TOPICS OFFERED FOR SPRING 2010

 

 

Please note that the books listed for each course are only possible candidates. 
Do not buy any until the pre-meeting and a decision on the common reading is made.

Classes start January 4th and end April 30th

 

 

 

1.    (AIT)     AMERICAN INTELLECTUAL TRADITION (Volume I) (1630-1865) 

American intellectual tradition (Volume I) starts with the Pilgrims and ends with the Civil War. The book provides samples of the writings from important thinkers supporting each chapterÕs theme. Contributions from John Winthrop, Anne Hutchinson, Roger Williams, Cotton Mather, Jonathan Edwards, Ben Franklin, Thomas Paine, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams (the founding fathers section), on through Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson (Transcendentalism), to Margaret Fuller and Elizabeth Palmer Peabody to John C. Calhoun, George Fitzhugh, Martin Delaney, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln allow for interesting discussions of some of the important ideas that form America.

Each session could be devoted to one subject and could entail discussion of two or three writers on the same theme. Ideas are discussed against their social and intellectual backgrounds.

If there is sufficient interest in this SD/G, volume II (1865-Present) will be offered in Summer 2010.

Common Reading:   The American Intellectual Tradition, Volume I

by David A. Hollinger & Charles Capper (Oct. 2005)

 

 

2.    (AMS) AMERICAN SHORT STORIES – Part II

HereÕs a wonderful opportunity to read and discuss a compilation of superb American short stories. The editor Joyce Carol Oates, has included fifty six stories by authors who run the gamut from Washington Irving, Edgar Allen Poe, Mark Twain, William Faulkner, John Cheever, Hemmingway, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Bashevits Singer and Flannery OÕConnor; there are also some great stories by Harlem Renaissance authors and by well-regarded modern authors such as Amy Tan, Alice Leavitt, Louise Ehrlich, Tim OÕBrien and Sandra Cisneros. You will find that one reason that short story S/DGs are so popular is the fascinating differences in interpretation by your presenters and classmates

Common Reading:   The Oxford Book of American Short Stories

                                    edited by Joyce Carol Oates (paperback, 1994)

 

 

3.    (BEN)    BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: A RELUCTANT REVOLUTIONIST

Benjamin Franklin was that rare Founding Father who was a true Renaissance man of his time. Virtually self-taught, he excelled as an athlete, a man of letters, a printer, a scientist, a wit, an inventor, an editor, and a writer, and he was probably the most successful diplomat in American history. As one of the first great philosophers and great man of letters in the New World, Franklin played an integral role in creating the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution; he discovered electricity, invented swim fins and authored Poor Richard's Almanac. Levelheaded leadership and sharp wit resulted in his gaining international respect and admiration. This revolutionary leader represents a political tradition that has been all but forgotten today. He was a great example and promoter of those sound middle class values that have made America a great nation.

With a keen eye for the genius of a man whose fingerprints lie everywhere in our history our author, Walter Isaacson, considers Benjamin Franklin "the most accomplished American of his age," and one of the most admirable of any era. An optional companion book is a modern version of FranklinÕs Autobiography, one of the most famous American works of literature.

Many opportunities for personal research exist in which we will explore both the rich life of Franklin in the context of the exciting times of Revolutionary America. In OPTIONAL after class DVD screenings we will view biographies of Franklin and other Founding Fathers to capture the spirit of the times.

Common Reading:   Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, by Walter Isaacson

                                    (2003, Simon & Schuster; Paperback)

Optional Reading:    Ben Franklin: AmericaÕs Original Entrepreneur, A Modern Adaptation of Franklin's Autobiography for Business Today, by Blaine McCormick (2008; Paperback)

 

 

4.    (CHN)            CHINAÕS RISE AND WHAT IT MEANS TO ASIA

This course will look at present-day China and how its surrounding neighbors are affected by ChinaÕs tremendous economic and military growth, rising Political influence, and increasing involvement in regional multilateral institutions. Some of the DSG members may want to address ChinaÕs expanding use of energy and other limited natural resources along with ChinaÕs impact on the environment and global warming. The discussion group will also examine how ChinaÕs rise will impact the United States and the World. Emphasis in the discussions will focus on ChinaÕs relationship to the surrounding countries of Asia.

Common Reading:   Power Shift: China and AsiaÕs New Dynamics, edited by David Shambaugh (January 2006, paperback)

 

 

5.    (CLM)     CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE RISE AND FALL OF           CIVILIZATIONS

Fewer inches of rain, a temperature change of a degree or two, these will make a difference, we have been told, in how we on our planet will survive. Climate change is an item in the news these days but most articles and books look at the future – few address the past. Our S/DG will read Brian FaganÕs book The Great Warming: Climate Change and the Rise and Fall of Civilizations (Bloomsbury paperback, 2009). Fagan, a professor of anthropology at UC Santa Barbara, looks at the role of climate change and its effect on civilizations from the Mayan Culture to the Inuit, Chinese, and Medieval European, covering civilizations worldwide in the period from 800 AD to 1350 AD. Fagan illustrates how individuals coped with sudden changes in their local climate and how research methods like ice borings, satellite observations, and computer modeling help us understand the climate history.

Presentations can focus on some of the world events that were shaped by global climate change: the French Revolution, the Bubonic Plague of the 1300, and the Irish Potato Famine, among others.

Common Reading:   The Great Warming: Climate Change and the Rise and Fall of Civilizations, by Brian Fagan (Bloomsbury ppbk, March 2009, 304 pp)

 

 

6.    (CVL)     THE SECOND CIVIL WAR

Is America divided in hopeless partisanship and if so, how did it get that way. Was there a golden age in politics? Why are politicians so vicious in their speeches to one another? Are there no longer any grounds for compromise? What has happened to civility? What has happened inside each partyÕs structure to cause such behavior? Topics for presentations could include every president since Teddy Roosevelt to Barack Obama. Other topics might be the influence of money in politics, the growth of think tanks, influence of interest groups, use of focus groups and the growing partisan media.

Common Reading:   The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America, by Ronald Brownstein (Nov 2007)

 

 

7.    (DUS)    THE WORST HARD TIME: THE 1930s DUST BOWL YEARS

On April 14, 1935, the biggest dust storm on record descended over five states, from the Dakotas to Amarillo, Texas. People standing a few feet apart could not see each other; if they touched, they risked being knocked over by the static electricity that the dust created in the air. The Dust Bowl was the product of reckless, market-driven farming that had so abused the land that, when dry weather came, the wind lifted up millions of acres of topsoil and whipped it around in "black blizzards," which blew as far east as New York. But the plague was man-made: the plains weren't suited to farming, and plowing up the grass to plant wheat, along with a confluence of economic disaster—the Depression—and natural disaster—eight years of drought—resulted in an ecological and human catastrophe

In our common reading, Timothy Egan tells the fascinating story of the Dust Bowl through survivorsÕ own words – interviews, oral histories, and journals. There are many lessons about how manÕs economic decisions interact with climatic events to produce catastrophes. Possible presentations topics range from natural and human history, to farm policy and land use, to economics and climate change.

Common Reading:   The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl, by Timothy Egan (Sept. 2006, 340 pp).

 

 

8.    (EFD)   THE END OF FOOD?

Are you concerned about what is happening to our food supply? Perhaps you should be. This book may change the way you look at both "fresh" and packaged food in this country. You mayl be more likely to buy natural and organic foods instead of continuing to purchase cheaper, unhealthy foods - assuming that it will still be available and labeled properly. Our author, Thomas Pawlick, an investigative science journalist, shows how we are facing an impending food crisis. Current food production methods used by corporate-run "factory farms" are sucking the nutrients out of the food we eat. Heavily mechanized, chemically intensive farming has so compromised soil and water that it is unclear how long our large quantity of food production can be maintained. Many times, what's replacing the missing nutrients is harmful--even toxic--to our bodies.

Though the book, backed by hard-hitting evidence, paints a bleak picture, Pawlick makes it abundantly clear that it's not too late. The latter part of the book is devoted to the many ways that we can take back control of the food supply by becoming active at a local level. This is an essential handbook for informing ourselves about the frightening but real decline in the quality of the food we eat, and what we can do to stop it.

Common Reading:   The End of Food: How the Food Industry is Destroying Our Food Supply--And What We Can Do About It, by Thomas Pawlick (2006, Barricade Books)

 

 

9.    (EQN) FIVE EQUATIONS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD

In 5 Equations, Michael Guillen takes five historical figures, gives a brief biography of each, selects an equation best encapsulating their accomplishments, and explains this equation's relevance for contemporary society. The figures selected are Isaac Newton, Daniel Bernoulli, Michael Faraday, Rudolph Clausius, and Albert Einstein but the book isnÕt about five men. It is about five earth-shattering ideas that changed the way science (and eventually society) looks at the universe.

According to one critic, ÒThis book will appeal to anyone with an interest in history, in the processes of scientific method, or who simply enjoys an absorbing human drama. Each story is filled with the passion, competition, family drama, ill feelings, jealousy, hard work, and sheer will that underlie most human endeavors. Additionally, even the most mathematically challenged may finally have their first experience of truly understanding intricate numerical concepts, as well as the thought, experience and effort which go into their creation.Ó

This SD/G will discuss the five scientists covered in GuillenÕs book and their accomplishments. If class participants choose to, they can select three more scientists to discuss in order to round out the eight weeks.

Common Reading:    Five Equations that Changed the World, by Michael Guillen

                                    (February 1999, paperback)

 

 

 

 

10.    (EVO)     THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH: THE EVIDENCE FOR

                          EVOLUTION

Charles Darwin was the first to present a theory on the forces that resulted in Evolution. His theory has lead to a series of confrontations between science and religion.

Richard Darkins presents an encyclopedic summary of evolutionary biology and its conflict with religion. If Charles Darwin walked into a 21st-century bookstore and wanted to know how his theory had fared, this is the book he should pick up. Dawkins remains a superb translator of complex scientific concepts. It doesn't matter if he's spinning metaphors for the fossil record (like a spy camera in a murder trial) or deftly explaining the method by which scientists measure the genetic difference between distinct species: he has a way of making the drollest details feel like a revelation. Even if one already believes in the survival of the fittest, there is something thrilling about learning that the hoof of a horse is homologous to the fingernail of the human middle finger, or that some dinosaurs had a second brain of ganglion cells in their pelvis, which helped compensate for the tiny brain in their head.

This S/DG will discuss the evidence in fossils, DNA, behavior, and tools for evolution and contrast it with the theory of Creationism held by many in the US. Possible topics are recent developments in molecular genetics, altruism, sexual selection, the role of symbiosis, Creationism and others. Additional topics for presentations can be found in the 1/09 issue of Scientific American.

Common Reading:    The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution,

by Richard Darkins (September 2009)

 

 

 

11.    (FSC) FORENSIC SCIENCE

Where would our TV shows be without FORENSICS (and latex gloves)?

The application of science to decide questions arising from crime or litigation was not in common use until recent times although the Chinese, as in so many other fields, were there first, using fingerprints embedded in wax and printed on legal papers as a form of identification as early as 700 AD. Since the O.J. Simpson trial, DNA and forensic science has forged to the front of our collective mind, though TV shows like CSI and NCIS, give an unrealistic picture of the work and capabilities of the forensic scientist.

We will study how real forensic teams employ sophisticated software and analytical instruments to investigate evidence collected at crime scenes. Forensic technology has progressed and has been recorded in several landmark law cases. This S/DG will look at forensic history, the techniques and methodology currently in use, various trials in which forensic evidence was used, and their verdicts.

Possible areas of interest are: general techniques, equipment, methodology, ballistics, DNA analysis, personality profiling, bite-mark identification, trials featuring forensic evidence.

Common Reading:   Forensics for Dummies, by Douglas P. Lyle (Wiley, April 2004)

 

 

12.    (GAS)   WHAT IS IT WITH GILBERT & SULLIVAN?               

Written more than a century ago and initially regarded even by their creators as nothing more than light entertainment, the fourteen operas of Gilbert & Sullivan emerged over the course of the twentieth century as the world's most popular body of musical-theater works, ranking second only to Shakespeare in the history of English-language theater.

Despite this resounding popularity and proven longevity, most books written about the duo have focused on the authors rather than the works. With this detailed examination of all fourteen operas, Gayden Wren fills the void. He finds the key to the operas' longevity, not in the clever lyrics, witty dialogue, or catchy music, but in the central themes underlying the characters and stories. Like Shakespeare's comedies, Wren shows, the operas of Gilbert & Sullivan endure because of their timeless themes, which speak to audiences as powerfully now as they did the first time they were performed.

Written out of an abiding love for the Savoy operas, this volume is essential reading for any devotee of these enchanting works, or indeed for anyone who loves musical theater.

This S/DG will look at Gilbert & Sullivan as a team and as individuals. It will look at their body of work, choose operas to listen to and discuss. It will be a fun Ònight at the opera.Ó

Common Reading:    A Most Ingenious Paradox: The Art of Gilbert & Sullivan, by Gayden Wren (February 2006, paperback)

 

 

13.    (HCT)     HEALTH CARE SHOULD NOT BE TRAUMATIC

Health care delivery (not just insurance) will be in a state of flux in the USA for years. There are widely acknowledged problems including: high cost; varying quality of care, including far too many mistakes, infections, and accidents in hospitals; an over cautious medical profession operating under the high cost of malpractice insurance; excessive use of antibiotics leading to resistant bacteria strains; a shortage of primary care physicians and nurses; a pharmaceutical system that seems inefficient and costly to many; an antiquated and non-uniform medical record keeping system; lifestyle related ailments that have huge economic as well as personal impacts; and a medical insurance network that sorely needs overhaul.

The current ÒhealthcareÓ debates, however, seem to be dominated by those insisting on extremist positions such as Òmust have single payerÓ insurance or Òno socialized medicineÓ and endlessly recounting real or hypothetical heart-rending anecdotes with little or no attention being paid to many of the serious problems. There are numerous health care systems (HCS) around the world that provide service at lower cost than in the USA. These HCS involve a wide range of combinations of government and private care providers. There are no purely ÒsocializedÓ or free market based systems, and many countries have refined their systems with several reducing the level of government involvement. Some countries have essentially Òsingle payerÓ and some have Òmany payerÓ systems.

This S/DG will examine alternative HCS as implemented at medical facilities within the USA, variation of medical processes around the USA, and HCS that operate in other countries with the intent of dispelling misrepresentations to which we have recently been subjected and clarifying issues that the country really faces. This SDG should also help us become better consumers of health care so that we attain better health at lower cost and inconvenience. We will move through a research and discussion process to clarify our thinking and to identify criteria for an effective health care system.

Common Reading:   The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care, by T. R. Reid (Penguin Press, 2009)

(Highly recommended by several reviewers.)

Supplemental Source:      Crisis of Abundance: Rethinking How We Pay for Health Care
by Arnold Kling (Cato, 2006) ISBN 13: 978-1930865891

 

 

 

14.    (HSU)    HISTORY OF THE SOVIET UNION

This is a succinct book on the reasons for the success of the October Revolution and eventually the complete failure and collapse of the Soviet Union. Throughout, our author,, emphasizes economics, creating an image of a hollow superpower that could neither feed its population nor produce a reasonable supply of consumer goods owing to its 25% of GDP concentration on the Òdefense industry.Ó The author who is clearly critical of: Soviet ideology; the purges that led to the criminal murder of 62 million citizens by their government; the imposition of a command economy that never addressed the Russian peopleÕs wants; a Red Army that kept Eastern European subjects in line for almost 50 years; and a government that was completely authoritarian if not totalitarian (the Stalin regime).

Using the account of our author we can personally explore the many stages in the history of the Soviet Union. This might include: serfdom in Czarist Russia, the revolutionaries and the Jewish pogroms, the rise of a Czarist secret police and its expansion under the Soviets, a WW I Germany giving Lenin safe passage for him to foment revolution in Russia, how the Bolsheviks seized control of Russia, how they were defeated by Germany in World War I, how they set up a foreign policy to undermine by force any other sovereign nations, how they imposed new economic programs internally, how Stalin purged different segments of the nation for almost 30 years, how Stalin defeated Hitler, how the Red Army controlled Eastern Europe for almost 50 years, how the Soviets influenced USA post-WW II foreign policy, how the Soviet Union conducted their Cold War foreign policy, how the Unites States chose to respond to that foreign policy;,and, how in the end GorbachevÕs simple attempts at reforms imploded the entire enterprise. We will reflect on why governments that are supposed to protect citizen rights murders them on a massive scale. And we will examine what happens to any authoritarian command economy when there is failure to adhere to the capitalist laws of supply and demand – particularly examining the idea that: ÒYou can't demand that people 'want' whatever you decide to supply.Ó

Common Reading:   History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to the End, by Peter Kenez (2006, Cambridge University Press)

 

 

15.    (ICN)  INDIA IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

India is the worldÕs second most populous country and it is projected to pass ChinaÕs in a few decades. Where does India stand today and what does it need to achieve greatness. Or can it, in the foreseeable future? IndiaÕs recent economic boom has triggered tremendous social, political, and cultural change. The result is a country that, while managing incredible economic growth, has also begun to more fully inhabit its role on the world political stage. IndiaÕs future rests on more than simply economic growth; it also depends on reform and innovation in all sectors of public life. What efforts of the countryÕs past and present leaders will lead to new frameworks that suit IndiaÕs specific characteristics and challenges? The author of the common reading discusses India's recent past and his view of the best present course (embracing globalization, seen as a harmonious and harmonizing amalgam of democracy, equal opportunity and resource access). If you are inclined to a free market perspective you will find his approach eminently reasonable, if you see it as antithetical to an equitable and sustainable future you may suffer some frustration. The many unique aspects of Indian society provide a wealth of topics for presentations.

Common Reading:   Imagining India, by Nandan Nilekani (2008, Allan Lane)

 

 

16.    (INT)  AMERICAN FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE

This course will address the history of the American foreign intelligence community (principally the CIA), its organizations and the current status of our foreign intelligence operations. Our text asserts that for the last 60 years, the CIA has managed to maintain a formidable reputation in spite of its record, burying its blunders in top-secret archives. Its mission was to know the world, but when it did not succeed, it set out to change the world.  The resource book (not required for the course) takes a more positive view of the CIA and its technical accomplishments. Have U. S. intelligence efforts been a failure or a success? Is the intelligence community too powerful and intrusive today? These and other subjects should inspire lively class discussions and a wide variety of presentation topics.

Common Reading:   Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA, by Tim Weiner

(May 2008, paperback 848 pp)

Optional Resource Material

Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIAÕs Spytechs, from Communism to al-Qaeda, by Robert Wallace, H. Keith Melton and Henry R. Schlesinger (May 2009, 576 pp)

 

 

17.    (JPN) THE MODERN HISTORY OF JAPAN

Japan, one of the worldÕs largest economies, has played a key role in the development of the other Asian powers. LetÕs learn more about the history of Japan so that we will can understand their economic and political role in the world. Many say the 21st century is the "Asian Century" and believe Japan will play a large part in it. We presently think of Japan as an efficient manufacturer of automobiles, electronics, and other high technology products. Is there more?

Common Reading:   A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa Times to the Present, by Andrew Gordon (Oxford University Press, 2003, 384 pp)

18.    (MOV) TRIAL BY MOVIE     

A law professor at the University of Iowa teaches a class entitled ÒLaw and Popular CultureÓ to explore Òhow films influence the way people perceive the legal system – how law shapes culture.Ó We would like to emulate the good professor by presenting some of the top 25 greatest legal movies as determined by the American Bar Association. They include To Kill a Mockingbird, 12 Angry Men, My Cousin Vinny, Anatomy of a Murder, Inherit the Wind, Witness for the Prosecution, and Erin Brockovich.

As with our popular documentary movie classes, class members will watch the films at home. Each member of the study group will provide background information on a film of their choice, together with a set of questions for class discussion.

No Common Reading.

 

 

19.    (MYS)   THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES 2009     

This S/DG is for all the mystery buffs in Omnilore, who like to gather to discuss who-done-its! Using this latest collection of the Best American Mystery Stories for 2009, the group will read and discuss the genre of mystery writing. This collection of stories has been edited by best-selling novelist Jeffrey Deaver, and features Ògritty tales told with panache,Ó a must-read for anybody who cares about crime stories.

Common Reading:   The Best American Mystery Stories 2009, by Jeffery Deaver and Otto Penzler (ISBN-10: 0547237502, available from Amazon and book stores after October 8, 2009)

 

 

20.    (PHL)      PHILOSOPHY OVERVIEW

This S/DG will look at the major philosophies, philosophers, and ideas. It will serve as a great introduction to the field and enable us to follow up with topics of personal interest. Presentation topics can include the great philosophers (Plato, Kant, etc.), the major philosophical movements (Existentialism, Realism, etc.), and big ideas (Truth, Beauty, etc.).

Common Reading:   Looking at Philosophy: The Unbearable Heaviness of Philosophy Made Lighter, by Donald Palmer (June 2009)

 

 

21.    (POV) THE HIGH COST OF AMERICAN POVERTY

Everyone would like to eliminate poverty. But, Americans do not agree on what constitutes poverty, what contributes to poverty, nor what should be done to lessen poverty. Among the very poorest are those with physical or mental disabilities. Among the least visible but most numerous are the working poor, with low skills and few opportunities for upward mobility. (This condition has worsened in recent decades.) The US poverty rate was declining steadily until numerous government programs were launched as part of the War On Poverty; the US poverty rate has remained essentially constant (13% ± 2%) ever since. Vocational training has been virtually eliminated from AmericaÕs schools so that the skills necessary get and hold a rewarding job are more difficult to obtain. Clearly, some wrong approaches have been taken. Similarly, the standard approaches to US foreign aid have had little positive impact. Various programs have had significant success in other countries, including: micro-finance; simplification of business start-up; and land ownership programs. The USA needs to take a fresh look at poverty and to devise much more effective approaches.

This Study/Discussion Group will examine what constitutes poverty in America, and what approaches we might take to achieve results. The emphasis is on those who hold low paying jobs with little opportunity to break out of their rut. Some participants may wish to consider poverty outside the USA and to air ideas on how to better address the problem of poverty globally.

Common Reading:      The Working Poor: Invisible in America, by David K. Shipler

                                       (Vintage/Random House, 2005)

 

 

22.    (PRK) AMERICAÕS BEST IDEA: THE NATIONAL PARKS & MONUMENTS

AmericaÕs national parks spring from an idea as radical as the Declaration of Independence: that the nationÕs most magnificent and sacred places should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone. This S/DG will delve into the history of the park idea, from the first sighting by white men in 1851 of the valley that would become Yosemite and the creation of the worldÕs first national park at Yellowstone in 1872, through the most recent additions to a system that now encompasses nearly four hundred sites and 84 million acres. Each member will research and present on a relevant topic. These might include: formation and management of the system, political issues related to park policies (i.e. fire, visitor, wildlife, ecological management), the history and significance of a specific park. While not having a specific common reading, there is much information available in the form of books, DVDs, and internet websites. This is not a class to show Òfamily vacationÓ pictures but rather an intellectual pursuit of information related to our National Parks System

No Common Reading.         

 

23.    (SHK) SHAKESPEARE: ALL THE WORLDÕS A STAGE . . .

The Omnilorean New Globe Theater launches a new set of plays in January. With players standing and using a few props, we propose to do reading walk-throughs of 3 great plays by the Bard: Henry VI (Part 2), Timon of Athens, and one comedy (perhaps The Merry Wives of Windsor, Much Ado About Nothing, Love's Labour's Lost, The Two Noble Kinsmen, or The Winter's Tale,\ — to be decided at the S/DG's pre-meeting).

Class members will serve on one playÕs Board of Directors, responsible for researching sources and themes of the play, casting roles for the repertory, and leading discussions on the research, symbols, images, motifs, and all manner of rhyme and reason — perhaps even videos, music, and costumes. For a glimpse of how we study the Bard in this S/DG, check out http://omnilore.org/members/Curriculum/SDGs/09c-SHK_Shakespeare/ to view the Fall trimesterÕs Shakespeare classÕs website and links to internet references relevant to our plays and downloadable organizing artifacts.

There are no prerequisites, theatrical or otherwise. You will find that the bard of Stratford-on-Avon will teach us, just as heÕs taught others for four hundred years. With plenty for the novice as well as the veteran, it is a foregone conclusion members will leave this class with a fuller understanding of the masterful story construction, realistic characters with depth and humanity, and the rich, evocative language which have earned Shakespeare the title of greatest writer in the English language. He may have penned ÒIt was Greek to meÓ (Julius Caesar, Act 1), but for you this notion will vanish into thin air and you will see why his language and stories are too much of a good thing.

Common Reading: Selected Plays

 

 

24.    (TED) TED TALKS: IDEAS WORTH SPREADING

This S/DG is available to members who have access to a computer.

A click on www.ted.com will take you to an unusual and fascinating website – TED talks. TED is a small nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader, adding people from the worlds of Arts, Business, Culture, Science, and Global Issues. The annual TED Conference is held in Long Beach, California, and the TEDGlobal conference is in Oxford UK. At these conferences TED brings together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes). These are, for the most part, riveting talks by remarkable people made available free to the world online. More than 450 talks are now available and more are added each week.

The Presenter can click on ted.com, select a talk and do research on the subject and/or perhaps the speaker. The talk will serve as a nucleus for the Presentation. For instance, should the class member select a talk by Ramachandran on his brain research, he or she could do a Presentation on Ramachandran, his work on phantom limbs, or the subject of current brain research. Selecting a talk by Isabel Allende would give the Presenter choices of the areas of AllendeÕs captivating literary work, her very passionate views on feminism around the world and the actual study of the state of feminism around the world. As is customary, the meeting before the presentation the Presenter would give the group a handout announcing the talk chosen and questions or ideas for consideration leading to discussion. Group members could then watch the talk at home and come prepared for informed discussion.

A warning: viewing these talks can become addictive.

No Common Reading.

 

 

25.    (TTD) THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT

According to authors Carmen Reinhart of the University of Maryland and Kenneth Rogoff of Harvard, the four most dangerous words in finance are Òthis time is different.Ó Reinhart and Rogoff have put together a remarkable database on the external and domestic debt, trade, national income, inflation, exchange rates, interest rates and commodity prices of 66 countries from all over the world. The data go back more than 800 years in some cases, to the date of independence for most countries and into the colonial period for several.

Course presentations could cover:

         Ponzi schemes

         Tulip mania of 1637

         South Sea Company

         John LawÕs Mississippi

         The dot.com bubble – 1995-2000

         Asian Financial Crisis of 1997-1999

         Argentine economic crisis – 1999-2002

         Russian financial crisis – 1998

         The subprime mortgage crisis of 2006-2008

         Madoff scheme

This S/DG can discuss the lessons to be learned from past and present crises in order to prevent future crises.

Common Reading:   This Time is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly, by Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff (Princeton Press, Sep. 30, 09)

 

 

26.    (WAW)   AMERICAN WOMEN & WORLD WAR II

During World War II, American women took on the widest variety of roles of any time in the nationÕs history. Whether civilian or military, women filled jobs that had been solely ÒmaleÓ until—and after—the War. Many of these women found themselves far more capable than theyÕd ever imagined: they performed jobs theyÕd thought themselves unable to do, and they learned to value and express their own opinions (some in favor of US involvement in the War, some—both on the Left and on the Right—strongly opposed to it). In this course weÕll examine most of the major groups of American women (and teenaged girls) during the War, both civilian and military, and weÕll look at the long-lasting changes in ÒwomenÕs rolesÓ that resulted from their wartime experiences.

Common Reading:   American Women and World War II, by Doris Weatherford

(Castle Books, 2008)

 

27.    (WRI) THE WRITING MIND

This S/DG concentrates on fostering creativity and improving techniques of the writer through the production of original pieces of writing, literary critique and presentations by each group member. Presentations are on literary topics such as writing genres, literary schools, authors, etc. ( e.g. if the topic is an author, the presentation would concentrate on his or her writing style, craft or philosophy rather than straight biography); or on the philosophy, subtleties, techniques or craft of writing. Each member will be responsible for; a presentation, at least two submissions of original fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or other form of writing, and for reading and critiquing submissions from other group members.

Common Reading:   None Suggested

 

28.    (YRC)            1959: THE YEAR EVERYTHING CHANGED

Although conventional wisdom holds that the 1960s were the source of the cultural shift from pre-WWII traditions to the individualistic, question-authority world of today, Slate columnist Kaplan takes a contrarian view. Kaplan asserts that the watershed year was actually 50 years ago, in 1959. He examines the artistic, scientific, and social issues that he thinks came to a head that year. His case is cemented by three 1959 events that he convincingly argues were catalysts for paradigm changes in relationships between men and women, how citizens view their government and, in communications and information transfer.

Do you remember Luniks, beatniks, the first kitchen debates, the first birth control pills, the first American soldiers killed in Vietnam, the first microchip, Jack Kerouac, Norman Mailer, Allen Ginsburg, Herman Kahn, Miles Davis, Buddy Holly, John Howard Griffin, Lenny Bruce, Happy Days, and Lady ChatterleyÕs Lover? If so, youÕll enjoy this S/DG. Members can choose to present on anything having to do with 1959, whether a specific historical event or a cultural trend.

Common Reading: 1959: The Year Everything Changed, by Fred Kaplan

(Jun 2009; 336 pages)

 

 

 

 

The following course is the CSUDH lecture series and will be given at the CSUDH campus on the first and third Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to Noon.

It will probably start the third week of January (January 20th) and end in late April, making a total of seven lectures.

 

29.      (CSU) THE SCIENCE OF LIFE

The lecture series will explore life from the perspective of a variety of scientific disciplines, and will address some of the more pressing issues of our day.

If you are interested in the CSUDH lecture series, let us know by placing an X in the coordinator box next to that topic, so we can have a list of those to inform when more details become available about the series.  However, do not vote for it along with your other S/DG topics.