MARS VR LAB

Daphne holding her Co-op Employer of the Year Award!!! Thank you again, MSVU Co-op Office!

We came across this amazing not-for-profit organization and just had to share it with everyone! Check out Magic Wheelchair, an organization that turns children's wheelchairs into amazing costumes for Halloween and birthdays!

Give them a follow!
Instagram
Photo credit: https://www.magicwheelchair.org/

A big shoutout to Team Regan for coming in 5th place in the national curling competition. We are so honoured to be one of your sponsors!

Virtual reality rehabilitation is advancing the way we think about healthcare treatments. It also has the power to be more inclusive for children with disabilities.

Check out Danny's latest blog about the inclusion of VR rehabilitation and how it empowers children with disabilities.
Link: http://ow.ly/lz8e50MBtqH

"At MARS VR Lab, we are aware of how critical it is for healthcare technology to be inclusive as well as easily accessible. The XPod is adapted to the individual capabilities of each child, enabling them to direct the movement of the virtual wheelchair with components taken directly from actual power wheelchair arms and input devices." - Danny, CEO and Co-Founder of MARS VR Lab

Check out the top episodes of the week!

S2, E10 - Sports Research: Where are the Women?
S2, E1 - Energy Poverty
S1, E10 - Aquatic Animal Tracking: The North Atlantic Right Whale
S2, E9 - Virtual Reality & Health Care

Listen here: https://apple.co/3yLxBnB
Podstarter Human Nutrition at Stfx Dalhousie University Ocean Tracking Network MARS VR LAB

Happy Friday, Folks!

Now that the new year has begun, we would like to introduce our newest co-op student, Mehjabeen! Mehjabeen is joining our development team as the QA and Junior Developer working on the XPod! Her roles include testing, finding bugs, and ensuring the features in the game work properly. Mehjabeen is studying computer science at Dalhousie, and we are thrilled to have her on the team for her second co-op placement.

Fun Facts:

- Mehjabeen enjoys playing football, handball, and volleyball
- In high school, she won the best player and currently still plays intramural sports at university

Lastly, Mehjabeen "Is so glad to have joined this wonderful team and is excited to work and learn from everyone over the coming months."

Stay tuned for more team profiles!

Finding a solution to a problem sometimes requires you to get creative! Shawn had some fun this week designing a universal joystick holder prototype for the XPod. Can you guess how many household items were used to make the prototype?

A BIG congratulations to Team Regan curling team for being the U18 Nova Scotia Women's Provincial Champions. We can't wait to cheer you on at the Canadian Championships in February!

Last week was a blast! The MARS team got together and played a tournament of Tetris, Super Smash Bros and Mario Kart. A big congrats to Jamie and Trent for being our winners in the tournament! Happy holidays to everyone celebrating.

We are so excited to share this recent CBC news article about our XPod and how gamified VR is helping children in rehabilitation! Dr. Jordan Sheriko discusses how far we have come and what virtual reality is doing for pediatric patients. Click the link below!

"I don't think any of us really would have imagined being where we were now when we started out on this" - Dr. Jordan Sheriko

http://ow.ly/jjSa50M0jKb

Throwback Thursday!

If you can believe it, we've already started to plan our 2023 Big Walk fundraiser. We thought sharing some throwback photos would be fun to get us in the spirit.

Stay tuned for updates in the new year!

Check out Mitchell, our animator and our new custom plushie. It's exciting to see the XPod characters come to life. Stay tuned for more updates.

A big congrats to Team Regan (a junior women's curling team we sponsor), who came first place this past weekend at the 2022 O'Connor Glass Cornwall Tournament. Way to go, Team Regan!!!!

Did you know? Virtual reality rehabilitation has many benefits for both the clinician and the patient.

The MARS VR Lab XPod has many of those benefits. Not only is it fun, but the XPod is designed to safely reproduce the experience of a real power wheelchair and eliminate the potential risk of physical harm. It uses a gamified rewards system to improve the continuity and completion of therapy. The best part is it's engaging and imaginative for children of all ages.

Stay tuned for exciting news and updates about the XPod.

Shoutout to Digital Nova Scotia, for meeting with Danny last week to do an episode on their All Hands on Tech Podcast! We can't wait to share it when it airs in December.

Gamified virtual reality gives kids the confidence to be themselves. We worked to develop the XPod to help children in pediatric rehabilitation build confidence.

To learn more, visit www.marsvrlab.com

Check out Jamie, our Director of Engineering, on Twitch tonight! Jamie will be busy playing games on Twitch as part of his fundraiser for Extra Life, a program for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. You can also donate by clicking the link below!

WAY TO GO JAMIE!

Watch: http://ow.ly/OzKT50LvmSc

Donate: http://ow.ly/HCRC50LvmSn