The Fort Atkinson Club Community Center presents…2016 Fall LECTURE SERIES

View/Print the FLYER

Informative and wide-ranging talks given by local experts in their fields. Q&A will follow.
Every other Tuesday (and sometimes Thursday; see below) at 7:30pm
→ at The Fort Atkinson Club, 211 S. Water St. East. Free and open to the public!

Organizers:
Ben Knowles (benjamin.d.knowles@gmail.com)
Holly Robinson (RobinsonHC17@uww.edu)

Upcoming Talks:

Tuesday, September 13: David Havas

“Synchronizing hearts and minds: How cognitive psychology helps explain the power of presidential campaign rhetoric”
Politicians have used rhetoric to sway the thoughts and emotions of voters for millennia. Can recent developments in cognitive science illuminate why pathos seems to be winning the day this election cycle? This talk introduces recent theory and findings on how interpersonal understanding is linked to bodily states for action and emotion, and how presidential candidates may be capitalizing this link to foster rapport with mass audiences.

David Havas is a psychological scientist who received his training in cognitive and affective neuroscience at UW-Madison. His research on language comprehension gained international attention by demonstrating an effect of Botox in human cognition. David’s current work explores how body states of action and emotion support interpersonal understanding. David is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at UW-Whitewater.


Tuesday, September 27: Craig Ficenec

“Putting a Price on Carbon: a National Policy to Slow Climate Change”

Nations across the globe approved a climate deal in Paris last year. Corporations are shrinking their carbon footprint. Polls show popular support for legislation to cut greenhouse gases. But can we enact a national policy to contain global warming without hurting our economy? A solution may be closer than you think. This presentation will describe the concept of a carbon “fee and dividend,” by which fossil fuels are priced for their climate impact, and proceeds are returned equally to households. It will outline the anticipated economic impacts of such a policy and share some encouraging signs from Congress that political will is growing to take action on climate change.

In his spare time, Craig Ficenec volunteers with the Jefferson County chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, grassroots organization that advocates for national policies to address climate change. In his day job, Craig manages programs supporting natural resource conservation on agricultural lands. He lives in Fort Atkinson with his wife Cynthia and their two sons.


Thursday, October 13: Nick Zentner

“Ice Age Geology: Wisconsin vs. Washington State”

How did Canada’s Ice Sheet create southern Wisconsin’s rolling hills during the Ice Age? Did that same Ice Sheet create a similar landscape in eastern Washington? A Fort Atkinson native – now living in Washington – is your guide.

Nick Zentner has been teaching geology at Central Washington University in Ellensburg for 25 years. He graduated from Fort Atkinson High School and from the University of Wisconsin…before moving to the American West in 1986. Many of his popular lectures and geology videos can be found at nickzentner.com


Tuesday, October 25: Pat Moran

“The Ampersand: Casual Vortex or an Engraver’s Shortcut”

From its humble beginnings as a part of Roman graffiti in the slave quarters of Pompeii to the visionary poems of William Blake, the ampersand has had many stylistic manifestations and symbolic meanings. This talk will cover some of the history of the ligature known as the ampersand and will look at a cross-section of mainstream and avant-garde poets who employed the symbol.

Patrick Moran is an award-winning poet and a professor of creative writing at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He is a graduate of the Iowa Writer’s Workshop, where he received an MFA in poetry, and he is the author of five collections of poetry.


NOTE: DATE CHANGED TO TUESDAY NOVEMBER 15.: Jolly Emrey

“Contemporary Concurrent Majorities: Medical Marijuana, State Policies, and Federal Response”

In 2014, Congress prohibited the U.S. Department of Justice from spending funds to prosecute people who are complying with state laws that permit medical marijuana. In late July 2016, the Department of Justice indicated that it was going to continue to enforce federal law and that marijuana remains on its prohibited controlled substance use. On August 16, 2016, a federal appellate court ruled that the DOJ cannot spend money to prosecute people who are acting within state laws when it comes to marijuana. This issue has become a very compelling example of contemporary federalism, but it also illustrates a theory that dates back to the mid-1800s. What happens when state preferences and federal policies collide and the federal agency doesn¹t get support from the institutions? Should the states be let alone if this policy is more a state and local issue rather than a matter of national concern?

Jolly Emrey is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Political Science Department at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, as well as the Director of the Center for Political Science and Public Policy Research there. Her primary research and teaching interests include U.S. law, courts, and public policy, and state and local government.


Tuesday, November 22: Sue Hartwick

“The Life and Times of the Sauk Warrior Black Hawk”

Why is it that Black Hawk, who held no official position of leadership among the Sauk people, is the only historical Sauk figure most of us know? Hartwick will consider how he rose to prominence during an era when the white frontier intruded ever further into the lives of the Sauk people. The talk will touch on his life, his decisions, his reputation, and how he achieved his place in American history. Special attention will be given to his autobiography which is still in print and can be borrowed from local public libraries.

Hartwick is the former director of the Hoard Historical Museum in Fort Atkinson and currently serves as the administrator for the Fort Atkinson Community Foundation.