University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point College of Letters and Science Community / Campus Lecture Series. Free to All

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1 University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point College of Letters and Science Community / Campus Lecture Series Free to All

2 Welcome to the Community/Campus Lecture Series, which the College of Letters & Science at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) is proud to sponsor. Below is the College s mission statement. We hope that you will find in the lectures we are presenting this year examples of how the College adheres to this statement. When the College inaugurated the series last year, we did so with the express goal of bringing to the wider public select examples of our faculty members work as expressions of serving the public good through dissemination of knowledge and understanding. The College of Letters & Science is proud of all of its faculty and staff who serve the university and community. Those faculty presenting lectures this year are a small sample of the wide array of expertise and talent embodied in our colleagues in the College. Please come to one or more of this year s lectures. Through these lectures, the College demonstrates its firm commitment to promoting dialogue and learning in our community. September 10, 2009 Brain Injury is a Family Matter Traumatic brain injury affects individuals and families in many different ways. Personality change and changes in interpersonal relationships after brain injury can bring added stress to families. Family members involved in caring for or working with a relative with brain injury report more feelings of burden and depression than people with other chronic illnesses. Learning about the brain, types of memory loss, and changes in communication patterns of people with brain injury can help alleviate stress among family members. The mission of the College of Letters & Science at UWSP is to serve the region, the state, and the world through Commitment to UWSP s Vision 2015 Academic excellence that fosters students career preparation, professional expertise, civic responsibility, personal development, and global adaptability Research and learning that generate new knowledge and new insights which, through their application, promote economic development, community wellbeing, personal fulfillment, and lifelong learning Dedication to the public good through leadership and service grounded in the foundational ideals of liberal education, robust academic majors, a vibrant general education program, and an overarching embrace of academic and personal integrity Adherence to the Principles of Excellence established for Liberal Education and America s Promise by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, which are to Aim high, and make excellence inclusive Give students a compass Teach the arts of inquiry and innovation Engage the big questions Connect knowledge with choices and action Foster civic, intercultural and ethical learning Assess students ability to apply learning to complex problems Amy Gervasio Psychology

3 October 8, 2009 The Tunda Bamboos: Exploring the Sad, Wonderful Frontiers of Tropical Biodiversity The tunda bamboos (genus Aulonemia) reach their greatest diversity in cloud forests of Andean South America. My research has shown that there are not 30 species (as previously thought) but at least 60 species and counting. And many more will doubtlessly be discovered as remote, previously inaccessible cloud forests in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia are opened to roads and development. With the help of international colleagues and UWSP student reseachers and artists, I am describing these wonderful new plants from disappearing habitats that feature interactions between bamboos and birds, insects, and even the spectacled bear. November 12, 2009 The Obama Presidency at Age One: Has The Change Candidate Changed Much? Barack Obama campaigned for President of the United States on a theme of change. Specifically he told us we needed a changed image in the world, a changed government complete with changed politics and policies to go with it and, as the campaign wore on, a changed economy. How far have we traveled on Mr. Obama s road to change? Emmet Judziewicz Biology Dennis Riley Political Science

4 December 10, 2009 Polymer Research at UWSP: Preserving the Apollo Spacesuits to Developing Bioresorbable Bone Adhesives Space-age materials generally are thought to last forever. However, for certain artifacts with historical significance, this is proving not to be the case. Synthetic polymers, like other organic-based materials, degrade over time. Some artifacts, from the Apollo and other collections at the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum, are showing significant degradation. For example, some of the rubber gloves from the Apollo missions have hardened and cracked and are now crumbling. In our labs at UWSP, we have used thermogravimetric analysis and infrared spectroscopy to characterize Apollo spacesuits that are part of the Smithsonian collection. Our efforts to characterize the degradation and to suggest ways to improve the storage and display of these suits will be discussed. We also analyzed the external foam from a Saturn V rocket as part of a restoration project at the Johnson Space Center. These studies on degradation, combined with our earlier work to develop polymers for extreme service conditions (e.g., aircraft engines), has led to a current project in our group, developing bioresorbable bone adhesives. Although it will take many years, these materials show promise for future use in bone replacement and bone repair applications. Mozart in the Enlightenment February 11, 2010 Prior to the Enlightenment of the Eighteenth Century, individual value and status were largely determined by heritage and bloodlines. Sons and daughters were worth no more to the world than their parents. But among the many astonishing contributions of the Enlightenment was the reassessment of individual. For the first time in Western history, talent rose above birth and ascriptive qualities in assessing individual value. Copernicus was valued for his achievements in astronomy rather than his bloodlines. Newton was valued for his contributions to physics rather than for his father. Alexander Pope was esteemed for his poetic gifts rather than his family background. And in this century that celebrated the talents of individuals, arguably no one had more talent than W.A. Mozart. Completing his first symphony at age eight and his sixteenth violin sonata by age ten, Mozart was the very definition of a prodigy. And although he, too, had musical bloodlines, it was for his compositions not his father s that he remains cherished today. This lecture explores the achievements of this gifted man in the context of his age both through his life and music. There will be special attention given to his operas as expressive of his Zeitgeist, especially the Marriage of Figaro, which stands out as one of the most complete expressions of Enlightenment ideology. John Droske Chemistry David Williams Philosophy & Political Science

5 March 11, 2010 Through the Looking Glass - Symmetry in Art and Chemistry What makes a molecule do what it does? Answering this question likely invokes images of beakers, Bunsen burners, or absent-minded college chemistry professors (the latter being a group to which the speaker belongs). But there is more to chemistry than smoke, colors, and explosive reactions. The physical structure of discrete molecules some as small as cubic inches! plays a dramatic role in their function and reactivity. This talk will serve as a guide to understanding molecular structure and function and its impact on each one of us. We ll get some help along the way from author Lewis Carroll and artist M.C. Escher, whose understanding of symmetry and structure translated to and was inspired by the molecular world. April 8, 2010 Self-Deception: Rational Failure or Evolutionary Strategy? Self-deception is a fascinating topic that has received considerable attention from philosophers, psychologists, and biologists. Despite its widespread occurrence, selfdeception is generally classified as a form of rational failure, and sometimes as a form of psychopathology. Because self-deception regularly generates false beliefs, this figures prominently among the motivations for designating selfdeception as a form of malfunction. However, that motivation may be misleading. From an evolutionary point of view, selfdeception can be seen as a successful evolutionary strategy, and therefore indicative of a normally functioning, evolved human mind. Jason D Acchioli Chemistry James Sage Philosophy

6 May 13, 2010 Thinking Like a Home Owner: A New Ethic of Environmentalism For years now, environmentalism has been based on Aldo Leopold s idea of thinking like a mountain, which suggests that people should imagine themselves as part of an ecological community and protect those parts of the environment that remain wild. Unfortunately, this wilderness ethic has been less than successful in protecting the environment. A better approach can be found in thinking like a home owner. People want homes that are safe and well constructed; that are easy to live in and affordable to own; that are spacious, clean, beautiful, and conveniently located; and, above all perhaps, that appreciate in value. What better goal for any environmental policy than to achieve these same ends: to create a world that is safe, not just for people but for life in general; a world that is clean, healthy, beautiful, and convenient; a world, above all, that is sustainable and appreciates in value? Lecture Series All lectures will be held from 7:00-8:30 p.m. September 10, 2009 October 8, 2009 November 12, 2009 December 10, 2009 Brain Injury is a Family Matter Amy Gervasio, Psychology The Tunda Bamboos: Exploring the Sad, Wonderful Frontiers of Tropical Biodiversity Emmet Judziewicz, Biology, UWSP The Obama Presidency at Age One: Has The Change Candidate Changed Much? Dennis Riley, Political Science Polymer Research at UWSP: Preserving the Apollo Spacesuits to Developing Bioresorbable Bone Adhesives John Droske, Chemistry, UWSP Greg Summers History February 11, 2010 March 11, 2010 April 8, 2010 May 13, 2010 Mozart in the Enlightenment David Williams, Philosophy & Political Science, UWSP Through the Looking Glass - Symmetry in Art and Chemistry Jason D Acchioli, Chemistry Self-Deception: Rational Failure or Evolutionary Strategy? James Sage, Philosophy, UWSP Thinking Like a Home Owner: A New Ethic of Environmentalism Greg Summers, History

7 321 Collins Classroom Center, UWSP 1801 Fourth Avenue Stevens Point, WI Main Street Stevens Point, WI