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The Academy for Learning in Retirement in Saratoga Springs,
New York offered members a chance to study History, Science, and Art
All Around Us, this past fall. The program was a series of day-long
trips to noteworthy sites in the region that exemplified one of the topics
of the course.
Members of the Adult Learning Institute at Columbia-Greene
Community College in Hudson, NY listened to a guest speaker discuss his
Experiences in Military Service. An adjunct professor who teaches
Psychology at the college, he spoke about his Naval experience in Afghanistan.
In December they also presented a stimulating workshop entitled Women’s
Role in Society in Respect to Politics. A Professor of Human Services
and Gender Studies at the college showed video clips of Hillary Rodham
Clinton as part of her presentation.
Great Experiments is the title of a new course being given at
the Berkshire Institute for Lifetime Learning in Massachusetts
this winter. Scientific experiments are the keys that unlock nature’s
secrets and as such rank among the highest achievement of the human spirit.
Topics include: Milliken’s Oil Drop Experiment: How the Electron
is Weighed – Gravity: Falling Bodies and Inclined Plane –
Measurement of the Speed of Light: Michelson and Morley Experiment –
Mendel Pea Experiments on Inherited Traits or How Gregor Mendel, an Esoteric
Monk, Discovered the Basis of Modern Genetics – Harvey’s Discoveries
of Human Circulation: How the Engine of the Body was Revealed –
Faraday and the Magic of Electromagnetism.
The Duke ILR in North Carolina is offering members a
course entitled Novels of the Sea. Certain maritime novels have
become classics of literature due to the power of the images they create
of dominant characters in exciting environments. Although fiction they
are usually rooted in the life experiences of the authors, thus partly
autobiographical. Two of these masterpieces focus upon their legendary
captains – Wolf Larsen and Ahab: the third focuses upon the entire
crew. Members will read The Sea Wolf by Jack London; Moby
Dick by Herman Melville; and The Nigger of the Narcissus
by Joseph Conrad.
The Encore Program at North Carolina State University
will give its members a chance to learn all about endocrinology with a
course entitled Tops in Endocrinology. The aim of this course
is to provide a basic understanding of the function of the endocrine system.
Participants will review the latest scientific research and development
of new tools in diagnosis and improvement of medicines used in treatments
as well as improvements in healthcare.
The Axial Age is the title of a program being given this month
at the ILR at Bradley University in Peoria, IL. The world
changed dramatically in the 6th century B.C. with Confucius in China,
Buddha in India, Zoroaster in Persia, and most importantly, Second Isaiah
and Ezekiel in Babylonian exile. The class will focus on these Biblical
prophets and their role in turning the world on its “axis.”
Members of the ILR at Old Dominion University in Virginia
studied The American Century last fall. This course gave an overview
of a century that is referred to as the “American Century,”
one that began with no electric household lighting and infrequent indoor
plumbing, and ended with computers, microwaves, and trips to Mars.
Members of the Institute for Retired Professionals at
the New School in New York are studying An Interdisciplinary Look
at the Concept of Time. For two semesters they will look at time
from philosophical, scientific and humanistic standpoints. In philosophy
they will read Plato, Aristotle, Augustine and others. In alternate weeks
they will focus on time in science and the arts. They will review classic
physics of Newton, Einstein and thermodynamics. They will also study time
in biology, medicine, and in the quantum world as well as the science
of time travel. In the humanities they will discuss time in historiography,
art, the cinema, literature, music, drama and poetry.
Learning in Retirement, Inc. in Athens, Georgia has teamed up
with their local library to offer Theatre Thursdays. International
documentary films are shown, and members then move to a local restaurant
for refreshment and post-movie discussion.
From Impressionism to Expressionism was the title of a popular
repeat course at the Learning in Retirement program sponsored
by Edison Community College in Florida. Century to century, artistic styles
change. Members learned about the progression of styles from the 17th,
18th, 19th and perhaps 20th centuries, along with the motivation behind
realism, impressionism and expressionism.
The Lifelong Learning Society at Christopher Newport
University in VA is giving its members a chance to learn about Organizing
Your Family Filing System. Over 10 weeks, this course will explore
important family documents and the need for a well-designed and manageable
system for organizing, updating and safekeeping these documents.
The Americas in the Revolutionary Period is the title of a series
of video lectures that were given this past fall at the LINEC program
in New Hampshire. These lectures dealt with the wars for independence
that erupted across all the Americas between 1776 and 1825. The course
dealt mainly with the revolutions in South and Central America, ending
in 1825 with the final defeat of the Spanish in South America. The discussions
related the revolutionary history of these countries to the current issues
they face.
The OLLI program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks
offers members a Winter Lecture Series. Last month Tsunamis from Atlantis
to Augustine was the topic. In February, the topic is Sundogs and Spheres.
Participants will look at some of the atmospheric halos that can be seen
in Fairbanks, then some world class halos from the South Pole.
Last fall, members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
at California State University, Channel Islands spent ten weeks studying
Tribalism: A Human Dilemma. This course surveyed the variety
of social groups (tribes) to which people belong. From family to local
gang, sports team, the nation and religion, tribes are a universal human
construction. Through examination of case studies involving both mundane
and highly involved groups, students reflected and in the process, came
to better understand their own tribal identities.
Members of the OLLI program at George Mason University
in Virginia studied The CIA and Intelligence in Today’s World.
This four-week course discussed the role of the CIA today, Is it the right
role? Is intelligence needed? What purpose has intelligence served throughout
history? and Why is the cost so high?
Members of the Seniors’ Education Center at the
University of Regina, Saskatchewan, will be studying Ritual and Society.
This course will examine a wide variety of rituals from around the world
and explore some of the approaches that anthropologists have used to understand
the function and significance of rituals in the religion, economy, ecology
and politics of various societies.
Capitalizing on the recent film, Good Night and Good Luck, the
WISE program at Assumption College in MA is offering
a winter course entitled Good Luck…Words to the Wise. This
class explores the themes of responsible journalism and social conscience
raised by the film. Participants will view portions of the film and do
outside research on Murrow, McCarthyism and early TV.
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July 23, 2008
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