British Blogger, Desi Dreamer, Mad Muslimah
// December 18th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Blog
New SignLabs.org video is out, alhamdulillah! I embedded the HD version below, so please be a bit patient while it loads. Three more new vids to come over the next few weeks, inshā’Allāh… stay tuned.
// December 8th, 2008 // 6 Comments » // Blog
I have a somewhat strange ‘Īd gift for you all. My friend SimSim (as named by Organica) is a physiotherapist, and up till recently worked in the Stroke Unit at the local hospital. She forwarded me the following information via email. I pray that none of you ever have to use it, but if you do, then maybe it'll save someone's life, God-willing.
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STROKE: Remember the first three Letters… S.T.R.
STROKE IDENTIFICATION:
During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall – she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics). She said she had just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.
They cleaned her up and fetched her a new plate of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.
Ingrid's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital – at 6:00 pm, Ingrid passed away. She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today.
Some don't die… they end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.
The sooner the condition is treated, the higher the chance of a complete recovery; however, the window of opportunity is very small – a matter of hours – which means one needs to identify the problem immediately.
RECOGNIZING A STROKE
Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:
If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call the emergency services immediately, and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.
New Sign of a Stroke: Stick out Your Tongue
Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue: if the tongue is 'crooked', that is, if it goes to one side or the other, that is also an indication of a stroke.
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SimSim also developed her own similar system named S.T.A.R.:
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Please memorize, and feel free to copy and paste the above, in order to forward the life-saving information on to your contacts.
// November 22nd, 2008 // 19 Comments » // Blog
Whilst a budding Biology undergraduate, I wasted many an afternoon in the computer room, filling out pointless online personality tests, such as: “Which Icecream Flavour Are You?”. I think I was Raspberry Ripple – whatever that means. Or is that my favourite flavour? I forget.
Thus I was quite keen to visit a site I just discovered via Marahm's blog, called Typelyzer, which – simply put – is a personality quiz that requires you to answer just one question:
What's your blog address?
Obviously, it's a service that is only open to the blogging 'elite' (all several million of us).
This is what it had to say about moi:
// November 14th, 2008 // 8 Comments » // Blog
I assigned myself the somewhat derogatory title of “The Leech” during my PhD years, when I noticed a potentially annoying personal behaviour.
When faced with a problem, I used one of two 'extreme' paths in my search for a solution.
Where I suspected that I knew enough to fix the problem myself, I was very secretive, independent, and head strong. Even if someone offered me advice (though it would not have been requested), I'd politely listen to them, but in my head I was thinking:
“Yeah, yeah, I already knew that.
“No, that won't work.
“Please, just let me get on with it!”.
I think it had something to do with trying to 'prove' myself; either to my supervisors, or just as an ego rush. This behaviour lead to me wasting six months on an experiment, that never yielded any results. I kept repeating and repeating the assay, and I would report my work regularly, but I never actually thought to sit down and talk to someone about why I was failing so consistently; I was that determined to solve the problem myself.
One supervisor openly chastised me for this, and I think the embarrassment from that experience, combined with the frustration of having clearly wasted so much time, caused me to swing the other way completely. Thus, 'the Leech' was born.
Now, every time I had a problem, even a tiny one, I would seek human intervention. It didn't matter whether there were manuals written on the subject, or in-depth how-tos posted online; I still needed reassurance from someone more experienced in that field, to make sure that I didn't mess up to that extent again. I am surprised no-one ran away from me in the hall ways, screaming:
“Noooo… I have given all I have to give! You have sucked my brain dryyyy!”.
// October 28th, 2008 // 21 Comments » // Blog
After a disastrous first day at the GPU 2008, I have to say, Sunday was a only, oh… a million times better! Alhamdulillah.
If you were at the GPU yesterday, and spotted a mad sister interviewing some “strange” people on camera – that was me! I can't say too much, mainly because I want to save the juicy details for the article I plan to write, inshā’Allāh.
I took photos, and also met some interesting folks, including a couple of the MM shuyukh (link to my MM article to be inserted here within 24 hours, inshā’Allāh now LIVE).
I have to say, although the Islam Expo 2008 was so much more fun, in so many more ways, I did learn just as many lessons from my GPU experience, both from a professional and personal perspective.
Professional lessons
// September 16th, 2008 // 12 Comments » // Blog
As of yesterday, I am officially no longer a member of Imperial College London's current study body.
(more…)
// August 8th, 2008 // No Comments » // Blog
Bismillah
Finally, I have the immense honour and pleasure to announce the launch of the long-awaited (well, long-ish, kinda awaited) website, that has recently got the blogosphere in a buzz… (more…)
// August 6th, 2008 // 3 Comments » // Blog
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Blip.tv video.
…have you?
{Watch the flash version of the video on YouTube, and the high definition version on blip.tv}
Three days.
Three videos.
And from tomorrow, three ways YOU can get involved.
Curious? Confused? Couldn't care less?
Whatever the case…
Come back tomorrow to finally discover the truth behind the hype.
—
They all learnt to sign… will you?
// August 4th, 2008 // 3 Comments » // Blog
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Blip.tv video.
…have you?
Come back tomorrow to find out more.
{Watch the flash version of the video on YouTube, and the high definition version on blip.tv}
// July 14th, 2008 // 9 Comments » // Blog
That is according to a wikipedia article that I looked up to establish the significance of the title, “Doctor of Philiosophy” (i.e., Ph.D):
History of the Ph.D.
The origins of the doctorate dates back to the ijazat attadris wa 'l-ifttd (“license to teach and issue legal opinions”) in the medieval Madrasahs from the 9th century, though it was limited to Islamic law at the time, as in a Doctor of Laws degree.[4] The doctorate was later extended to philosophy in the European universities in the Middle Ages which generally placed all academic disciplines outside the professional fields of theology, medicine and law under the broad heading of “philosophy” (or “natural philosophy” when referring to science). The degree of Doctor of Philosophy was a doctorate, generally granted as honorary degrees to select and well-established scholars.[citation needed]
[4] Makdisi, George (April-June 1989), “Scholasticism and Humanism in Classical Islam and the Christian West”, Journal of the American Oriental Society 109 (2): 175–182 [175–77]
How cool is that?
! Announcement !
