Lecture Notes
Feb. 9-23, 2006
"Diversity Issues: A Lecture by Dr. Elias Blake Jr."
Feb. 9, 5 p.m., W.W. Wright Education Building auditorium, Bloomington -- Elias Blake, a highly regarded expert on African American educational legal issues, will speak about diversity, affirmative action and other important educational issues as part of the Indiana University School of Education's Black History Month celebration. Blake is the president of the Washington, D.C.-based Benjamin E. Mays National Educational Resource and has worked to reverse inequities in the education received by minority students during their K-12 years. He has also worked to promote educational equality through his roles as university president and professor, expert witness before Congress and president of influential educational think tanks. An informal reception will precede the lecture at 4:30 p.m. in the Education Building's atrium. For more information, contact aochambl@indiana.edu or kwladwig@indiana.edu.
"Defining Women's Interests: Abortion Discourse in Germany and the United States"
Feb. 10, noon, Indiana Memorial Union Dogwood Room, Bloomington -- Myra Marx Ferree, a professor of sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the author of Shaping Abortion Discourse: Democracy and the Public Sphere in Germany and in the United States, will present a lecture which draws on data she has collected on discussions in the popular press about abortion and politics, comparing the United States and Germany. Her book won the best book award from the Collective Behavior and Social Movements section of the American Sociological Association, and her substantial body of work has made major contributions to research on gender, feminism, organizations and politics. For more information, contact elarmstr@indiana.edu.
"Colonial Archive and Rebel Diary: Tibet, British India, Communist China, 1946-1950"
Feb. 10, 6 p.m., Indiana Studies House, 825 E. Eighth St., Bloomington -- Speaker Carole McGranahan is an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Colorado. Her research focuses on Tibet from the early 20th century to the present, specifically Tibetan relations with the British Raj, the Tibetan guerrilla resistance -- including their support by the CIA -- and the politics of contemporary refugee life in India and Nepal. McGranahan is currently finishing a manuscript titled "Histories and Secrets: Soldiers' Stories and Refugee Nationalism in the Tibetan Diaspora," and co-editing a volume on empire beyond Europe. Her article, "Truth, Fear and Lies: Exile Politics and Arrested Histories of the Tibetan Resistance," was published in the November 2005 issue of Cultural Anthropology. The lecture is presented by the India Studies Program.
"Epidemiology: Wonderful Career Choice, or Secret Society?"
Feb. 15, 4 p.m., Myers Hall 130, Bloomington -- Speaker Donna Cragle is the director of the Center for Epidemiologic Research for the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education. She has been involved with research on occupational hazards in Department of Energy facilities for 24 years, focusing mainly on occupational epidemiology, specifically radiation and beryllium exposures. Cragle was recently awarded a $19.9 million cooperative agreement from the Department of Energy to provide medical screenings for former DOE workers nationwide. For additional information, visit https://development.bio.indiana.edu/wood_lecture.htm or contact kwyss@indiana.edu.
"Gabor Molnar on 'World Literature and Literary Education: A Hungarian Perspective'"
Feb. 16, 5:30 p.m., Ballantine Hall 004, Bloomington -- Does the term "world literature" still have any meaning today, after the definitions of both "the world" and "literature" have fallen into disrepute? This talk by Gabor Molnar of Eötvös Loránd University and Rutgers University, who is a former IU lecturer, will examine these and related questions from a primarily pedagogical angle. Leading critics have recently condemned the practice of anthologizing world literature in monolingual reading lists and volumes. They say it conceals, rather than emphasizes, the importance of translation as a means of negotiating cultural differences, and it contributes to the reproduction of cultural inequalities. How does this critique apply when the language of the anthology, or of communication in the classroom, is not English but a less frequently taught language such as Hungarian? Is it fair to suggest that there are as many "world literatures" as languages in which world literature is taught? What are the practical pedagogical values associated with reading texts originating in various foreign cultures, translated into the same language? For more information, contact kniggle@indiana.edu.
"An Evening with James Earl Jones in Celebration of Martin Luther King Jr."
Feb. 21, 7 p.m., Indiana University Auditorium, Bloomington -- Union Board presents a free lecture by James Earl Jones, an award-winning stage and screen actor best known to many as the voice of Darth Vader in Star Wars movies. Jones made his big-screen debut in 1963 and has worked in more than 50 films, winning several Obie and Tony awards. He is also well known for his performance in The Great White Hope, playing a character based on Jack Johnson, the first African American heavyweight champion, and for providing the voice of King Mufasa in The Lion King. Jones will give an hour-long lecture followed by a 30-minute question-and-answer session and then a signing of his autobiography, Voices and Silences.
"Indiana University Conference on Healthy Living"
Feb. 22, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Indiana Government Conference Center South Auditorium, 302 W. Washington St., Indianapolis -- Health experts from Indiana University's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation (HPER); School of Medicine; School of Dentistry and several other departments at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis will discuss more than a dozen obesity-related topics critical to Hoosiers' health. Topics include advancements in bariatric surgery, tips for reversing Type 2 diabetes, disparity issues in minority populations, and overcoming behavioral obstacles to better health and fitness. The conference, sponsored by HPER and INShape Indiana, is open to the public and includes a lunch panel discussion moderated by Indiana State Health Commissioner Judy Monroe. Registration costs $25 to $65. For more information, visit https://www.alumni.indiana.edu/docs/iupui2006.pdf. For registration information, visit https://alumni.indiana.edu/reserve/index.php?r=69.
"Babies by Design? The Ethics of Gene Enhancement"
Feb. 23, 4 to 5:30 p.m., Chemistry 122, Bloomington -- Ronald Green, a professor at the Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics at Dartmouth College, will present this fifth annual Matthew Vandivier Sims Memorial Lecture in honor of Matthew, a child who died in infancy. Matthew's friends and family created the lecture to emphasize bioethics and the importance of good communication among family, medical practitioners and researchers in the area of neonatal care and caring for newborn children. Green is particularly interested in genetic ethics, biomedical ethics and issues of justice in the allocation of health care. His most recent publication is The Human Embryo Research Debates: Bioethics in the Vortex of Controversy. Green helped create and direct the Office of Genome Ethics at the National Human Genome Research Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The lecture is coordinated by the Poynter Center for the Study of Ethics and American Institutions. For more information, contact glmurray@indiana.edu.
"The Politicalization of the CIA"
Feb. 23, 5 p.m., SPEA atrium, Bloomington -- Tyler Drumheller, the former chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's European division, will discuss his work with the CIA including intelligence gathering in Europe leading up to the war in Iraq. Drumheller retired from the CIA in 2004 after 25 years of service. He maintains that in 2002 and 2003, he and other CIA members warned officials about an informant named Curveball, whose information was later used by then-Secretary of State Colin Powell as justification for the war with Iraq. Curveball has since been discredited as a source by the commission investigating the failed intelligence. Drumheller is the author of an upcoming book, On the Brink: How the White House Has Compromised American Intelligence. The book contains revelations about the government, the war in Iraq and the state of intelligence gathering. For more information, contact jercohen@indiana.edu.
"Union Board presents: Ann Coulter -- Liberals Are Wrong About Everything!"
Feb. 23, 7 p.m., Indiana University Auditorium, Bloomington -- Ann Coulter is the author of four New York Times bestsellers, the legal correspondent for Human Events, a popular syndicated columnist and a frequent guest on many television shows, including The O'Reilly Factor and Good Morning America. She has been profiled in numerous publications, including the New York Observer, Harper's Bazaar and Elle magazine. In 2001, she was named one of the top 100 Public Intellectuals by federal judge Richard Posner. Coulter has an extensive law background, including a past litigation position with the Center for Individual Rights in Washington, D.C., a public-interest law firm dedicated to the defense of individual rights with special emphasis on freedom of speech, civil rights and the free exercise of religion. The lecture is free and open to the public. No bags or signs will be allowed into the auditorium. A coat check will be available. Doors open at 6 p.m., and the seating area opens at 6:30 p.m. For more information, contact epeisenb@indiana.edu.
