with David Wood
of the Lunchbox
DECEMBER 5, 2007
A Star Is Born (But How Was It Made?)
Assistant Professor of Astronomy
What is the relationship between stellar birth and death? How might the violence of our Sun's birth have shaped the environment in which life on Earth evolved? How nurturing, really, is Mother Nature when it comes to newborn stars?
NOVEMBER 7, 2007
The Story of 'Cruel and Unusual'
Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities; Professor of English
How much can be taken from prisoners without destroying what Justice Thurgood Marshall once called their "human quality"? What are the limits of deprivation? Is there a relationship between the criminal as "slave of the state" and the slave as "thing"? Indealing with the legal contours of injury, the following questions must be asked: When does "abuse" become "torture"? Does pain include psychological suffering? And, finally, how have recent Supreme Court decisions redefined the status of prisoners for the twenty-first century?
OCTOBER 3, 2007
Intellectuals in Public Life
Professor of French and Comparative Literature; Professor of English; Director of French Canadian and Québec Studies
Should we care what “intellectuals” have to say on issues of US policy? In other words, are (say) professors of political science any more qualified to comment upon invading Iraq than other individuals, including “ordinary people”? Do professors or “experts” play some role other than providing unbiased advice to the public about issues of concern to citizens? Do you yourselves pay special attention to “experts” or professors interviewed on topical issues, such as (say) ‘illegal aliens’, the record of the president, or the advisability of some bombing expedition or another
SEPTEMBER 5, 2007
From Imus to Industry: How Mass Media, Public Culture, and Payola Profit from Women
Professor of African American and Diaspora Studies; Professor of French; Director, African American and Diaspora Studies Program; Director, William T. Bandy Center for Baudelaire and Modern French Studies.
A discussion of women in popular culture, race, sex, and representation.