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Amy Reif
Bilingualism is an invaluable tool to becoming successful in today’s highly competitive global society. Spanish is truly a global language, and its prevalence in the United States continues to increase. This course offers students a special opportunity unlike what is available in high schools—an intensive immersion experience. The intense usage of the target language in a small-group setting will help students learn more effectively—improving their accent, vocabulary and listening comprehension. Students will learn through a combination of brief, intensive lessons, followed by authentic communication experiences. Students’ reading, writing, speaking and listening skills will be facilitated through and enriched by a multitude of various media. This class is for students with zero to one year of Spanish.
Mark Daly
Is "ain’t" a word, incorrect slang or an archaic contraction for "am not" that dropped from official usage centuries ago? Was "forte" introduced into English from Italian or French, or both? The study of the history of words and how their form and meaning have changed over time is a fascinating pursuit. Etymologies in English are particularly rich, because our language is derived from a mixture of Latin, French, Celtic languages and Anglo-Saxon. This course explores the development of English throughout the centuries. In addition to learning about major linguistic developments, we will also look at how we trace the origins of words. After students learn basic prefixes, bases and suffixes from "parent languages," they will explore the evolution of English, including changes to word meanings and the relation of language to society. We will also look at literary texts to identify key points on the timeline for language development. For activities, we will visit the university’s special collections department to view dictionaries and glossaries that go back more than 500 years. Students will also work in groups to trace origins of words and groups of words. In addition to learning basic concepts of linguistics, students will gain skills that can significantly increase their vocabulary, their reading comprehension and their reading speed.
Caitlin Rochford and Mihailo Backovic
Modern physics generally describes any branch of physics that was developed in the early 20th century or later and typically deals with physics at the extremes: very cold, very small, very far, and very fast. In this course we will talk about what this means and why physics becomes so interesting at these extremes. Each topic will involve discussion centered around a hands-on demonstration or experiment in which the students will be actively involved. Students will also visit a research lab where they will learn about current low temperature and nanoscience research techniques and be able write their names in a space smaller than one hundredth the width of a human hair.
Sandra Wick
"The music of Rock ‘n Roll defined a generation" is a claim made by some scholars. Yet, people debate what defines Rock ‘n Roll, its origins and whether it carried a social/cultural message. Using the tools of music history and culture theory, this course is an introduction to the major trends and techniques in Rock. We will look at the social and historical contexts and discuss the role music plays in an individual’s life and in one’s culture. Students will be engaged in analyzing various genres of music commonly included under the rubric of Rock by listening to and viewing segments of various musical events, including classical, pop videos and rock concerts to compare and contrast various subgenres and styles. As part of group work, students will also have a try at writing a Rock song and explaining to the class how it fits within the genre.
Jim West
Biomechanics and biomedical engineering is a rapidly evolving and growing area. This course will teach students basic physiology of the muscles, anatomy of how the body is put together, and how we use engineering to analyze these areas. Since engineering is about breaking big problems into smaller problems, this course will be about finding simple solutions to complex problems. Students will learn how muscles move and how they pull bones. We will cover some basic engineering principles of springs and pulleys and their relationship to basic body movements. After learning how the body is put together and how muscles are constructed and operate, students will perform a spring experiment to show how springs work, another experiment with pulleys, and then relate them to the body. On the second day, we will cover muscles in more detail and conduct an experiment with frog legs.
Chris Wiles
American politics today is almost inescapable. The public is made aware of every disagreement, argument and outrageous claim that our politicians make. But what are the policies behind the politics? Only by recognizing the issues that drive policy and the manner in which public policy is articulated to the public can we truly understand, shape and participate in the political process. Students will examine these issues from an insider's perspective, gaining insight into how our government really works behind the scenes. Going beyond any government or civics class, or even the arena of high school debate, students will be given the opportunity to do public policy research and put together and present their own arguments in a setting that mimics what goes on every day behind closed doors in political offices across the country.
Doug Crawford-Parker
Are you ready for college writing? Although highschool students have been told many things about college writing, the advice they receive is often incomplete. This class will introduce students to some of the fundamental expectations for writing in all kinds of college classes, not just English classes. While the five-paragraph essay may provide a helpful starting point in thinking about academic writing, the vast majority of college teachers discourage writing by formulas. Thus, students in this course will learn new ways to construct engaging and insightful papers by examining short examples of such writing, practicing these techniques themselves as well as learning particular revision strategies. To prepare for our weekend of writing, students will be asked to submit a short piece of writing to workshop during the class—so students should expect to share their writing with others in the class.
Tony Silvestri
Colorful pigments, bubbling cauldrons, goose feathers, exotic resins, gums, rolls of parchment, glue and beaten gold. In this course, students will explore the daily schedule, inventory and development of a typical medieval scriptorium. We will explore the history of the book and its development from ancient scroll to medieval codex, using examples from the KU collections. We will study the materials and techniques used by the makers of illuminated manuscripts. Students will learn first-hand about these materials and techniques as they make their own medieval illumination, using historic pure pigments, homemade gesso and gold.
Mail
Download and mail the registration form to:
The University of Kansas
Continuing Education
Registrations
1515 St. Andrews Drive
Lawrence, KS 66047-1619
Register for April 17–18, 2010 classes
Phone
Toll-free 877-404-5823
or 785-864-5823
Fax
Download and fax the registration form to:
785-864-4871
TDD
800-766-3777
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