Friday   

Transforming the Mediterranean Sea into an open, international waterway during the Barbary Wars (1801-1816) was driven by the United States’ refusal to pay state-sanctioned tributes for safe passage.  By employing military force, the U.S. forced North African corsairs to recognize the universal “freedom of the seas” for merchant shipping

Barbary pirates from the states of Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli continually attacked merchant vessels in the Mediterranean, seizing cargo, and demanding massive annual tribute payments.

Most major European powers—including Great Britain, France, Spain, and others—paid regular tributes to the Barbary States. President Thomas Jefferson decided to stop making tribute payments and dispatched the newly established U.S. Navy to the Mediterranean. This culminated in the First Barbary War (1801–1805) to force Tripoli and other regimes to end their attacks. Piracy resumed during the War of 1812, prompting the Second Barbary War (1815) under President James Madison.

Join me for a six-week exploration of the two wars that established the Mediterranean Sea as an open international waterway. There will be slides, handouts and the second half of the class will be devoted to questions and discussions with reference to events in the Strait of Hormuz.

Although this course will build on a class previously offered last year, new participants can join and participate fully.   It is suitable for either those who use smart phones or dedicated cameras. The class won't focus on how to use a particular “camera” but rather, how to compose and get a better image out of whatever device you have.  We will review basic photographic fundamentals and qualities that create a “good” image.  Students will be asked to submit photos for critiquing and constructive criticism by class members. Although our goal will be to take a so-called “perfect” photo in-camera, we will see how to improve images by post-processing, using software: the so-called “digital darkroom.” I use Photoshop Elements, but the principles may be transferred to other software.  It’s not essential to have any software.  Questions and comments are encouraged with plenty of back-and-forth interaction.  Weather permitting I’d like to schedule a “meet and greet” field trip at a time convenient for as many people as possible.  I’d appreciate suggestions from you as to possible destinations.  

This course will examine three William Faulkner novels, As I Lay Dying, A Light in August, and The Sound and the Fury. Classes will be driven primarily by a close reading of each text and subsequent in-class discussions. The course will be on Zoom, and it will be recorded.

Discover China’s rich everyday wisdom—from the soothing warmth of ginger tea to the quiet grace of calligraphy. In six relaxed sessions designed for senior learners, you’ll uncover how food harmonizes your body, why families honor ancestors, how ancient philosophies shape daily life, and why gentle Ba Duan Jin movements (soft, slow Qigong) can calm both body and mind. You’ll try simple brushstrokes, learn easy seated exercises, share cherished memories, and witness how tradition thrives in modern China. No tests, no grades—just vivid stories, compelling images, friendly conversation, and small hands-on discoveries. Join us to connect with new friends, practice gentle, mindful movements, and explore timeless ideas that may even transform how you see your life’s unfolding seasons.

I plan to begin with man’s first attempts to fly like a bird then move on to the early days of flight and eventually go higher and higher into deep space.  Along the way, I want to examine the physical principles that govern how we stay aloft.  What’s it like to eat, sleep, go to the bathroom and live in a so-called “weightless” environment?  We’ll examine the physics behind satellites and space telescopes and what we learn from them.   In particular, I want to discuss the Space Shuttle and Teacher in Space programs and offer personal reflections from my own experiences while being a NASA Space Ambassador and Regional Representative for the National Air and Space Museum.   

This course will focus on six critical national issues that will be prominent during Fall, 2026, especially during the mid-term election and the results of the election on the composition of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Those six issues are the national debt burden, employment and unemployment, energy use and energy policy, the role of religion in national politics, the influence of money and donors in the electoral process, and the status and direction of immigration and immigration policy. During these separate issue sections, the emphasis will be on defining the issue, the impact of the issue on national politics and national life, and the way the political parties and the government respond to the issue. Since the course will run into mid-December, the course will seek to analyze how the results of the mid-term election will likely influence how each of these issues will be affected by a new House and Senate.