West (103, 141, 33).  Froggy took the photographs that accompany this article. 

SL resident Professor Lax, who in RL is Professor Thomas P. Novak, started eLab City as a research project to study behavior in virtual worlds.  He conducts his RL academic research at the University of California at Riverside.  The eLab City project began in 2008, and it soon involved over 5,000 SL residents as visitors and participants in the research.    To create the city, he contracted with SL developers to create two regions where a true community of living, working, and playing could be conducted.   Professor Lax, through his RL persona, wrote that “...eLab City’s primary functions were to be a working laboratory and a mechanism for building a subject pool of participants for academic research studies.”       

     Although the research project has ended, eLab City remains as an interesting urban/university site to explore.  A good beginning point is the eXpress kiosk located at eLab City West (103, 141, 33).    When the research was going on, SL residents could sign up for study panels if they wanted to take part in the research project and earn some Lindens.  Since the research has ended, ignore any of the signs about signing up.  But do step inside the eXpress building and pick up a free messenger bag that is hanging on the wall.  It’s a stylish and free souvenir, and it’s filled with some freebies. 

      From this point you can get a view of the river and many of the buildings that make eLab City a realistic and fun place to explore.  Inside Building E is the student lounge.  A little grimy, with out-of-date mags, games that don’t work, and a snack shop with lousy service.   Just like I remember my college student lounge.  If you need an old computer or desk, you can pick up a copy of one here for free.  

      If you go out the back door, you can walk down to the river or explore some of the buildings and shops.  Although there appears to be some things to buy, many of the shops are decorative only now that the research has ended.

       On the street level you can borrow a car to drive.  Or take a walking tour.   Since the site allows flying, it’s fast and easy to tour.  There are also a lot of interactive maps that show key locations in eLab City.   A built in teleport system provide quick transport, too. 

      Like all good cities, eLab City has apartments, shops, gardens, a theater, a library, and places to meet and work.  The Library and Theater can be found at eLab City East (136, 83, 22).   The Library has some interesting note cards about companies that had been in SL in the past.   I was especially sorry to learn that I had missed the Ben & Jerry sim.   I bet they gave out great freebies.    Another display shows books and movies that have a presence in SL and offers a teleport to them.  

       The apartments can be found at  eLab City West (84, 115, 25). The apartments were originally built for the RL students/SL residents who were working on the research project.  The buildings were labeled Building A and Building B.  One of the interesting things that Professor Lax discovered was that the students/residents “quickly displayed a sense of ownership. For example, when the first set of student residents moved in, they changed the name from the non-descript ―Building A‖and Building B --to ―Oceanside Suites North and Oceanside Suites South.”   

      Most of the office buildings are empty, although they are quite detailed and contain conference rooms, auditoriums, visitor centers, and other space.  An exception to this, however, is the Design Center, located at eLab City East (44, 143, 28).   A collection of animated art work by Peter Stanick, titled “Virtual Virtual”, is on display here.  A note card by Stanick explains the origins of this collection.  “... I decided to put together a program that basically took all of my existing images and generated an animation from those images. ... Basically that program produces an animation, but a secondary function of that program is that it does produce secondary images which are part of this exhibition here at eLab.  And ...what we're dealing with here is a series of images that are really produced on the computer and shown online and therefore exist in a virtual reality before they become an actual reality. ... so what we have is a virtual reality within a second virtual reality of the eLab project.”    

        There are many other sites within eLab City East and West to explore.   Unfortunately, the third sim, Northwest Island, is not going to remain.  It can be found at Island of the Lost - NW, eLab City Northwest (16, 129, 30), although how long it will be there is not known.  It was not part of the original plan.  Unlike the rest of urban  eLab City, it is a nature lover’s delight.  There are miles of rocky coasts, and plenty of sea life.  Orcas and sea lions can be found at NW, eLab City Northwest (104, 226, 21).  

        As to the future of the original eLab City, Professor Lax told me that he is “exploring some ideas for using it in new academic research projects.”  The research is on hold at the moment, but Professor Lax said that  eLab City East and West are funded through 2014.  “SL remains unique in its combination of a dedicated user base, outstanding collection of user generated content, and a functioning virtual currency,” he said.  “For me, these three factors make SL very useful for academic research on user behavior in virtual environments.”

           He stated that he is “interested in connecting with like-minded others who might be interested in forming a research community centered around eLab City.”  He pointed out that “it could serve as a virtual campus for a community of Second Life researchers who are looking for a common home in which to explore ideas. “   

Grey Lupindo