Science Circle-d

 Science Circle grid is now offline, possibly for good. It's a shame because it was such a nice grid, with some very interesting and unusual builds on it, of a scientific and educational nature. 

The grid, which was small and only had a handful of residents, was managed by Quaesar Agnomen. It was affiliated of course with The Science Circle group in Second Life. I really loved it, and felt privileged to join the grid in 2022, because although it was not large, it offered a sort of bridge between the walled garden of SL and the wider hyperverse. Ideal, you might say, for people who are interested in expanding their knowledge and extending the frontiers of reputable information. 

The Science Circle is a group in Second Life. It has regular meetings on a dedicated, eponymous sim in SL (and other spaces) where they get real life scientists, like Stephen Gasior, to talk to them about cutting edge scientific research - it's fun and informative! Nym Hathaway and Jes Cobalt are the people to contact in SL to know more about how to get to all their events, for in some cases, access may be limited.

Stephen Gasior at a SC meeting n the theme of 'The Moon' in 2022

Quaesar and Stephen appeared on Mal Burns' talk show Inworld Review about a year ago  for a conversation about the Science Circle grid in Opensim, how it works, and what's to be seen there.

As we all know (or ought to by now!)  Opensim isn't identical to SL, nor is it meant to be; it operates on vastly different decentralized principles. And yet one often hears newbies and even some oldbies lamenting that 'there's nobody in opensim'. Think of it this way - if SL is New York City, then opensim is the West - the wild west at times, but a place of wide open spaces, busy people discreetly creating and getting on with their lives in their own way, without fanfare or crowds. That said, with a bit of intelligent research you can easily find people, projects, and plenty of entertainment in Opensim. 

Sad to say, one year later and the news has emerged that due to time-consuming tech difficulties, it has been decided to discontinue the Science Circle grid. It went offline quietly a couple of weeks ago.

Here are a few memories of this gem of a grid, from the point of view of our Safari trips.

Christi Maeterlinck brought Mount Grace Priory to the Science Circle and the HG Safari group visited in February 2024 (you can read about it here). 

Safari in Church - Christii dressed as a monk.

This build represents a real place in England. Christi's work - it's a prim-rich reconstruction - has been in opensim since about 2010, and so is an antiquity in its own right. It is(or was - who knows?) a fabulous demonstration of how virtual worlds can breathe life into long-vanished buildings, giving us an insight into the past that even a rl visit wouldn't be able to achieve. 

Mount Grace Priory

Here is a  more in-depth article about the build, which I first saw, thanks to Pathfinder Lester, when he took us to visit New World Grid back in 2011

Abyssinia

Aba Brukh aka Skip Dahlgren was able to set up several var regions showcasing his Abyssinia build, which is an important 3D representation of a historical place, (in the general area of modern Ethiopia) where Skip worked as an archaeologist in the '70s. 

The Yeha Palace  seen from  a distance

Opensim has allowed him to represent the vastness of this African antiquity, and he has been adding all kinds of sources, prim and mesh reproductions of buildings and monuments, offering an amazing insight into a piece of history that most of us are totally unaware of. 

Skip's version of the Yeha palace, for example, glories in a whopping 3500 prims! The Safari visited the build back in January 2023. Luckily this build is not lost for good, as Skip has found a new home over on Zetaworlds grid. If anything, it's even bigger and more detailed, as he gradually updates and expands the 3D representations of the artefacts of this lost empire.

Luckily Aba's build has moved, so you can still visit - it's over on Zetaworlds now. Look for 'Abyssinia'.

Portage

Nova Saunders' regions on Science Circle aren't as ancient, but they tell a tale of vanished life with poignant attention to detail. The Safari visited Portage, to learn about the crucial moment in American history when the power of trains as a form of communication finally overwhelmed the previous technology - canals. 

Safari arrives on the Portage sim - and sits!

This was such a charming build, it felt like we had all gone out for a picnic - with the advantage of learning something real about the world. Always a plus!

A much younger Thirza studying an installation explaining how hybrid tulips work

Genome was another part of this grid, a project by Clowey Greenwood. Previously this build, an ensemble of 4 regions dedicated to scientists Crick, Mendel, Huxley, Hooke, had been on another grid called VIBE.

More recently, the Science Circle grid had become home to Stephen Gasior's fascinating interactive build about the early days of 'medical detection'. 

The build, originally on Redgrid told the story of Dr Snow who discovered how a cholera epidemic in 1800s London was caused by infected drinking water from a contaminated well. Sounds grim, but actually it was a life-saving discovery that still resonates today all around the world.

As you can see, the Science Circle was a great little grid, and it's a huge shame that it has gone offline. Who knows, perhaps in the future someone will find a way to bring it back to life. Here's hoping!