Fall 2009 UCALL Courses
Tuesdays, October 6, 13, 20, 27 and November 3
Law and Society IV
This informative, useful, and exciting course will continue UCALL’s overview of the many areas of the law. Robert Batson, Government Lawyer in Residence at the Government Law Center of Albany Law School, will speak on “Casinos in Indian Country.” Paul Moore, Clarence D. Rappleyea Scholar in Residence at the Government Law Center, will speak on “Property Tax Burden: State initiatives to make local government more efficient vs. mandate reform – can either spell relief?” Rose Mary Bailly, Esq., Special Counsel to the Government Law Center at Albany Law School, will speak on “Guardianship for Incapacitated Adults – When is it Necessary?” Patricia E. Salkin, Raymond and Ella Smith Distinguished Professor of Law at Albany Law School, will speak on “Hot Topics in Community Development and Land Use.” Michael Suprunowicz, J. D., one of New York State’s premier practitioners in the area of Estates, Trusts and Taxes, will speak on “Update on Estate Planning and Estate Taxation: What every individual needs to know.”Coordinator: Robert J. Coan, Esq.
10 a.m. to noon Reamer Auditorium*
I’ve Always Meant to Read that…Now’s Your Chance!
Famous poems about death: “Thanatopsis” by William Cullen Bryant; “Safe in their Alabaster Chambers” by Emily Dickinson; “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas; “Amaryllis” by E.A. Robinson; “Intimations of Immortality,” the great ode by William Wordsworth, English poet who helped usher in the Romantic period; Huckleberry Finn, hilarious, grim, still controversial; Friederick von Hayek’s The Road to Serfdom, dealing with the role of central planning and competition in a free society – all these are still major works that provoke controversy, discussion, aesthetic appreciation, economic theory, and personal connection. All of these selections are easily found in libraries and book stores and should be read before the first session.
Speakers: Linda Witkowski, Coordinator of Books Sandwiched In; Dr. Patricia Rush, retired professor of English; Mary Jewett, retired teacher of English and journalism; Richard Evans, retired teacher of economics and social studies.
Coordinator: Linda Witkowski
1 to 3 p.m. Reamer Auditorium*
Wednesdays, October 7, 14, 21, 28, November 4
Developing Nations – Old and New
A hundred years ago Ireland was one of the poorest nations in Western Europe. There were famines. Emigration, mostly to North America, depleted the land of many capable workers. By the end of the 20th century, however, Ireland had become a favorite place for industrial development, attributed to its favorable taxation policy. Today the most rapidly developing nations are Brazil, Russia, India and China. The land mass and population size of these is huge compared to that of Ireland. Still, there may be parallels in the course of their economies on the way of becoming developed industrial countries. We will examine the different paths of their development in the light of their past history and their national characteristics. Don Gavin, regular UCALL presenter, will tell us about Ireland. Antonio Mogro-Campero, GE Global Research retiree and previous UCALL presenter, Manuel Aven, long-time UCALL mainstay, Bidhan Chandra, international business consultant at Empire State College, and William Chu, GE Global Research retiree and native of China, will address Brazil, Russia, India and China, respectively.
Coordinator: Manuel Aven 10 a.m. to noon Reamer Auditorium*
How Does Weather Work?
All of us – as commuters, gardeners, homeowners, vacationers – depend on the weather forecast. In this course you will learn about clouds and what they mean, and how to be your own Weather Guy on the Web. You will learn about catastrophic storms in the past and prospects for future ones, and how the earth’s climate system works, including the influence of oceans on it. Speakers will describe how El Nino, the Gulf Stream, the Haline Cycle and other global ocean circulation patterns affect weather and climate. Speakers will include Dick Westergard and Phillip Falconer, certified consulting meteorologists, John Quinlan of the National Weather Service, Carol Hildreth, retired high school earth science teacher and Ryan Torn, SUNY Albany atmospheric science professor.
Coordinators: Jim Comly with Lucy Comly
1 to 3 p.m. Reamer Auditorium*
Thursdays, October 8, 15, 22, 29 and November 5
Three Weddings, a Funeral and a Bat
Opera has been labeled an art that feeds on corpses. Yet, many operas end with celebrations and even jubilation. Four of the five operas fall into this latter, joyful category. Each opera tells us more about its time period and reveals much contemporary meaning.
Donizetti’s L’ Elisire D’Amore is the story of the country bumpkin Nemorino who gets his girl Adina. Nemorino was a signature role of Luciano Pavarotti. Kiri Te Kanawa sang a radiant title role of Arabella who gets her Mandryka. Rigoletto’s revenge turns on him when his daughter Gilda is mortally stabbed, while the Duke, the object of his revenge, keeps on singing. The Magic Flute is an opera enjoyed by children and philosophers alike. We look at the successful trials of Tamino and Pamina through Mozart’s and Schikaneder’s spiritual eyes. The finale is a bat - Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss Jr., written after a terrible stock market crash. It lifted Vienna out of its economic doldrums, and so, why not take advantage of it again. Instructor: Josef Schmee, Professor Emeritus of Management, Union College, a frequent UCALL presenter. Coordinator: Manuel Aven
10 a.m. to noon Reamer Auditorium*
ART AND ARCHITECTURE: Pushing the Envelope
This course will survey some outstanding human accomplishments in art, architecture and engineering that have come down the ages in the form of great and inspiring structures. Professor Louisa Matthew of the Union College Department of Visual Arts will discuss ancient Roman achievements in architecture and engineering as exemplified in the Pantheon - an extraordinary building, still extant in Rome, that has inspired architects in the Western European tradition for almost two thousand years. In the second session, Professor Matthew will investigate the awe-inspiring aesthetic and technical achievements embodied in the great urban churches of the Gothic period in northern Europe during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Professor David Ogawa, also of the Union College Department of Visual Arts, will discuss the city of Paris and its transformation and modernization over the course of the nineteenth century. In the fourth session, Professor Ogawa will consider the legacy of modernism in twentieth century architecture, utopic and dystopic, built and unbuilt. Finally, Phil Adams, GE retiree and regular UCALL presenter, will take a look at things Bigger, Taller, Longer, Different. We will explore the human impulse to celebrate the superlative in their structural achievements, and how we build for reasons of the spirit as well as of necessity.
Coordinator: Phil Adams
1 to 3 p.m. Reamer Auditorium*
*Class location subject to change based on availabilty.
UCALL Courses offered since 2004
Spring 2009
Diversity of Beliefs
What's New in Astronomy
London in Literature
The International Financial Crisis & Sovereign Wealth
American Revolution & Civil War
Treasures of Union College & Their Adventures
FALL 2008
Law and Society III
From Zion to Zionism
The Effects of Jealousy in Opera
Aeschylus’ The Oresteia
Storytelling Showcase
The 2008 Election
SPRING 2008
The Roaring Twenties
Leonardo DaVinci
Beyond the Velvet Curtain
Eastern Religions
Four Operas from the Beginning of the 20th Century
Numbers in Everyday Life
FALL 2007
Health Care
Africa
The Law and Society II
Presenting Antigone
Domestic Culture of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys
Money: Bane or Blessing?
SPRING 2007
Wagner’s Ring – Music, Mythology, Meaning
Geological Evolution of NY State and the Northeast
Commander-In-Chief: A look at the American Presidency
Great Gardens of the World
Mythology - Mirroring the Nature and Origins of the Human Experience
Islam in Today’s World
FALL 2006
The Law and Society
Photography in the Digital World
400 Years of Opera
Russia: Today and Yesterday
Walt Whitman – American Poet
Military Battles with Great and Unexpected Historic Impact
SPRING 2006
Energy’s Impact: Today and Tomorrow
American Poets of the Nineteenth Century
Humor: Laughing Matters!
Religions of the World
Biological Evolution
Color, Pigments, and Venetian Painting During the Renaissance
FALL 2005
World Economics 2005: Issues and Problems
The Life and Legacy of Albert Einstein
Iran/Persia: A Culture and its People
Eternal Emerson
Great Conductors in Opera
The French and Indian War (1756-1763)
SPRING 2005
How to be a Skeptic II
The Adirondack Mountains
The Golden Age of Italian Art
Books You’ve Always Wanted to Read
Healthcare in the News
Jazz
FALL 2004
Freedom in Opera
The Birth of the Iron Horse: Railroads and the Capital District
World War II: War in the Pacific – Fact & Fiction
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Energy: What Was-What Is-What Is Yet To Be
Original Settlers and Immigrants: The History of Schenectady from 17th to 20th Century
SPRING 2004
Robert Frost: The Man Through His Poetry
What Your Mother Never Taught You About Religion
Outdoor Activities for All Ages
The Elections 2004: Contemporary Issues and Problems
Early Colonial History
The Age of Discovery