Eight Days of Ether: every day a new theme and only 24 hours to submit.

Day 7 – Family

Daniel’s Level. ‘The army? Him?’ Jacqui is stunned. Sophie though, is intrigued. Steve doesn’t look army, he looks – gamey.

A little bit sci fi but with some fancy reality underpinning it – the US army really has been recruiting via online video games (MMOGs[1]). Virtual reality is being used in all sorts of ways – including treating soldiers for PTSD, and training doctors and paramedics in both basic and emergency medicine[2]. Here’s the link

[1] Massive Multiplayer Online Games. I put my typo in the story down to preemptive channelling of the final theme, Song and Dance!

[2] Imperial College London. Dave Taylor – a research colleague – is head of Virtual Worlds and Medical Media and if that isn’t a job title to die for, I don’t know what is! http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/alumni/newssummary/news_22-4-2008-14-24-37