PRESQUE ISLE — The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Faculty Noon Seminar Series has returned for the spring 2011 semester with presentations on brain research, juvenile court systems and genealogy.
Seminars will be held on Thursdays from 12:30-1:30 p.m. in the Normal Hall Faculty Lounge. Presentations will be 20 to 30 minutes in length, followed by a discussion. Those attending are welcome to bring their lunches and join in the discussion.
Two presentations are scheduled for the second half of the spring semester. On March 31, Dr. Richard Kimball will present “Pathways Between New England and Nova Scotia: A Genealogical Approach.” This brief, roughly chronological survey of Nova Scotia history (1600 through 1910) will include stories of how many families have affected and been affected by this history. Each instance of New England/Nova Scotia interaction that Kimball discusses will be illustrated by stories of individuals from his own and his wife’s families. The instances covered will include: Native Americans/First Nations, Acadians, foreign Protestants, New England planters, Scots-Irish, United Empire Loyalists and German (“Hessian”) soldiers. Kimball’s presentation will take place in Folsom Hall, room 105.
On April 28, Dr. Tomasz Herzog will present “Empire of Illusion? America’s Problem with Contemporary Public Discourse.” According to Herzog, “As one commentator wrote recently: ‘We can’t win the future by ceding the present and romanticizing the past.’ To do that, America needs a new, nonpartisan, public discourse that will not only help prevent it from further eroding but, in the long run, also help reinvigorate the ideals underpinning the American Dream and a flourishing civil society.” Herzog’s presentation will address, from a social sciences stance, the issues that might be, or need to be, the core of a new American public discourse.
The purpose of the Faculty Noon Seminar Series is to foster awareness of research and teaching activities taking place on campus and to provide a forum for dissemination between faculty members. The series also offers the opportunity to network and encourage trans-disciplinary scholarly activity. As a campus-wide forum, students, faculty and administrative staff are invited to present their work during the seminar series.
For more information about the Faculty Noon Seminar Series, contact Lynn Eldershaw at 768-9749.
