All upcoming Lectures

In September of 480 B.C.E., Greek warships faced an invading Persian armada at the narrow Salamis Straits in the most important naval battle of the ancient world. Overwhelmingly outnumbered, the Greeks triumphed through strategy and deception. The victory changed the course of Western history, halting the advance of the Persian Empire and setting the stage for the Golden Age of Athens. Historian and classicist Barry Strauss brings the battle to life.

As the American Revolution broke out in New England in the spring of 1775, dramatic events unfolded in Virginia that proved as decisive as the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill in uniting the colonies against Britain. Journalist and author Andrew Lawler offers a new perspective on the roots of the American Revolution as he describes the impact of the actions of Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia.

Two decades after the devastation of the Blitz, the youthquake of the 1960s transformed staid London into Swinging London—the epicenter of a new world of fashion and entertainment. Carnaby Street set the styles; Soho’s nightclubs were the place to dance the night away; the British Invasion in music sent the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and other groups to the top of the charts and the country’s films outdid Hollywood as they tackled taboo topics of abortion, homosexuality, and interracial sex. Historian Julie Taddeo explores how London—and the nation­—rebranded itself as a with-it world powerhouse.

The Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, or Cathedral Museum, in Siena, Italy, houses works of art and architectural fragments that were formerly in, or a part of, the Duomo of Siena (Siena Cathedral). These include a number of Italian Gothic sculptures by Giovanni Pisano and his school from the façade of the cathedral; the Maestà of Duccio di Buoninsegna, which was the altarpiece for about 200 years; and works by Ambrogio and Pietro Lorenzetti. Italian Renaissance art expert Rocky Ruggiero highlights this lesser-known museum and its treasures. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

What can tiny bits of burned seeds, bones, and even invisible residues on cups and plates tell us about the food and cooking of the past? Archaeologists combine paleontology, geochemistry, medicine, art history, and dozens of experiments to understand what our ancestors ate by their campfires, in their kitchens, and at their banquet tables. Archaeologist Katherine Moore serves up the latest insights on nutritional anthropology.

The 1950s in America is thought of as a pleasant and placid decade, an era of conformity and good cheer, Leave It to Beaver, men in gray flannel suits and women in the kitchen. But it was also the decade of Emmett Till, the Little Rock Nine, Little Richard, Joseph McCarthy, air-raid drills, and Rebel Without a Cause. Leonard Steinhorn, a professor at American University, examines the politics, music, media, popular culture, and race relations of a far more complex decade than memory might suggest.

In 1839, five young women in Boston formed a conversation society “to answer the great questions” of special importance to women: "What are we born to do? How shall we do it?" Scholar and author Randall Fuller examines how these women—all remarkable thinkers and artists who played pathbreaking but often-overlooked roles in the transcendentalist movement—helped form the foundations of American feminism.

Americans who worked on farms and in factories once had little choice but to work until death. As the nation prospered, a new idea was born: the right to a dignified and secure old age. The fight to deliver that right has been enormously successful, but it is still unfinished: Today, millions of older people lack the resources to live with dignity and security. Historian James Chappel explains how we got here and what the future might bring for an aging America.

Working amid the vibrant creativity of 15th-century Florence, the sculptor Donatello emerged as one of the most innovative and influential artists of the Renaissance. A true master of technique, he revolutionized sculpture by breaking new ground in both the methods he employed and the forms he developed. Art historian Elaine Ruffolo delves into the life and artistry of Donatello, who explored the human experience with a boldness and depth that still resonates, leaving behind a legacy of works that seem remarkably modern in their emotional complexity and technical execution. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

The icy continent of Antarctica has a fiery volcanic past—and some volcanoes there remain active. Volcanologist Samuel Mitchell highlights them and their effects. Go back in time with Mitchell to see how volcanic and magmatic activity shaped the continent and how tectonic plate movement doomed Antarctica to its frozen fate for millions of years.