WWII Anzio Beach
  • The United States' World War II Strategy to Enter Europe and End the War

Wednesday, November 11, 7 p.m.
Contact the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm for online presentation format.

In 1943, the United States and Allied military forces left Africa to invade Sicily as its first step towards its major objective of invading Europe’s “underbelly” in Italy. This presentation from Frank Cardimen, Oakland University professor and Smart Towns co-founder, will follow the USA’s initial entrance to Europe via Sicily and travel through Italy and France to Germany for the next two years until the end of World War II in May 1945. The initial invasion success of Sicily in August 1943 was possible by a remarkable and improbable British diversion plan about “The Man Who Never Was” that resulted in Germany focusing its defense on the island of Sardinia and Greece rather than Sicily to confront this allied invasion force.

Museum members are free; $5 admission for non-members.

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Rome

Presenter: Dr. James Walters, Rochester University
Oct. 22, 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Public Library

The “fall” of Rome in the fifth century has been regarded as a significant turning point in history, particularly since the eighteenth-century historian Edward Gibbon wrote his six-volume magnum opus on the topic. References to the fall of Rome also appear in modern political discourse as pundits use the decline of the Roman Empire as an allegory for the decline of modern nation-states.

This presentation will reconsider the narrative of the fall of Rome by placing it in a broader historical context and discussing how the events described as the “fall” of Rome were not as significant as thought. The fall of Rome is a modern historiographic invention with both political and social motivations.

RHPL records most Smart Towns programs presented at the library. Recordings are posted on the RHPL website two-four weeks after the presentation. 

Register at calendar.rhpl.org.

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PearlHarbor
  • Pearl Harbor & The Battle of Midway

Presenter: Frank Cardimen, Oakland University Professor & Smart Towns Co-Founder
November 1
Online. Contact the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm for presentation format. 

The attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the Battle of Midway in 1942 changed the course of World War II and the world in just six months. Oakland University professor Frank Cardimen will discuss the issues and actions leading up to these two historic events, as well as how each event changed the course of history. 

Click here to register at Rochester Hills Public Library

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uss indianapolis survivor accounts from the worst naval disaster in us historys featured photo

Presenter: Larry Martin
May 19 at 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Public Library

WWII historian Larry Martin will discuss the tragic story of the USS Indianapolis. In July 1945, the Indianapolis was on a secret mission to Tinian Island to deliver components of the atomic bomb -- the same bomb dropped on Hiroshima a few weeks later, leading to the end of WWII. After delivering the secret cargo, the Indianapolis was struck by a Japanese torpedo on July 30. The explosion caused the ship to sink within twelve minutes.  Of the 1,200 men on board, 300 died when the ship sunk. The remaining men were forced into the shark-infested Philippine Sea. Hundreds perished from starvation, dehydration, salt poisoning, and shark attacks. The sinking of the USS Indianapolis was one of the worst naval disasters in history.

Larry’s interest in WWII history and his passion for gathering and sharing the stories of the men and women of the war sparked the creation of the "In Their Own Words" project. The project helps educate new generations about the fascinating and unique history of WWII and fosters an appreciation for the hardships endured by all war veterans. Over the past decade, Larry has interviewed over 75 WWII veterans and hosted over 50 programs at public libraries and other facilities across the country. Special guest: USS Indianapolis survivor Dick Thelan (health permitting). 

RHPL records most Smart Towns programs presented at the library. Recordings are posted on the RHPL website two-four weeks after the presentation. 

Register at calendar.rhpl.org

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Sharia Hays
  • Putting Humanity Back into History: Reflecting on the Biases that Shaped History

Presenter: Dr.  Sharia Hays, Ed.D., Dean of Students, Title IX Coordinator, Rochester University
To be Rescheduled
Rochester Hills Public Library

We all have biases; look for biases in decisions and treatment of people.  This is noted throughout history.  Presented by Dr. Sharia Hays of Rochester University, this session will reflect on the biases that have shaped history.  Through discussion and an interactive exercise, participants will gain an understanding about unconscious and implicit biases.  Participants will leave with a new awareness, along with steps and strategies for confronting and overcoming unconscious and implicit biases.  
 
As we examine the past, we will be challenged to change the present and future in our decision making and treatment of others. 
 
Shakespeare

Presenter: Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company
April 14 at 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Public Library

This program features scenes from such plays as Shakespeare’s Henry V, The Merchant of Venice, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth and The Comedy of Errors to introduce the audience to the ways in which the performance conditions of Shakespeare’s time period influenced his plays. The program will have a mix of storytelling, performance, and history.

The Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company dedicates itself to the development of a high quality ensemble of actors. Actors who work together frequently develop an onstage and offstage trust and chemistry that results in better productions. The structure of acting companies in Shakespeare’s England created an atmosphere in which actors worked together over decades, developing their talents and instincts together, and sharing and passing down knowledge. The Company is made up of actors who have performed in at least four full-length productions in the previous three seasons.

Shakespeare was one of the world's most influential writers. His prose, vocabulary, and wit influenced language and literature the world over. Additionally, his works, including plays and sonnets, provided lessons in politics, psychology, romance, revenge, and more.

RHPL records most Smart Towns programs presented at the library. Recordings are posted on the RHPL website two-four weeks after the presentation. 

Register at calendar.rhpl.org

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Michigan ice age

Presenter: John Zawiskie, Curator of Earth and Life Sciences, Cranbrook Institute of Science
Oct. 29, 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm

Join Cranbrook geologist John Zawiskie for a review of the Ice Age history of southeast Michigan since the last glacial maximum, as inferred from landforms, sediments, surface rocks, and fossils. Zawiskie will also discuss accessible local evidence for a remarkable Snowball Earth global glaciation from 2.4 billion years ago. Key rocks and fossils will be available for examination before and after the lecture. Zawiskie has done extensive geological and paleontological field work in Antarctica, South America, the southwestern United States, and the Great Lakes region.

Museum members are free; $5 admission for non-members. Register at www.rochesterhills.org/musprograms.

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vaccine
  • The Polio Vaccine Story and How Rochester Saved the World

Presenter: Don Calihan, former Director of Engineering, Parke-Davis
To be Rescheduled
Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm

The Polio Vaccine Story was originally published in five installments in the Parke-Davis Retirees Review. The articles focused on the development and use of the Salk Polio Vaccine, with emphasis on the role played by Parke-Davis, especially in Rochester, Michigan. Don Callihan is a Parke-Davis retiree and was Director of Engineering at the Parke-Davis facility in Rochester, Michigan.

Museum members; $5 admission for non-members. Register at www.rochesterhills.org/musprograms.

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Covid 19 and Culture Oct 2020
  • Creativity and Community During Covid-19: A Look at Chinese Social Media

Presenter: Belinda Kong, Associate Professor, Bowdoin College
Oct. 12, 5:30 p.m.
Oakland University Online Program

Bowdoin College Associate Professor Belinda Kong shows how ordinary people in China use social media to create community amidst Covid-19.

As we know, Covid-19 has generated an abundance of coronavirus memes, jokes, and songs on the US internet since March. Less recognized, perhaps, is that Chinese social media too exploded with cultural expressions of epidemic life from January onward. Ordinary people in Wuhan and across the Sinophone world documented their experiences under quarantine, created impromptu videos and music to share with others in solidarity, and actively fostered a culture of pandemic humor amid the uncertainties in the early days of Covid. These social media practices may appear too small to be politically or socially significant, but it is precisely through these small acts that common people engaged in everyday forms of social and cultural agency, producing alternative communities and building up a meaningful sense of peopleness outside of official party rhetoric.

Belinda Kong is Associate Professor of Asian Studies and English at Bowdoin College. Her research and teaching focus on Asian American and Chinese diaspora literature. Her current book project, "What Lived Through SARS: Chronicles of Pandemic Resilience," examines cultures of epidemic life at the epicenters of the 2003 SARS outbreak.

Generously funded by Student Affairs & Diversity at Oakland University.

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aids protests2
  • The AIDS Crisis: An Overview of the History of AIDS and Future Implications

Presenter: Dr. Robert Federman MD, Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital
To be Rescheduled
Rochester Hills Public Library

Dr. Federman will discuss and review the AIDS timeline, historical data, medical and social implications, and the future of AIDS research and care.

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Untitled 1
  • The Flawed Victory of Women's Suffrage

Tuesday, September 8, 7 p.m. Zoom Livestream
Rochester Hills Public Library

The passage of the Nineteenth Amendment gave the vote to adult women in the United States. Karein A.J. Miller of Oakland University's History Department will discuss and examine what women's suffrage accomplished and what it failed to achieve. 

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Summer of 1816
  • The Summer of 1816: The Year Without a Summer

Wednesday, September 16, 7 p.m.
Contact the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm for online presentation format. 

Museum manager, Pat McKay, will discuss the major climatic events in the world that created a summer along the east coast of the United States with freezing temperatures every month of the year, major crop failures, and panic. By 1817, a westward movement started, enhanced by the opening of the Erie Canal.The settlement of Rochester, Michigan, was part of this migration, the belief of manifest destiny, and the growth of the Midwest.

Museum members are free; $5 admission for non-members. Register at rochesterhills.org/musprograms

getty rf photo of antibiotics
  • How Antibiotics Revolutionized the World

Presenter: Dr. Jason Taylor, Pharm. D. 
YouTube. Rochester Hills Public Library

Dr. Jason Taylor, Pharm.D., is a clinical coordinator with Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital. Dr. Taylor's presentation will focus on the history of antibiotic discovery and how that profoundly impacted public health. He will also discuss how the new challenge with antibiotics is resistant bacteria and how that is limiting treatment options. 

View the recorded presentation.

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CellPhone

Presenter: Dr. Carol Cooper, Rochester University
December 10, 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Public Library Zoom Meeting

The cell phone provides an emotional and symbolic link to work, family, and friends. It is also an increasingly social and cultural device, offering the potential for online communication to a wider audience in the form of text messages, photos, and video. This presentation will explore how the cell phone has changed the nature of communication in ways that few could have originally imaginged. 

Register today.

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Holistic Healthcare

Presenter: Surita Chaudhry, RN
Jan. 9 at 7 p.m.
Rochester Hills Public Library

The Rochester Hills Public Library will host “Holistic Health Care” with Surita Chaudhry on Jan. 9, 2020 from 7-8:30 p.m. in the library’s multipurpose room.  “Holistic Health Care” is the first Smart Towns program of 2020 and features guest speaker Surita Chaudhry, a practicing RN for nearly thirty years. She is nationally certified in Advanced Holistic Nursing and is a member of the American Holistic Nursing Association (AHNA).

Chaudhry received training in clinical aromatherapy, foot reflexology, mindfulness meditation, emotional freedom technique, therapeutic touch, and is a 200-RYT Yoga Instructor.

This program is a great way to start a new year and learn holistic techniques to improve and maintain a healthy lifestyle. 

View the recorded presentation. 

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declaration 03

Presenter: Dr. John Todd, Rochester University
Rochester Hills Public Library

Dr. Todd discusses the origins of the Declaration of Independence, its purposes, and how it changed the world. Dr. Todd earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan and his J.D. from Georgetown Law. He has taught at Rochester University since 1979 and is a member of the Federalist Society and National Association of Scholars.

View the recorded presentation.

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ST lightbuld official logo

Presenter: Professors Nicole Mathew, John Klemanski, and Dave Dulio, College of Arts & Sciences, Dept. of Political Science
Oct. 12, 12 p.m.
Oakland University Online Program

 The Center for Civic Engagement, Professional and Continuing Education and the Oakland University Alumni Association have collaborated to launch a Civic Engagement Office Hours virtual series that will run throughout the 2020-2021 academic year. The online series features Oakland University faculty experts answering questions submitted by students, faculty, staff, alumni, retirees, and other members of the community on topics in the realm of civic engagement broadly defined.

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