J’ai participé hier, en compagnie d’autres blogueurs du monde de la santé et des jeux videos, à la démonstration du serious game santé Pulse!!,  et ai pu m’immerger dans la peau d’un urgentiste pendant quelques minutes dans l’environnement d’un service d’urgences reproduit en 3D selon scénario de prise en charge en temps réel d’un patient en situation critique.

Selon wikipedia :

Un jeu sérieux (souvent désigné par l’expression anglaise serious game : de l’anglais serious, « sérieux » et game, « jeu ») est une application informatique qui combine une intention sérieuse, de type pédagogique, informative, communicationnelle, marketing, idéologique ou d’entraînement avec des ressorts ludiques issus du jeu vidéo ou de la simulation informatique. La vocation d’un Serious Game est donc de rendre attrayante la dimension sérieuse par une forme, une interaction, des règles et éventuellement des objectifs ludiques.

Pulse!! est un serious game développé par Breakaway, en partenariat la Texas A&M University de Corpus Christi, intégré et distribué en France par Interaction Healthcare.

Ce jeu a été soutenu pour sa conception par une subvention de la marine US et a pour vocation d’être un outil de formation initiale et continue, et également de validation des acquis, des urgentistes civils ou militaires, de manière à les préparer à des situations de crises ou d’urgences exceptionnelles, comme par exemple une intervention très réaliste en zone de combat, sous le feu ennemi.

Derrière un PC classique, clavier et souris – rien de plus – vous vous retrouvez à la tête d’une équipe de soignants, à mettre en oeuvre vos talents de diagnostic et de soin, en situation d’urgence, selon des scénarii de cas cliniques pré-établis.

Tout y est : examen clinique, très réaliste, historique du patient, constantes physiologiques, biologie, administration de médicaments… l’horloge tourne, des décisions doivent être prises et le patient réagit, plus ou moins bien, à ces décisions et actions (plutôt pas très bien pour ma tentative).

La prise en main s’avère plutôt facile, l’évolution dans l’environnement et les interactions avec les différents personnages sont fluides et deviennent rapidement naturels, même si bien sûr, le jeu s’adresse à un public possédant une formation médicale solide, qui seul pourra exploiter au maximum les possibilités de simulation.

Reste maintenant à voir comment le corps médical, en France, jouera le jeu et s’appropriera cet outil de formation, sachant que Pulse!! pour l’instant n’est opérationnel que dans sa version adaptée à l’environnement professionnel US  (locaux, équipements, procédures…), mais que les premiers retours dans le monde hospitalier semblent positifs.

Pulse!! constitue un modèle intéressant et poussé des possibilité du serious gaming en santé, secteur déjà par ailleurs exploré pour la formation des professionnels ou la prévention santé dans le grand public.

TMobile Pulse has a lot more to give you and just your mere average mobile phone. You will definitely enjoy using this mobile phone because it has a lot more firepower than most other mobile phones. Buy firepower we mean that it has more features and accessories for your definite enjoyment. Here are some more features of the TMobile Pulse that will surely be sweeping you off your feet.

Additional Features of the TMobile Pulse

TMobile Pulse

1. This mobile device truly has everything you can ever want in a mobile phone. It has a touch screen feature that will allow you to access all your information using your fingers. The TMobile Pulse will definitely allow you to get an easier look at your own files within the cell phone.
2. In addition to this, TMobile Pulse will definitely give you directions to where going because of the maps that are saved within the phone system. You will definitely not get lost using this mobile device. Having this implement will surely lead you to the right direction.
3. TMobile Pulse also has evidently more usage time because of the Li-ion battery that the phone is equipped with. You will definitely find it very useful in times of dire need. This is the mobile phone to have if you want to be available twenty-four hours a day.
4. TMobile Pulse also has something more than the calling feature, it has the video calling capabilities that will allow you to see and hear your contacts through your phone.
5. This TMobile Pulse will allow you to connect to the Internet using the many connectivity options that it has you will definitely enjoy browsing the net with this mobile phone. The implement truly is one device that can bridge the gap between people.

This is the mobile device to have if you want to become very available to your friends and family as well. Nothing can ever stop you from communicating with them if you want to. This is the mobile phone for true communication.

The TMobile phone is available with gifts : Any Xbox 360 and Xbox 360 Elite Deals.

Anyusha Lilienthal has some new releases at her store Ibizarre since I last visited, so I am showing you my new favourites and my old favourites!

Elegant city wear

Jacket and dress sold seperately

Perfect for a night out in Old Arabia

Great standbys

With and without jacket

Dreamy dreamy summer evenings

Credits

All dresses from <a href="Ibizarre“>Ibizarre

Skin: Valerie from Pulse

Hair: Jamila by Mirone

Shoes: Devoue by Courtisane

Poses: from Glitterati

Photographed at Taste of Arabia

Jazz Cafe, bd. Ferdinand, nr. 26, Constanţa

well, I be there

New this week from Ingenue – casual, fun colours, gorgeous textures and cute designs! See for yourself….

The Jane Jean and Margeurite jersey

Both pieces available in a pleasant variety of colours

Teamed here with shoes from B & G

Credits

All clothing from Ingenue

Shoes: from B & G

Jewellery: Merman skeleton from LBB

Skin: Valerie from Pulse

Hair: Jamila from Mirone

Poses!!! from the generous and talented Katey Coppola of Glitterati Studios

If you running a GNU/Linux distro with PulseAudio by default, and you love pSX AND PulseAudio, you’re probably very mad by now hehehe… Fear not! I’ve found the solution, and would like to share with the community:

Rename the ~/.asoundrc and/or /etc/asound.conf files to something else.

There you go Simple isn’t? To think I uninstalled the WHOLE PulseAudio suite so many times just to make pSX work… tsk… :/

Reference
Ubuntu Forums

Koguma Kumaki is the creator behind Kumaki Glasses Style. An incredible variety of styles, from formalised spectacles to goggles with a multiple of uses to whimsical accessories – and gifts! Here follows a small selection for your viewing pleasure:)

Glasses are scripted to permit lens colour change, transparency, shine and glow.

A taste for each

Mens and womens styles catered

And a Christmas gift!

Credits

All glasses and goggles from Kumaki Glasses Style

Hair: Whoop De Doo – new from !Lamb

Clothing: Sheep thermal from Scribble

Skin: Valerie from Pulse

Mouse Mimistrobell has released some new jewellery designs at her store today. I especially like these as they are fun, imaginative and really nicely textured.

Reversal Of Fortune Set – includes earrings and necklace. Shirt from Nyte n Day – Bloom

Banks Closed set of earrings and necklace. Shirt from Nyte n Day – Bloom

Wild Leaves Set. Shirt from Merlin’s Closet

Stacie’s Earrings

Twisted bangles

Credits

All jewellery from Dark Mouse

Nyte n Day available here

Merlin’s Closet here

Hair from Fri.day and Truth

Skin: Valerie by Pulse

Raven Pennyfeather, creator of House of RFyre has presented us with a beautiful holiday ensemble, based upon traditional Russian dress. It is Oksana.

Dazzling colours and textures

Detailing of the collar and head dress

Credits

Oksana ensemble from House of RFyre

Boots: Kenai boots by Stellar

Skin: Valerie by Pulse

Hair: Tatum by fri.day

Jewellery: Faith Cross by Earthstones

SMS (So Many Styles) has released some new designs for the changing seasons. Irie Campese shows her delicious textures in her designs:

Feather skirt and jacket which includes tank

Endless Summer

Jazzy jacket and pants

Mix and match – you can match up or select contrasting pieces

An old favourite

And a new favourite!

Credits

All clothing from So Many Styles (SMS)

Skin: ‘Life’ by Pulse

All hair by Mr Sigmund

Boots: Engineer boots from J’s

The original song was signature Toni Braxton. Big vocals, slow beats and sexy undertones. But, in a bid to pump up the hype post-Vegas gig and pre-comeback, the record label attempted to gloss it over with a mid-tempo beat and a guest appearance by R&B hotshot Trey Songz. Well, they thought wrong. Now the song has been watered down too much.

Sascha’s beautiful gowns continue to entice us. Here is a selection of her recent releases.

most dresses come with various lengths to the skirt

and a rainbow of colours from which to choose

Classical designs

Choose to suit your mood

Sumptuous skirts

Timeless styles

Dreams by You

Credits

All dresses from Sascha’s Designs

Hair: Red updo – Play it Again Sam by Clawtooth

All other hair by Mr Sigmund

Jewellery by Alexander Fine Jewelery

Skin: ‘Life’ series by Pulse

One of my very favourite skin designers has released beautiful new skins. The range I have chosen to show you is Life. I am also wearing new releases from SD Wears

‘Life’

‘Life’

‘Life’

‘Life’

‘Life’

Credits

All clothing from SD Wears

All hair from MrSigmund

Skin: ‘Life’ series, new release from Pulse

Boots: Engineer boots from J’s

Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website.
Follow Gary on Twitter for Songwriting Tips, News and More .
_________

Nothing kills a lyric faster than forcing words into a rhythmic scheme that just doesn’t work. What you should be after is a natural flow. For that reason, it’s really important for songwriters to recite their lyric as if it were prose, tweaking it until it feels easy to say, and conveys exactly what’s needed. Rhyming and rhythmic schemes need to take a back seat to natural pulse.

Say the following line to yourself:

Here we are, back where we began

This line is an easy one; it’s easy to see what we mean by natural pulse. Certain words get more of an accent than others:

HERE we are, BACK where we beGAN.

When you set a line like this, you’ll want to ensure that the natural rhythm of the words are supported by the rhythm of the music. For example, it’s hard to consider the word “here” to be anywhere except the beginning of a bar – the strong beat. It can’t be placed on the 4th beat of a bar easily, because it disrupts the sentence’s natural pulse, giving us: “here WE are…”

While this seems easy enough, problems can arise when inner meaning or subtext is inadvertently changed by misplacing an accent. Subtext is the implied meaning of your words. For example, if you say, “We’re going to be late,” the meaning is clear. If we say “Take your time, life is long”, and say it with a sigh, the ironic subtext shines through.

Often with song lyrics, subtext is changed by simply placing the accents in different places. Misplacing those accents can be a missed opportunity to portray subtext. Consider this line:

I don’t want to be with her anymore…

The first step in setting this line is to say it naturally, allowing the inherent pulses to come forth. But this line can be said in a variety of ways, all conveying a different subtext:

1. I don’t WANT to be with HER anymore;
2. i DON’T want to BE with her anyMORE;
3. I don’t want to BE with her anymore;
4. i DON’T want to be with HER anymore;

Depending on how you set the words, you’re communicating a different thing. Version 1 puts the emphasis on “her”, with the subtext conveying that there is another woman in the picture. Version 2 simply tells the audience that you simply don’t want to be with this or any person right now. Version 3’s emphasis on “be” expresses a sense of impatience, while Version 4’s stress on “don’t” and “her” adds a feeling of irritation that wasn’t there in Version 1.

Setting these words will mean that you must consider these accented words, and place them on the strong parts of musical phrases. In 4/4 (common) time, those words will work best on beats 1 and 3, with the other words falling in between.

If your songwriting formula has you starting with melody, or at least with melodic shapes, always consider the possibility (perhaps the probability) that you’ll need to modify the specific rhythms of that melody to support the intended meaning of your text. Don’t let mis-matched melodic and textual rhythms rob your lyric of important inner meaning.
__________

Gary Ewer’s songwriting e-books will show you how lyric, melody and harmonies all work together to produce great music. Let these e-books open your mind and get you writing the songs you’ve always known you could write. Click here to get started!

I had the opportunity to attend the Pulse media and journalism conference at my ex-university, Wilfrid Laurier (we’re on good terms though).

Not only was it fascinating but it enforced a genuine sense of optimism for journalists-to-be.

Yes there are fewer jobs in traditional outlets but industry bigwigs truly believe there’s hope for the industry and those aspiring to be a part of it.

One of the speakers was Anne Kircos, the Human Resources manager for CTV Southwestern Ontario. She discussed marketing oneself as a young journalist to broadcast outlets and the steps taken to do so. Of course I scribbled down some notes and I would love to share them with you.

If you’re interested in broadcast or any kind of journalistic career, copy and save, nay, tattoo this info on your forehead. Okay bad idea, unless you want to go into radio.

It’s an extensive list so bear with me:

• Versatility–The new-age journalist is a jack of all trades. Not only must you be able to report, but you must film, edit, and photograph as well. An attractive candidate is a one (wo)man show so take an active interest in technology even if it’s not your forte.
• Same goes for radio. Hosts must also be sound editors, programmers, producers etc…
• Image is everything–Good news is you don’t have to be a beauty queen to be on camera. Canadian networks look for real people but personalities that are put together. Confident, well spoken individuals who are representative of the Canadian population will outlive dimwitted supermodels. It’s about time.
• Mobility–If you’re willing to relocate to a remote area, good on you. The advantage to reporting from the middle of nowhere is you will have more responsibility. More responsibilities = more experience = best resume ever. Slowly but surely you can work your way back to the big city if you so desire (and if you’re good enough).
• Writers–Broadcast outlets always need writers. Lend your skills to the newsroom or freelance! Great portfolio building guaranteed.
• Experience–They know we’re students. There aren’t a lot of us that will have extensive portfolios but you have to give them something. Anne suggests you gain experience in at least one of the following ways:

1. Volunteering for a community station
2. Freelancing for different media outlets / websites
3. Interning anywhere you can

• What they want--A Demo tape and a Resume. For television, the demo should include behind the desk and environmental shots as well as some footage you filmed yourself. Both radio and TV demos should prove your ability to orally and visually tell a story.
• Persistence–If you send your resume and demo to five network VPs and they all land up on Anne’s desk, it looks way better than one. Be a pain in the ass, be aggressive and assertive, but don’t be too cocky.
• Knowing is succeeding–If you are able to get an interview, do your research. Anne is shocked at how many people can’t give her a handful of stories that could be aired that day on any given station. Why are people applying for broadcasting positions that don’t have any knowledge of current events? I don’t even know. Beyond that, research the network. Know who works there, tell them who you admire and who pisses you off.

I understand this is a handful to take in but it’s worth investing your time to meet these expectations. Anne and her HR buddies know we’re not perfect. They are willing to train us to iron out the flaws so don’t worry about having the wrong ‘look’, just concern yourself with working as hard as you can to acquire the knowledge and experience needed to survive in this industry.

Throughout the next couple of weeks, I’ll be posting some tid bits from the conference so keep on reading on.

Pulse, 2007

Acrylic on canvas

91×151 cm

C O P Y R I G H T © A L I C E D R O G O R E A N U 2009

C O P Y R I G H T © A L I C E D R O G O R E A N U 2009

Written 17 November 2009.  This is a piece I am including in my novel, but I wanted to share it here as well.

She feels the drumbeat, distant at first, recalling some ancient memory of a womb long forgotten.  That pulse so near pumping one life to another.  Steady.  Strong. Warm.

Deeper than thought, she moves with the rhythm, ebbing and flowing, through the throngs of men who silenced their drums in the name of safety.  But the rise and fall, quickening of the pace and the sudden halt are truer to the primal dance than the listless comfort of conformity.

She hears the drumbeat now, urging her hands and feet to join with the others who have not abandoned the spark.  They merge and break, adapt and change, embracing the ever-shifting tumult of life.  For what is it to be alive but to revel in the very collision of self and other?

She is the drumbeat, calling forth the forces of hope, of strength, of motion, building that distant rumble to a deafening roar of celebration that resounds in the hearts of all who once knew that primal pulse.

Under your skin

Beauty that revels all others

Birthing love to love

Your kisses, are poetry’s fingerprints

Your breath, precious to me like a dying man’s

Under your skin

Your beauty is revealed to others

Giving your love to love

Your pulse, to me is my own

Your smile, my sought treasure

Jonathan Watson