When new technology and social media give support

Social media

This story that covers a Decatur, Ga., resident who has ALS, by Marketwatch reporter Anya Martin, is amazing in the simplicity of bringing together new technology and social media. ALS is a tragic disease that eventual disables a person from use of muscles, and the courage and resolve of ALS patients is inspiring. 

Martin writes about how David Jayne is able to communicate with friends via social media and has a “Bluetooth-enabled sensor in his jaw.

Jayne can communicate with friends, family and strangers through email, instant messaging, Facebook, Twitter and blogging, says the story posted on the WSJ web site. The storys says, “Others in the later stages of ALS can type or speak electronically by directing key strokes or cursors with their eyes in what’s called an eye-gaze system. Because even eye muscles eventually may fail, researchers also are experimenting with brain-computer interface devices that translate electrical activity within the skull into dialogue when users concentrate on characters on a monitor.”

The most famous person with an ALS-related disease is Stephen Hawking, the physicist who uses advance technology to help him communicate. Stories of courage and optimism will certainly include Hawking for years to come.

And, check out Hawking’s ideas on time machines on MSNBC – wormhole “tunnels, unfortunately, are far too small for people to pass through — just a billion-trillion-trillionths of a centimeter — but physicists believe it may be possible to catch a wormhole and make it big enough for people, or spaceships, to enter, Hawking writes.”

Learn more about ALS at the ALS Association web site.

Finding wisdom on the BlogHer web site

Credit: University of Queensland

I spent the 4th of July relaxing and ferrying my running family members to and from the Peachtree Road Race – and then of course, breakfast at Landmark intown for the usual feast. I was thinking about how fortunate I am that my choices to live in a positive way are working for me.

Today I am looking at ways others create a happy space, and a good place to visit is the BlogHer [Life Well Said] web site. You can find bloggers here covering the waterfront of ideas for this.

I found a blog by Mata H. in “Moms & Family” that I like, so I am excerpting here and sending you to her full blog for more.

“Appreciate what you do have. If you’ve been hot and heavy on the road to having it all, you may have neglected to appreciate what you do have.

Try to find things/obligations/time-eaters that you can jettison.

Let go of the fantasy that “having it all” is a possible thing.

Look in your life for those relationships and experiences that bring you the most joy or satisfaction. Try to have more of them.”

More.

Following the life of Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh

One of the most impressive persons in the world today is Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese-born Buddhist monk now living in France at Plum Village. Tap into his ideas via Facebook, if you are using this site.

According to his web site, Thich Nhat Hanh is not only a monk, but also a poet, a scholar, and a peace activist. He founded the Van Hanh Buddhist University in Saigon and the School for Youths of Social Services in Vietnam. When not travelling the world to teach “The Art of Mindful Living”, he teaches, writes, and gardens in Plum Village, France, a Buddhist monastery for monks and nuns and a mindfulness practice center for lay people.”

This description on the web site does not do justice to how important he is to the Buddhist world, and it is better said at Shambala Sun in this month’s issue, but you will have to buy the publication because only a short interview is available on the web site.

A good summary can be found on Wikipeidia. “He traveled to the U.S. to study at Princeton University, and later to lecture at Cornell University and Columbia University. His focus at the time, was to urge the U.S. government to withdraw from Vietnam. He urged Martin Luther King, Jr. to publicly oppose the Vietnam War; King nominated Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize in January 1967.  He created the (non-Zen) Order of Interbeing in 1966, establishing monastic and practice centers around the world. In 1973, the Vietnamese government denied Nhat Hanh permission to return to Vietnam and he went into exile in France. From 1976-1977 he led efforts to rescue Vietnamese boat people in the Gulf of Siam. Nhat Hanh has become an important influence in the development of Western Buddhism.  His teachings and practices aim to appeal to people from various religious, spiritual, and political backgrounds, intending to offer mindfulness practices for more Western sensibilities.”