In 1633 Galileo Galilei appeared before the Inquisition in Rome. He was on trial for having supported the Copernican position of Heliocentrism, most recently in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems. Galileo’s trial and recantation have fascinated generations of scholars and have served as an archetype of conflict between science and religion. The astronomer’s earlier conflicts with the church will be considered but the focus will be on the implications of the trial.

Contact Matt Sylvain (x8682) for more information.

*Note: Original image of Galileo from NASA web site.

Who: James T. Griffith, Department of Medical Laboratory Science

Where: Library Browsing Area

When: Wednesday, October 14th at noon

Almost every university started to plan for the “great outbreak” of one or some flu during the fall semester. Does it matter which one? Will the not entirely tested vaccine work? So you get sick for a few days – is this just another case of media hysteria?

Contact Matt Sylvain (x8682) for more information.

Dr. Guillermo Paz-y-Mino C from the Department of Biology will present “On Darwin and the Darwinian Mechanism of Natural Selection.” Since the publication of The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin, in 1859, Darwinian evolution has been scrutinized experimentally; today Darwinism is accepted by the scientific community. Dr.Paz-y-Mino C. will discuss the scientific significance of Darwinism, the marvelous simplicity of the mechanism of natural selection as driving force of evolution, and the need to advocate for science literacy, particularly the theory of evolution.

Presenter: Dr. Phil Cox, Department of Philosophy
Date: Wednesday, November 19th
Time: noon – 1:00
Location: Library Browsing Area

Faculty Senate/Claire T. Carney Library Brown Bag Lecture Series:

Or maybe philosophy is just funny? Since the success of the Cathcart and
Stern books mixing philosophy and comedy, there is a new interest in the
relationship between these two concepts. With some tongue-in-cheek
attempts, an overview of the two and their intertwinnings will be
presented.

Faculty Senate & the Claire T. Carney Library Brown Bag:

Dr. Grant O’Rielly from the Department of Physics will present “CERN’s New Atom Smasher and the End of the World.” Come hear why CERN’s new Large Hadron Collider isn’t going to destroy the world, and what we will learn from the experiments now being done there.

Light refreshments will be served.

Are there any lessons to be learned from the recent election? Who won and who lost? Why?

Place: Library Browsing Area
Date: 11/15/06 – Wednesday
Time: 12:00 – 1:30 pm