The Athenaeum hosts events that explore and enhance the intellectual life of the University and the region through lectures,
readings, performances, discussions, and other events.
By bringing together scholars, performers, students, and community members for intellectual discussion and the sharing of cultural
experiences, the Athenaeum reflects the importance the University places on the humanities, the arts, and the sciences.
All Athenaeum events begin at 1:00 PM and are held on the south end of the Library's second floor, unless otherwise noted.
9 September 2009
The Future of Media, Journalism, and Education
by James A. Bowey
Assistant Professor, Mass Communication
The so-called Web 2.0 revolution of the last few years has dramatically
reshaped the way we produce, distribute and consume information and
entertainment of every stripe. The emerging Web 3.0 is changing the way we
understand knowledge itself.
As part of the discussion, Professor Bowey will present Winona360.org, a new
media platform he has been developing as a general interest multimedia news
site and new media laboratory for the university.
Anyone who consumes information should be interested in this look at our
media future.
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16 September 2009
Opera in the Time of Flood
by Peggy Sannerud
Associate Professor, Theater & Dance Department
Last year, Peggy Sannerud was designing lights for the Cedar Rapids Opera
Theatre performance of Verdi’s Aida when Cedar Rapids underwent a 500-year
flood. The theatre was lost, as were the sets, and temporarily, the lights
and costumes.
The presentation will include photos of the town and the performance, and a
discussion of the purpose it served to continue the performance, even as the
town struggled with issues such as transportation, public safety,
electricity, and water and sewer.
This brushes on the greater issue of the value of the live performing arts
in any community, particularly those under stress.
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23 September 2009
UNESCO'S World Conference on Higher Education
by Sally Johnstone
Provost
The WCHE brings together Ministers of Education from around the world to
deliberate on the critical issues for higher education now and for the next
10 years. As a delegate to the WCHE, Sally Johnstone will report on the
highlights of the issues facing Latin America, Africa, and the Asia Pacific
Region and translate those into issue for our local community.
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30 September 2009
Modern-Day Piracy on the High Seas
Greg Neidhart
Assistant Professor, Arts Administration
From Sumatra to Somalia, several high-profile pirate attacks have captured
the world’s attention. This presentation will provide a historical overview
of piracy, with a focus on its threat to global commerce, and discuss what
the maritime nations of the world are doing to combat it.
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07 October 2009
What I Did on My Vacation: Poetry and Prose from a Sabbatical Year
James Armstrong
Professor, English Department
Professor Armstrong will read from and discuss the poetry and prose that he worked on
over his sabbatical year, as well as talk about the sabbatical process and
what he learned from it.
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14 October 2009
Hmong Adjustment in America: Challenges and Change
Zha Blong Xiong
introduced by Kao Kalia Yang
Zha Blong Xiong, WSU Alumnus and Professor of Family Social Science at the
University of Minnesota, will discuss the different waves of Hmong in America, along with their various adjustments, challenges facing the Hmong
from a life course perspective, and changes that Hmong have made and are making to overcome some of these challenges.
This presentation is co-hosted by the WSU Common Book Project. For more information,
click here
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21 October 2009
π, e and prime numbers
Joyati Debnath
Professor, Mathematics and Statistics Department
In mathematics, certain numbers are called rational numbers and certain
numbers are called irrational numbers. Some irrational numbers are very
popular namely π and e. The concept of irrationality was clearly expressed
in the Sulba Satras (literally, “Aphorisms of the Chords” in Vedic Sanskrit)
in India in 7th century BC. Manava (750 BC-690 BC), a Vedic priest and a
skilled craftsman, wrote Sulba Satras to provide rules for religious rites
and detailed accurate construction of altars needed for sacrifices. It
contained constructions of circles from rectangles and squares from circles
giving approximate values of π. This presentation will elaborate on the
early history of the existence of π, e and their connection with the prime
numbers, which is both fascinating and intriguing. Students and faculty at
all levels and disciplines across the campus will find something interesting
in this presentation.
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28 October 2009
It’s Only a Movie: The Politics of the 1970s and 80s Horror Film
Nathan Wardinski
This presentation will look at the horror genre starting with Last House on
the Left in 1972 to A Nightmare on Elm Street in 1984, examining how these
films were groundbreaking and why they represented a serious political and
countercultural statement and how that political edge was later lost to
commercialization. Attention will be paid to the remakes of these films and
the implications of these remakes for the genre and politics of the films.
WARNING: Due to the subject matter, this presentation will make use of graphic imagery.
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04 November 2009
Repeal, Amend, or Punt? State Legislative Responses to Unconstitutionality
Matt Bosworth, Associate Professor
Political Science Department
This lecture will present some results from Dr. Bosworth’s sabbatical
research in 2008-2009. The presentation deals with the question of how
state legislatures respond when a court declares their laws
unconstitutional. Dr. Bosworth focuses on three states, Minnesota,
Michigan, and Wyoming, looking at court decisions and legislative responses
from 1940 to the present. He compares results from these states with
previous research on the U.S. Congress and its responses to court rulings of
unconstitutionality, and speculates on some of the possible explanations for
variation in responses depending upon the legislature.
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18 November 2009
Contemporary Abstraction and the Pictures of Robert Ryman
Vittorio Colaizzi
Assistant Professor, Art Department
This lecture will discuss the work of painter Robert Ryman in the context of
contemporary abstract painting. This is unusual because Ryman emerged in
the late 1950s and is associated with Minimalism. His work is very
different in appearance and motivation from younger abstract painters’
interest in hybridity and multiplicity of quotations and references, and yet
their strategies share an aversion to the Abstract Expressionist ideal of
direct communication through the painterly mark. Dr. Colaizzi will discuss
the colorful, active, hedonistic appearance of contemporary abstraction
against the supposedly austere and reserved work of Ryman.
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The Athenaeum is located on the second floor of the Darrell W. Krueger Library, on the south side, overlooking the bluffs.
Directions to the Darrell W. Krueger Library
Tom Bremer
Gretchen Cohenour
Peter Henderson
Colette Hyman
Joe Jackson
Cindy Killion
Kendall Larson
Vernon Leighton
Cathie Logan
Deanne Mohr
Joe Mount
Greg Neidhart
Allison Quam
Spring 2009
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Spring 2005