JazzRoots or Kickin' Up Classics?

LIFE had a true treat today when Dr. John Wolfskill came to give us a preview of two upcoming shows, Jazz Roots tonight and Kickin’ Up the Classics on Thursday Nov. 21, both at 7:30. John started us out singing a form of doo wop with his jazzy lead. John read the lyrics of the song The Impossible Dream which evoked for him a quest. He is concerned about the state of the country and how our students may be lost. But, after this serious interlude, he introduced Professor Alan Johnson who not only teaches for the college, but also is a professional violinist. His violin is a beauty made around 1720 by the Klotz family in the Tyrolean Alps of Austria. He has had it for 41 years! His students made up our string quartet:

Olivia Alexandre on cello

Cameron Dempster on violin

Jessica Vance on viola

Annie Blackwell on violin

We heard selections from Handel’s Water Music which was created as music for the barge. The Largo was played as well. We learned a little about Antonio Vivaldi who originally entered the priesthood, but was drawn to teaching. He taught school girls of the upper class but who had questionable legitimacy. This fabulous quartet along with their director also played Spring concerto from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. And what quartet would not be complete without Mozart? Apparently Mozart had an IQ of about 178 and was not only prolific, but also extremely innovative. We enjoyed the Quarto in G major (first movement). Such talent we have at Lone Star College – CyFair.

Philosophy Study Abroad

Professor Mark Thorsby regaled our LIFErs today with stories from his study abroad class with Professor Maria Sanders to the United Kingdom. This was a philosophy and logic class which challenged their students to examine their lives and find out what makes them tick. Mark highly recommends Aristotle’s Ethics. We took a virtual tour via Google Street View to Oxford University in England and stood on the steps of the Bodleian Library questioning why we want an education. It is not only to improve our lifestyle, but also to further knowledge. Mark spoke about the Dark Ages when our society collapsed and records were not kept. It was the monks who founded Oxford University and to this day the students and faculty wear robes during exam time to commemorate the renaissance of knowledge and history. Christ Church School’s cathedral was the model for the Harry Potter dining room in Hogwarts School. The pubs of Oxford are places where community meet to discuss life, not just drink beer.

On we went to Edinburgh, Scotland and saw the beauty of a city not destroyed by bombs of the world wars. The architecture is rich and varied and David Hume, the famous philosopher, gave much of his wealth to create a beautiful public park. Lewis Carroll also wrote in Edinburgh and used the daughter of the dean of Christ Church, Oxford as a role model for Alice in Wonderland. His tailor had a funny hat and he turned out to be the Mad Hatter. Not to mention a big fat cat.

On to Belfast they went to question war and how the seeds of war and strife were sown over 500 years ago. The students were exposed to this culture of the United Kingdom and came home with an expanded life view full of depth and nuances.

We were especially struck by the study abroad program's wilderness training. It took the students' complicated lives, stripped them of paraphernalia, and allowed them to appreciate the simplicity of an unencumbered life: what matters is the character on the inside, not the window dressing of material goods.

Mark says that LIFE should take a trip abroad!

Time Travel to the Bayou City, 1913

Reliving the Early 20th Century of Houston! An appreciative crowd of 41 adults experienced the burgeoning Bayou City of the 1910 and beyond during today's LIFE Workshop with guest speaker, Mike Vance! Issues such as mass transit, clean water, education, and city infrastructure were as popular then as they are today! More on Houston Arts and Media, Vance's non-profit history organization at http://www.houstonartsandmedia.org/. Pictured with Vance are Sharon Samson and Roxanne Beck. Thanks to all who attended this informative presentation.

Healthful Hummus Snacks

Librarian Valerie Davis let us enter into her world of the new four food groups: fruit, vegetables, grains and beans. Valerie's family has thrived for years on their vegegarianism which includes eggs and dairy. We saw two of Valerie's six children, Luke and Eric, who are fine examples of young vegetarians.

We got to taste and see how to make four delicious examples of hummus which include traditional chick pea dip, but also some interesting variations on a theme such as black beans, white beans, and spicy jalapenos. Lovely vegetables and yummy pita chips rounded out the tasting experience. Valerie even showed us how to peel a fine tuber called jicama which was crunchy and flavorful. The Vitamix blender is super high powered, but a regular blender would do the trick if you want to try this at home. Tips: roll your lemons and limes before juicing to get the most juice, crush your garlic before peeling, and cut up those broccoli stems for great soup fillers or elegant crudités.

Hummus Recipes

Skeletons in My Closet

Forensic sculptor, Amanda Danning, gave a tour de force presentation today at LIFE. Amanda does facial reconstruction geared toward archeology, not criminology. Her sense of history, artistic ability, and love of science make for a unique career and specialty. Her passion, talent, knowledge, and creativity are evident in this thoughtful, fascinating, and unusual presentation. Amanda has the ability of a trained professor to engage the audience, asking questions, probing for thoughtful answers, and involving the audience in live demonstrations of skull damage with Bowie knives and such. Reconstructing faces from skulls seems like an impossible task, but Amanda explained it so well that even the lay mind can get an inkling of her techniques. One super interesting dig involved the skeleton of a human male and a young female which dated back ten thousand years. This was a ritual burial with symbols, riches, forethought, and time – not something you think of in Paleolithic man. And these were not the race of our “native Americans.” This skeleton named Sam was facially reconstructed by Amanda and truly changes mankind’s view of history. 

Want to learn more? Here are some books Amanda recommends:

Written in Bone by Douglas Owsley and Karin Bruwelheide

No Bone Unturned by Jeff Benedict

Faces From the Past by James Deem

The Kennewick Papers by Douglas Owsley (coming soon perhaps early 2014)

And visit Amanda Danning’s website: amandadanning.com/

Are You Out There?

Dr. Daniel Kainer, Director of the Biotechnology Institute of LSC-Montgomery opened our minds to the possibility of life outside our planet and the ways in which great thinkers have approached that topic. Are we alone in the universe? This question has been asked throughout history and Daniel led us through the timeline of the human concept of the universe. We've gone from the geocentric theory where it was believed that Earth was the center of the universe, to the heliocentric theory, which placed our sun at the center, to everything we are currently learning about how our tiny planet fits into the universe. Astrobiology is a multi-disciplinary approach that asks questions about the existence of life in the universe. The Fermi paradox questions the existence of other life by asking, if there is intelligent life in the universe, why haven't we had any contact with it (that we know of)? Of course, this is a very simplified description of the contradiction. Daniel also introduced us to the Drake Equation as a way of estimating the number of planets upon which intelligent life could actually exist, and of those, how many develop a way to communicate with other life. Thank you to Daniel for expanding our horizons in the most astronomical way!

You can find the video that Daniel mentioned, Cosmography of the Local Universe, here.

Our group had an interesting discussion about signs of extraterrestrial life at the beginning of the program, and Mick showed us a web site he had come across that details UFO sightings. If you'd like to check it out, it's at fold3.com under Non-military records: Project Blue Book - UFO Investigations.

Flexercise

Vernon Henry got everyone moving as he introduced us to Flexercise, a routine that combines stretches and cardiovascular exercises to strength and tone.  Vernon is an adjunct professor here at LSC-CyFair who teaches kinesiology. This morning he led us through a series of stretches to increase flexibility and improve balance, ending the session with a series of breathing techniques to slow the heart rate and focus the mind. Our group ended the session feeling refreshed and energized, though I'm sure our sore muscles tomorrow will remind us of how hard we worked!

Vernon will be leading his last weekly Flexercise class next Tuesday, October 8, at 5:30 p.m. in the Conference Center.

For more information about Flexercise or to order DVDs or books: http://www.flexercise.org/