Muxlim Pal: World’s First Virtual World for Muslims
A trial version of the world's first Muslim-friendly virtual world was launched yesterday, where users can create an online persona, design their own rooms, buy virtual items and interact with others. Called Muxlim Pal and created by the Finnish-based company Muxlim.com, the English-language site caters primarily to Muslims living in western countries who long to reconnect with other Muslims and Muslim culture.
"Muxlim Pal is just another channel for our users to socialize, have fun and express themselves using social media in a safe and friendly atmosphere," Muxlim chairman and CEO Mohamed El-Fatatry.
Mohamed El-Fatatry: Chairmain & CEO of Muxlim.com
"We are not a religious site, we are a site that is focused on the lifestyle ... This is for anyone who is remotely interested in the Muslim culture and the Muslim lifestyle," he said.
On Muxlim Pal, which is free of charge to join, users can shop for clothes for their avatar at the mall, hang out at the beach cafe, pray at the mosque or go to concerts. What makes Muxlim Pal different from other popular websites such as Second Life is that content portraying violence, drugs, sexual references or profanity is not allowed.
The company plans to launch the full version of the virtual world next year after tweaking the trial product with help from users.
LG Electronics has announced the Middle East-wide availability of the only TV in the world with built-in Quran.
The Holy Qur'an incorporated into LG's newest plasma TV includes all of the 114 suras (chapters) allowing users to search for specific suras or veres and bookmark up to 10 favorites with record and stop button on the remote control.
The TV includes a multilingual interface for navigating and reading on screen is available in Arabic and Farsi. At the top of the screen is a status bar that displays the name of the sura, verse numbers and the time of day.
The TV also allows viewers to listen to the Qur'an, an excellent feature for allowing several people to study and enjoy the Scriptures together.
In addition to its special features for Ramadan, this TV also includes LG's Time Machine technology, which allows viewers to pause and rewind live TV shows, and record shows for later viewing. The built in 160 GB hard drive is large enough to store 40 football matches or 30 full-length movies.
Landmark To Launch 10 Shariah-Compliant Hotels By 2010
Landmark Hotel Management LLC has announced that it will be launching 10 world-class Shariah-compliant hotels and serviced apartments in the UAE and KSA by the end of 2010. The move is in line with the company's strategy to cater to the increasing demand for Shariah-compliant projects in the Middle East.
Six of the ten upcoming projects will be launched in Dubai, two in Abu Dhabi, a four-star hotel in Fujairah and one hotel in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. All the projects will operate on Islamic principles, which means that they are alcohol-free, serve halal food, and provide a percentage of their profit to charity.
S.M. Sadique, Managing Director of Landmark Hotel Group, highlighted that Landmark Hotel Management is keen on increasing the mass appeal of Shariah-compliant hotels. 'Presently, the general perception is that Shariah-compliant hotels are only meant for Muslims; which is certainly not the case. There are several non-Muslims, especially with families, who thoroughly enjoy the quieter and cleaner ambiance offered in Shariah-compliant hotels. Through our forthcoming projects we are determined to broaden the appeal of Shariah-compliant hotels across the Middle East.'
Do you speak English and you want to learn Arabic the fun way? Then I would recommend to you ArabicPod. With ArabicPod, you can learn basic things like greetings, weather, and ordering food. ArabicPod is creative and attractive way to learn basic Arabic language by listening to conversations between Ehab Saleh (25 from Jordan) & Mohammed Moshaya (26 from Saudi Arabia). Ehab & Mohammed are also the creators and maintainers of ArabicPod. They are currently students at Brighton University (80 miles south London).
Early of 2007 Mohammad has started learning Chinese via podcast & found out that podcasting is a great method to learn languages. Mohammed & Ehab recorded their first podcast lesson in March 2007. You can watch their first lesson below ...
"Everyone who is interested in learning Arabic is our target, we found that people learn Arabic due to heritage where learners wants to learn their fathers language, others learn Arabic for business and work purposes, also people learn Arabic for religious reasons and some people say that they love the sound of the language and that’s why they want to learn it. We have learners from all over the word", said Ehab Saleh, co-creator of ArabicPod.
"We are looking forwards to seeing ArabicPod as a big company teaches Arabic for the entire word, the internet has no borders and we are hoping that this effort that is made totally by two Arabs in their 20s would reach high level and be a source for everyone wants to learn Arabic."
Muslim Mathematicians Were 500 Years Advanced In Geometry
Pattern from 15th Century archway of Darb-i Imam shrine, Isfahan, Iran Image courtesy of Peter Lu/Science
It was so amazing to me to find out how early Muslim Mathematicians were so advanced in Geometry. This can be noticed very clearly through the early Islamic architecture. That exactly what Peter J. Lu from Harvard University had discovered during his visit to Uzbekistan.
The Harvard graduate student in physics was fascinated by the beautiful and intricate geometric "girih" patterns on the 800-year-old buildings there, and he wanted to know how ancient artisans had created them. He discovered more than just a clever construction method. He also found an entirely unexpected level of mathematical sophistication in the designs, pointing at mathematical ideas that weren't formally developed until hundreds of years later.
Lu's determination to find out took him on a journey through hundreds of photographs of Islamic architecture in the libraries at Harvard—and now it's landed him an article in Science.
When Lu looked at photographs of Islamic buildings, he found that he could break the patterns on their surfaces up into the same shapes, even though the shapes often weren't immediately visible. "I couldn't sleep for days," he said. "I skipped Christmas break to work on it."
The research shows an important breakthrough had occurred in Islamic mathematics and design by 1200.
"It's absolutely stunning," Harvard's Peter Lu said in an interview. "They made tilings that reflect mathematics that were so sophisticated that we didn't figure it out until the last 20 or 30 years."
History: According to Arab historians, the Zamzam Well, except for a few periods when it became dry or was buried under sand, has been in use for around 4000 years. The well marks the site of a spring that, miraculously , had issued forth from a barren and desolate wadi (non perennial stream) where the Prophet Ibrahim (Peace be upon him-pbuh), under Allah's command, had left his wife Hajar and their infant son Ismail (pbuh). In her desperate search for water, Hajar ran seven times back and forth in the scorching heat between the two hills of Safa and Marwa to provide water for Ismail (pbuh), who was dying of thirst. Allah, in His mercy, sent the Angel Gabriel, who scraped the ground, causing the spring to appear. On finding the spring, and fearing that it might run out of water, Hajar enclosed it in sand and stones. The name Zamzam originates from the phrase Zomë Zomë, meaning ‘stop flowing’, a command repeated by Hajar during her attempt to contain the spring water. The area around the spring, which was later converted to a well, became a resting place for caravans, and eventually grew into the trading city of Makkah, birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
Description: Zamzam well is 30 meters deep. Depth to water is 3.23 meters. There are some springs contributing to the well at approximately 13 meters below surface.
Miracle: "The difference between Zamzam water and other (city water) was in the quantity of calcium and magnesium salts. The content of these was slightly higher in Zamzam water. This may be why this water refreshes tired Hajis, but more significantly, the water contains fluorides that have an effective germicidal action.", said Tariq Hussain in his article documenting his work experience with Zamzam water.
"This well has never dried up. On the contrary, it has always fulfilled the demand for water. It has always maintained the same salt composition and taste ever since it came into existence. Its potability has always been universally recognized as pilgrims from all over the world visit the Ka`bah every year for Hajj and `Umrah, but have never complained about it. Instead, they have always enjoyed the water that refreshes them. Water tastes different at different places. Zamzam water's appeal has always been universal. This water has never been chemically treated or chlorinated as is the case with water pumped into the cities. Biological growth and vegetation usually take place in most wells. This makes the water unpalatable owing to the growth of algae causing taste and odor problems."
A pumping test at 8000 liters/second for more than a 24 hour period showed a drop in water level from 3.23 meters below surface to 12.72 meters and then to 13.39 meters, after which the water level stopped to recede. Water level recovered to 3.9 meters below surface just 11 minutes after pumping had stopped! The aquifer feeding the well seems to recharge from rock fractures in neighboring mountains around Mecca.
First E-Quran and E-Curriculum Unveiled in Saudi Arabia
Dar Al Rasm Al-Othmani and Intel yesterday launched the first E-Quran computer and Saudi tailored E-Curriculum. The two products are jointly developed by Intel's Platform Definition Center and two Arabic software content companies owned by Mr. Emad Bin Fahad Al-Doghaither, Semanoor and Dar Al Rasm Al Othmani.
The E-Curriculum is developed by Semanoor, a leading local software company focusing on education. It is on an Ultra Mobile Wireless Device based on Intel's newly announced family of LPIA processors. Semanoor has produced a DVD that that contains all official government curriculums from K to 12th grade. The DVD is now approved and backed by the Ministry of Education of Saudi Arabia, and is being implemented in Saudi Arabian public and private schools.
There are two aspects to this DVD which give it an edge; the first is tools and engines while the second is data. 'The DVD contains over 8 gigabytes of data and the tools help teachers to develop their own e-lessons with minimal training, by taking the teachers from a level where they are merely implementing other people's lessons to a level that allows them to tailor their own plans to the needs of their students,' said Mr. Emad Bin Fahad Al-Doghaither. "We hope that this product allows teaching and the educational process to be more effective and up-to date, while maintaining creativity and teacher involvement.'
Dar Al Rasm Al-Othmani, a sister company to Semanoor that focuses on digital religious content also launched a wireless digital Quran, an Islamic encyclopedia that will be available in 40 different languages making it usable across the world.
The E-Quran is yet another Ultra Mobile Device based on Intel's newly announced family of LPIA processors. It contains the Holy Quran, audio recitations in 40 different languages, 100 different interactive Quran explanations, as well as 500,000 religious science pages. This whole package is bundled in a sleek e-book design with 7' display and built in WiFi to connect to Islamic portals, and allow the user to stay connected to the Muslim online community.
One of the important achievements of Dar Al Rasm Al Othmani is the Quran for the physically disabled that operates via voice commands, allowing people who cannot physically touch or see the Quran to experience it.
Water Quranic Miracle: Invention For Producing Quranic Blessed Water
Sharif Shakran, an engineer living in the UAE, had invented a system to produce blessed water through playing Holy Quran audio on water circulating through it. According to Shakran, drinking the water produced through his system will result in purifying the souls from anger and reduce high divorce rate.
Muslim scholars have different opinions about this newest invention. Some considered it a way to use the Holy Quran to make money. Others said there is nothing wrong with it as long as it's not contradicting the Islamic teachings.
Sharif Shakran showed his invention in one of the biggest business centers in Dubai early this week and he's getting ready to show it in different parts of the country. Shakran came to UAE in 2003 and currently works as a researcher in a private school in Ajman and he' specialized in maintaining medical equipments. What made Sharif come up with this system is his observations to high divorce rates in the UAE and his continuous efforts to find solutions for local family problems.
Eng. Sharif Shakran prepared researches to show that the feelings of a mother who cooks the food will somehow be transmitted to who eats this food. The same idea then applied to this system for changing the psychological state of a person through drinking Quranic blessed water. Holy Quran is believed to have so many benefits and carries so many cures to many diseases for all believing people and sometimes for non-believers too.
The Water Quranic Miracle system reads the whole Holy Quran on three liters of water which means taking advantage of all cures that might be carried within all the verses of the Holy Quran.
So far 110 units of this invention have been sold for 1,700 AED each. Shakran's Water Quranic Miracle has been approved by Dr. Zaghluol Al-Naggar, a well known scholar and specialist of the miracles of Holy Quran. Dr. Zaghlool said, "Whoever drinks from the water coming out of this system often loose his anger and improves his family relationships."
