Learning, fun combine in Saturday Seminars

By Nancy Wick
University Week

Saturday Seminars Sept. 22 Prof. Tony Gill: A New Mexico? How a Fox Outwitted the Dinosaurs Prof. Larry Dalton: Communicating at the Speed of Light Prof. Cliff Mass: Perfect Storms of the Eastern Pacific Judy Tsou: The Dawn's Early Light (Star Spangled Banner) Oct. 6 Prof. Julianne Dalcanton: Big Science from Little Galaxies Prof. Michael Honey and Dr. Steve DeTray: Hard-Hitting Songs for Hard-Hit People Prof. Pepper Schwartz: Is Everything You Know about Love and Sex Wrong? Prof. Peter Roy-Byrne: The Prozac Generation Oct. 20 Profs. Philip C. Malte and John C. Kramlich: All About Energy Prof. Julie Gralow: Breast Fitness: Reducing the Risk of Cancer Prof. Norman Lundin: The Changing Shape of Contemporary American Figure Drawing Prof. Jennifer Bean: Two Thumbs Up: Silent Movies and 21st Century Life Nov. 3 Prof. Charles Hirschman: The Census: America's New Look Prof. Dieter Fox: Man's Best Friend: Robots of the Future Prof. Edward Walker: Playing Doctor Carla Rickerson: When the World Came to Campus (the 1909 AYP) Nov. 17 Prof. Davida Teller: First Glances: The Vision of Infants Profs. Steven Pearson and Robyn Hunt: Physical Approaches to Acting: Suzuki Meets Stanislavski Prof. Steven Kramer: Shake, Rattle, and Roll: Engineering for Earthquakes Prof. Marvin Oliver: The Spirit of Past Traditions: Contemporary Northwest Coast Art

Always been fascinated by the Star Spangled Banner, even if you can't sing it? Feel like you're the only person you know who isn't on Prozac? Wonder how it is that movies work their magic and whether you'll have a robot assisting you in the future?

You can learn more about all those subjects, direct from UW faculty experts, without paying any tuition. They're just some of the 20 topics of this year's free Saturday Seminars, sponsored by University Relations.

“Back in 1985, we were looking for a way to give the general public a chance to hear some of our outstanding faculty,” said Norm Arkans, associate vice president and executive director of University Relations. “We appropriated the idea of Saturday Seminars from another university and started them that fall.”

Arkans said the seminars caught on immediately and have attracted healthy attendance ever since.

Saturday Seminars are held on football game days, but you don't have to be heading for the game to attend. “I often tell other staff about the programs and they say, ‘Oh, I thought you could only go to that if you had game tickets,'” said Judith Nyman-Schaaf, senior administrator in the Information School. “But my husband and I often go, even though we never go to the games.”

Nyman-Schaaf is, in fact, a devotee of the seminars. She says she and her husband - Douglas Schaaf, a science instructional technician in chemistry - sit down with the list of programs every year and often pick one from each day they're offered. “They happen early enough that they don't interfere with the rest of my day, and the speakers are always excellent,” she said.

The programs are offered two-and-a-half hours before kickoff, which means 10 a.m. on a typical game day (the time sometimes changes to accommodate TV scheduling). Most are in or near Kane Hall.

“I go because I always learn something,” said Melody Winkle, information architect in Computing and Communications and another frequent attendee. “But they're entertaining too. The faculty speakers work hard to engage the audience.”

A brochure describing all of this year's Saturday Seminar programs is available by calling 206-543-2320. The same information can be found on the Web site, http://www.washington.edu/univrel/saturday.

To register for a program (they're filled on a first-come, first-served basis), send in the reply card from the brochure or call 206-543-2310. Free tickets listing the location for the seminar(s) will be provided if space is available.