Langara Lecture Series – April 13

Do you remember “Mad Men and Wicked Women?”
This series has now transformed into a more sedate but still interesting and informative series of four Lectures called the LANGARA LECTURES.

Please see detailed information below on each topic and lecturer.

Happy Hours snacks are available for purchase.

Guests are very welcome.

Thursday, April 13th
Interesting Moments in the Middle Ages 1: The Crusades
Niall Christie, Instructor in History and Chair of the Department of History, Latin and Political Science, Langara College

Media portrayals of the Crusades depict them as fierce battles between Christian knights and Muslim warriors, while some suggest that they were an episode in a wider “clash of civilizations” between the Western Christian world and the Muslim Middle East. Yet how are these depictions accurate? In this presentation, we will seek to find an answer to this question, considering both the historical realities of the period and its impact on the modern world.

Thursday, April 27th
Interesting Moments in the Middle Ages 2: The Black Death
Niall Christie, Instructor in History and Chair of the Department of History, Latin and Political Science, Langara College
Originating in Central Asia and spreading to East Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, the pandemic known as the Black Death wiped out somewhere between a third and a half of the populations that it afflicted. In this talk, we will look at the impact of the plague, as well as what some of those who lived through it tell us about it. We will also consider what we can learn from it in our own time as we continue to deal with the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Thursday, May 11th
To Know the World is to Remember the World is to Forget the World – What Some Representative Writers Tell Us about Memory
Stefan Haag, Instructor in English, Langara College

Bulgarian writer Georgi Gospodinov’s recent novel Time Shelter proposes a truly fascinating idea: What if we collectively decide to (happily) live in the past of our choosing? Things go wrong, however, because the three terms ( knowing – remembering – forgetting ) are intricately related and changing their relation has unforeseen consequences. In a second step, I’m bringing the reflections of Marcel Proust and Patrick Modiano, the two French memory specialists, to bear on Gospodinov to see where his idea went wrong.

Thursday, May 25th
Tilings: Mathematical Methods Behind Stunning Symmetries
Stephanie van Willigenburg, Professor of Mathematics and Associate Dean: Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Science, UBC

What makes a beautiful wall filled with tiles? How many of these are there? In this talk, we will investigate and answer both of these questions. No DIY or mathematical knowledge is needed, just curiosity and appreciation for beauty.