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- IN-PERSON: Great Women Songwriters of the 60’s
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**This class will be taught In-Person**
The 60’s were a fantastic decade for Women songwriters. Starting with the Girl Groups, the Era of the Singer/Songwriter, and the songs of Resistance calling for Social Change – instructor Pamela Rose will add fascinating biographical detail about the women who wrote our generational soundtrack. The class will get to learn about (and sing along to) songs like “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling”, “Will you still Love Me Tomorrow?”, “Both Sides Now,” “Four Women”, “Think” - while celebrating the work of composers like Carole King, Laura Nyro, Valerie Simpson, Cynthia Weil and Aretha Franklin and Nina Simone.
Non-members are welcome to register.
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- ZOOM: How to Build a New Nation: America After 1776
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Fee: $125.00
Dates: 10/12/2026 - 11/16/2026
Times: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Days: M
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Richard Bell
Seats Available: 42
**This class will be taught on Zoom. Note that the first class, October 12, will be recorded and sent to all.**
How do you build a nation from scratch? How do people come together to construct a new national government, constitution, military, economy, society, and culture in the wake of revolution and independence? How do we create something new and lasting from the ashes of something old and battered and broken?
This new course invites all of you to explore one of history’s greatest experiments in nation-building: the rise of the early American republic. Between 1776 and 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of independence and the year both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams finally passed from the scene, the United States transformed from a fragile collection of rebellious colonies into a sprawling, diverse, and deeply divided continental power. Through six wide-ranging talks informed by post-colonial theory and studies of comparative nationalism, we will trace how Americans from every possible background wrestled with the great challenge of constructing a government strong enough to endure, yet flexible enough to embody ideals of liberty, equality, and democracy—ideals that remain hotly contested today.
This course is for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- IN-PERSON: Special Post-Midterm Session of Beyond the Headlines
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THIS CLASS IS FULL. Please click the "Add to Waitlist" button below.
The "Add to Waitlist" button will only appear if you are signed in, have a valid membership, and enrollment is open. Note that your membership must be valid throughout the length of the course.
**This class will be taught In-Person**
This special session will review the 2026 midterms results. What insights did the mid-terms give us into the political mood of the country and what might be shaping up for 2028. What did the midterms say about the various factions of the Republican and Democratic parties? What are the implications for Congress and the Supreme Court? What did California voters think about the 14 statewide ballot measures and the many SF specific measures? Please come prepared to discuss and debate.
There are two ground rules:
1. Any topic in the week’s news may be suggested; and
2. In the discussions, all opinions need to be respected.
While we may and should disagree, we must not become disagreeable!
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- IN-PERSON: A Journey Through Contemporary World Cinema, Part ll
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**This class will be taught In-Person**
This course is a continuation of the first “Journey through Contemporary World Cinema” class offered in Winter 2026. Participants will have the opportunity to continue experiencing critically acclaimed contemporary (last 20 years) films from Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America, representing a variety of styles and genres, ranging from comedy to intense drama. Each movie will offer insight into a social or political issue or a pivotal moment in history. Class members will also learn about the backgrounds of each film director and motivations in their storytelling. Participants will be asked to view films at home and then discuss them in person with their peers in class. This is an ideal course for those interested in expanding their horizons through a global cinematic lens.
(Note: Most films will have subtitles; some films will require a rental fee for viewing).
This course is for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- ZOOM: Your Write to Resilience
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Fee: $125.00
Item Number: 2026FAC7511
Dates: 10/15/2026 - 11/19/2026
Times: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Days: Th
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Kathryn Goldman
THIS CLASS IS FULL. Please click the "Add to Waitlist" button below.
The "Add to Waitlist" button will only appear if you are signed in, have a valid membership, and enrollment is open. Note that your membership must be valid throughout the length of the course.
**This course will be taught via Zoom**
Watch the preview video here.
Your Write To Resilience is a guided wellness practice.
This class provides participants with an opportunity to enhance their resilience through writing. This class is based upon extensive research which demonstrates that expressing our emotions through writing can improve both physical and mental well-being.
Kathryn will facilitate six 90-minute classes using a different writing prompts to explore resilience.
You will write in unrestricted 8 to 10-minute bursts. At the end of each burst, people can share what they have written if desired. This is not a writing instruction class. We do not engage in feedback or critiques.
Each week Kathryn will read poetry or prose and offer writing prompts on a variety of themes, e.g. human connection, gratitude, courage, or fear. Topics will be curated based upon the needs of the group.
The classes will be taught using the Zoom learning platform.
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- OSHER ONLINE ZOOM: The 60s Through the Great Speeches
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Fee: $100.00
Dates: 10/9/2026 - 11/13/2026
Times: 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Days: F
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor:
Seats Available: 13
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
There 1960s is a decade wrapped in myth and misunderstanding. In this course, we will cut through that haze by turning to something powerful and concrete: the speeches of the era. The times and the conditions demanded these significant speeches. Together, we will listen to the voices that moved a nation and shaped history. With recordings preserved through television, video, and YouTube, we will discover what these speeches still have to teach us today.
This course will be taught by the instructor Arthur Benedict
Buck Benedict is a former lecturer at Wharton and the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania, where he taught public speaking for 16 years. He also created and taught speechwriting classes. He was awarded the first Excellence in Teaching Award at the Fels Institute and was nominated for the university-wide Provost Award for non-standing faculty.
This course is for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- ZOOM: Dante’s Inferno Through Artists’ Eyes
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Fee: $125.00
Dates: 10/9/2026 - 11/13/2026
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Days: F
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Jannie Dresser
Seats Available: 61
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
At the turn of the 13th-14th century, Dante was exiled from his Florentine home. He began his poetic epic, the Commedia, with the Inferno, choosing to write in Italian rather than the Latin of church and court, and placing many of his political opponents into Hell. Our approach to the 34 “cantos” will be enhanced by viewing works of visual artists who brought these scenes to life (among them: Sandro Botticelli, Gustave Doré and William Blake). We’ll focus on major moments in the narrative, discuss translations, and explore one of world literature’s greatest works.
This course is for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- IN-PERSON: Matisse and Le Corbusier: Islam in European Modernism
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**This class will be taught In-Person**
The 19th-century decline of Renaissance culture and the foundations of European modernism are closely bound up in a dialogue with Islamic culture. This marks the culmination of a centuries-long trajectory of exchange through trade, war, and colonization. Central to the process is the work of two key figures of European modernism, painter Henri Matisse and architect Le Corbusier, both steeped in Islamic art. It enabled them to revolutionize their disciplines while paradoxically ensnared them in Eurocentric colonial ideologies. In dialogue with these developments is the work of two prominent Egyptian modernists, the painter Mahmoud Said and the architect Hassan Fathy.
This course is for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- 3 Course Package - $360
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Fee: $360.00
Course Packages are for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- 6 Course Package - $660
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Fee: $660.00
Course Packages are for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- 10 Course Package - $900
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Fee: $900.00
Course Packages are for OLLI SF Members only. If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are three possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open, 2) You have not added a Membership to your cart or renewed your membership, 3) You are not logged in: Click to Sign-In
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- ZOOM: The History and Mystery of Color
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Fee: $125.00
Item Number: 2026FAC15381
Dates: 10/5/2026 - 11/9/2026
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Days: M
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Eleanor Schrader
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
Artists have used color to create an array of symbolism, emotions and socio-political meanings within the context of the time period in which they worked. Additionally, artists have utilized their knowledge of color to portray mood, light, depth, and point of view in a work of art. In this course, we discuss a variety of paintings and decorative objects throughout history to understand the artists’ intentions and the stories behind their works of art. We will also discuss the various histories of color, their meanings in various societies and cultural contexts, as well as the materials and processes used to make pigments.
Week by Week Outline:
Week 1: The color red
Week 2: The color orange
Week 3: The color yellow
Week 4: The color green
Week 5: The color blue
Week 6: The color purple
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
Artists have used color to create an array of symbolism, emotions and socio-political meanings within the context of the time period in which they worked. Additionally, artists have utilized their knowledge of color to portray mood, light, depth, and point of view in a work of art. In this course, we discuss a variety of paintings and decorative objects throughout history to understand the artists’ intentions and the stories behind their works of art. We will also discuss the various histories of color, their meanings in various societies and cultural contexts, as well as the materials and processes used to make pigments.
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- OSHER ONLINE ZOOM: Cults and New Religious Movements in America
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Fee: $100.00
Item Number: 2026FHHO351
Dates: 10/6/2026 - 11/10/2026
Times: 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Days: Tu
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor:
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
This course will be taught by the instuctor Kate Davis
America has provided fertile ground for new and alternative religions to sprout and grow. Some prosper and eventually become accepted as part of the normal religious landscape, some wither away and are forgotten, and some detonate, creating public scandal and in the worst cases, national tragedy. This course will examine New Religious Movements, popularly known as "cults", within the US context. We will examine these religious movements both from insider perspectives and outsider perceptions. We will analyze the history, practices, and beliefs of these organizations to better understand them and deconstruct misconceptions. This course covers the 18th and 19th centuries.
This course will be taught by the instructor Kathryn Phillips.
Kathryn Phillips is the Schauffler Chair and Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Defiance College. She received her PhD in Religious Studies from the University of California, Riverside. Her research is primarily focused on the use of Gender Studies in the historical approach to Christian Late Antiquity. She teaches a wide range of classes and loves teaching students about traditions they might be less familiar with. She is also a Fellow in the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity at Defiance College, leading annual student research surrounding refugees to Rome, Italy.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
America has provided fertile ground for new and alternative religions to sprout and grow. Some prosper and eventually become accepted as part of the normal religious landscape, some wither away and are forgotten, and some detonate, creating public scandal and in the worst cases, national tragedy. This course will examine New Religious Movements, popularly known as "cults", within the US context. We will examine these religious movements both from insider perspectives and outsider perceptions. We will analyze the history, practices, and beliefs of these organizations to better understand them and deconstruct misconceptions. This course covers the 18th and 19th centuries.
This course will be taught by the instructor Kathryn Phillips.
Kathryn Phillips is the Schauffler Chair and Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Defiance College. She received her PhD in Religious Studies from the University of California, Riverside. Her research is primarily focused on the use of Gender Studies in the historical approach to Christian Late Antiquity. She teaches a wide range of classes and loves teaching students about traditions they might be less familiar with. She is also a Fellow in the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity at Defiance College, leading annual student research surrounding refugees to Rome, Italy.
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- ZOOM: The Short Stories of Families in Love and Trouble
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Fee: $125.00
Item Number: 2026FAC15821
Dates: 10/6/2026 - 11/10/2026
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Days: Tu
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Jackie Berger
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
Short stories are novels with the best parts pulled out and sewn together. Short stories leap rather than wade. They cut to the chase. For these reasons, and in the best hands, they are ideal for tackling the loving/prickly/transformative/devastating relationships between parents and children, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives.
Over the course of our six weeks together, we will read and discuss a dozen or so stories that speak clearly and brilliantly of the relationships that define us. Crisis points crack open known patterns to reveal deeper truths. How lucky we are to have these writers as guides to take us to the center of human life and hold us in their good hands.
Week by Week Outline
Week One
Parents and Children
• Elizabeth Tallent, “Briar Switch”
• Lorrie Moore, “People Like Me are the Only People Here”
Week Two
Sisters and Brothers
• David Means, “Two Ruminations on a Homeless Brother”
• Amy Bloom, “Silver Water”
• Rick Moody, “Boys”
Week Three
Husbands and Wives
• Claire Keegan, “So Late in the Day”
• CJ Hauser, “The Crain Wife”
Week Four
Parents and Children
• Lauren Groff, “Mother of Men”
• Katherine Mansfield, “The Colonel”
• Grace Paley, “My Father Addresses Me on the Facts of Old Age”
Week Five
Sisters and Brothers
• James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues”
• Te-Ping Chen, “Lulu”
Week Six
Husbands and Wives
• Chang-rae Lee, “Daisy”
• Tessa Hadley, “The Maths Tutor”
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
Short stories are novels with the best parts pulled out and sewn together. Short stories leap rather than wade. They cut to the chase. For these reasons, and in the best hands, they are ideal for tackling the loving/prickly/transformative/devastating relationships between parents and children, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives.
Over the course of our six weeks together, we will read and discuss a dozen or so stories that speak clearly and brilliantly of the relationships that define us. Crisis points crack open known patterns to reveal deeper truths. How lucky we are to have these writers as guides to take us to the center of human life and hold us in their good hands.
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- IN-PERSON: Canon and Craft: Writing Lessons from Classic Literature
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REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class will be taught In-Person**
Each week, we’ll read and analyze a short excerpt from a canonical work of literature, discovering creative writing techniques you can adapt for your own work. Next, you’ll write a scene, a very short story, or perhaps the beginning of a novel inspired by the excerpt. You’ll then have the opportunity to share your work and discuss what you’ve learned from the exercise. Excerpts from the stories will be distributed to be read in class. For writers of all experience levels.
Week by Week Outline
Week 1: Dracula: Mood and atmosphere
Week 2: Moby-Dick: Larger-than-life characters
Week 3: Pride and Prejudice: Satire and subtlety
Week 4: The Turn of the Screw: Architecture in and of fiction
Week 5: The Brothers Karamazov: Making ideas matter
Week 6: Mrs. Dalloway: Time and mind
**This class will be taught In-Person**
Each week, we’ll read and analyze a short excerpt from a canonical work of literature, discovering creative writing techniques you can adapt for your own work. Next, you’ll write a scene, a very short story, or perhaps the beginning of a novel inspired by the excerpt. You’ll then have the opportunity to share your work and discuss what you’ve learned from the exercise. Excerpts from the stories will be distributed to be read in class. For writers of all experience levels.
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- ZOOM: “Congress Shall Make No Law”: The Right of Free Speech
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Fee: $125.00
Item Number: 2026FHH15181
Dates: 10/6/2026 - 11/10/2026
Times: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Days: Tu
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Donna Schuele
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
The First Amendment, and particularly free speech rights, is considered a foundational protection for our constitutional democracy. This course will explore the 20th century origins and development of the right to freely express political viewpoints, the unique speech guarantees afforded to the press, the tension between reputational rights and free speech, the expansion of speech rights in the later 20th century, and the challenges presented by hate speech. The course will finish by examining whether free speech rights can withstand 21st century technological and autocratic pressures.
Week by Week Outline
Week 1: What’s the Supreme Court got to do with it?
Week 2: “Falsely shouting fire in a theatre”: The formative years of the right to free speech
Week 3: Symbolic Speech: Expanding free speech beyond words
Week 4: Fighting Words and Hate Speech: Where can we draw the line?
Week 5: The Press Fights Back: Government and individual attempts to restrict free speech
Week 6: The Future of Free Speech: Can the right to free speech survive Big Tech and Trump?
**This class will be taught on Zoom**
The First Amendment, and particularly free speech rights, is considered a foundational protection for our constitutional democracy. This course will explore the 20th century origins and development of the right to freely express political viewpoints, the unique speech guarantees afforded to the press, the tension between reputational rights and free speech, the expansion of speech rights in the later 20th century, and the challenges presented by hate speech. The course will finish by examining whether free speech rights can withstand 21st century technological and autocratic pressures.
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- OSHER ONLINE ZOOM: The Birth of the Beat Generation
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Fee: $100.00
Item Number: 2026FHHO361
Dates: 9/29/2026 - 11/3/2026
Times: 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Days: Tu
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor:
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
In this course, we will examine the dramatic circumstances that gave rise to the Beat Generation in the 1940s. Together, we will examine three famous Beat works: Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg, On the Road by Jack Kerouac, and Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs. We will focus on historical events involving Beat writers, important passages of Beat literature, and the literary movement that spawned the 1960s counterculture.
This course will be taught by the instructor Kurt Hemmer
Kurt Hemmer is the editor of the Encyclopedia of Beat Literature and a professor at Harper College. Hemmer has produced award-winning documentaries on Beat poets with filmmaker Tom Knoff and published extensively on Beat writers. He organized the Jack Kerouac Centenary Conference and serves as president of the Beat Studies Association. He is currently working on a biography of Beat poet Gregory Corso.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
In this course, we will examine the dramatic circumstances that gave rise to the Beat Generation in the 1940s. Together, we will examine three famous Beat works: Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg, On the Road by Jack Kerouac, and Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs. We will focus on historical events involving Beat writers, important passages of Beat literature, and the literary movement that spawned the 1960s counterculture.
This course will be taught by the instructor Kurt Hemmer
Kurt Hemmer is the editor of the Encyclopedia of Beat Literature and a professor at Harper College. Hemmer has produced award-winning documentaries on Beat poets with filmmaker Tom Knoff and published extensively on Beat writers. He organized the Jack Kerouac Centenary Conference and serves as president of the Beat Studies Association. He is currently working on a biography of Beat poet Gregory Corso.
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- IN-PERSON: Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy & Cold Cases
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REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class will be taught In-Person**
This course explores how modern DNA technology and family history research are used to identify suspects in long-unsolved crimes, such as the Golden State Killer case (and others). Students will learn how family relationships are identified through shared DNA, and steps of a FIGG investigation, and will apply these principles to solve cases. No science background is required.
Week by Week Outline:
Week 1
• Introductions
• Criminal identification methods prior to 1985
-Fingerprints, serology, hair microscopy*, bite marks*, witness accounts
• 1985: Alec Jeffreys and DNA, Linda Mann & Dawn Ashworth cases
Week 2
• DNA 101, forensic uses of DNA, CoDIS, probability
Determining paternity exercise
• Matching crime scene DNA with one person vs. familial/partial matching
-Legal requirements of partial matching
-Grim Sleeper Case
Week 3
• Introduction to forensic investigative genetic genealogy (FGG/IGG/FIGG)
-Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick (2005), DNA Doe Project (2017)
-Popularity of DNA testing and genealogy, from hobby → investigative tool
▪ 23 & Me, Ancestry, My Heritage
-Process of FIGG: DNA→ identify relative → determine degree of relatedness → determine common ancestor → build family tree up and back down → consider age and location → LE surveil and collect discarded DNA sample → test
• Degrees of relatedness
-Family tree
-Degrees of relatedness exercise
Week 4
• Cold cases: What makes a case go “cold”?
-Technology limitations, stranger crimes, no witnesses → lack of suspects
-Famous cold cases that have been solved using FGG
▪ GSK, Washington
• Let’s solve a case together
-The Parkview Assault Case
Week 5
• Now you solve some cases…
-The Cedar Lane Homicide
-The Willow Creek Burglary-Murder
-The Lakeside Park Homicide
-The Redwood Highway Assault
-The Brookfield Homicide
Week 6 (last class)
• Questions to consider (discussion)
-FIGG and privacy issues
▪ Should LE be permitted to search genealogy databases?
• Does your opinion change depending on the crime?
• Would you personally opt in or out?
▪ Should LE be permitted to collect DNA of arrestees?
▪ Does a genealogy search violate the 4th Amendment?
▪ Do we have a right to genetic privacy?
• Takeaways:
-Science evolves, cases can be reopened, small clues matter, justice can take time o FS has limits
-DNA does not prove guilt
**This class will be taught In-Person**
This course explores how modern DNA technology and family history research are used to identify suspects in long-unsolved crimes, such as the Golden State Killer case (and others). Students will learn how family relationships are identified through shared DNA, and steps of a FIGG investigation, and will apply these principles to solve cases. No science background is required.
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- HYBRID (IN-PERSON): Aliens in Science and Science Fiction: Where Do We Stand in our Search for Intelligent Life Out There?
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REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class is a Hybrid. This section of the class will be taught In-Person**
Few areas of astronomy excite our imaginations as much as the search for alien life, out among the stars. It is a staple of science fiction stories and films, but, recently it has also become a legitimate branch of scientific inquiry. In this non-technical class, we will take a look at why astronomers are more optimistic than ever that there must be life beyond the Earth, what intriguing experiments we are undertaking to find or communicate with such life (hint: AI will help), and what we propose to do if we do find “them.” We’ll also look at some of the most imaginative science and science-fiction ideas about what aliens will be like, how we might exchange information, and what the results of getting in touch with aliens might be. (No background in science will be required or assumed.)
Week by Week Outline
1. The Realms of the Universe
• What’s out there and how is it organized
• How the universe evolved to make life possible: from atoms to stars to planets to biology • Science fiction about life out there: science versus pseudo-science
2. The Discovery of Exoplanets: As Common as Dirt, But Can They Support Life • How to find planets far, far away
• The different types of exoplanets (and the possibility of exomoons)
• The search for Earth 2.0
• Life in weird environments
3. The Origin of Life and Life Elsewhere
• What are the odds? The Drake Formula
• Experiments about the origin of life and what they tell us
• Life as we don’t know it: Suggestions from science fiction
4. The Fermi Paradox and its Solutions [The paradox asks: if there are really advanced aliens out there, why are they or their robot representatives not here already?]
• Where are they? Why it’s hard to know
• Von Neumann Machines and the Post-Biological Universe
• The Zoo hypothesis and too many solutions to the paradox
5. Science Fiction Speculation Versus Science Experiments
• UFO’s and spaceship visits: What the evidence shows
• Good science fiction about contact
• SETI: past experiments, and what’s in the works to find out if they are there • The Cosmic Haystack Problem
6. The Future: Success and Beyond
• Breakthrough Projects: Listen and Starshot
• What if we succeed? What’s next?
• Do you speak Martian: How do we communicate with aliens?
• Who speaks for Earth?
**This class is a Hybrid. This section of the class will be taught In-Person**
Few areas of astronomy excite our imaginations as much as the search for alien life, out among the stars. It is a staple of science fiction stories and films, but, recently it has also become a legitimate branch of scientific inquiry. In this non-technical class, we will take a look at why astronomers are more optimistic than ever that there must be life beyond the Earth, what intriguing experiments we are undertaking to find or communicate with such life (hint: AI will help), and what we propose to do if we do find “them.” We’ll also look at some of the most imaginative science and science-fiction ideas about what aliens will be like, how we might exchange information, and what the results of getting in touch with aliens might be. (No background in science will be required or assumed.)
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- HYBRID (ZOOM): Aliens in Science and Science Fiction: Where Do We Stand in our Search for Intelligent Life Out There?
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Fee: $125.00
Item Number: 2026FST15682
Dates: 9/30/2026 - 11/4/2026
Times: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Andrew Fraknoi
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
**This class is a Hybrid. This section of the class will be taught on Zoom**
Few areas of astronomy excite our imaginations as much as the search for alien life, out among the stars. It is a staple of science fiction stories and films, but, recently it has also become a legitimate branch of scientific inquiry. In this non-technical class, we will take a look at why astronomers are more optimistic than ever that there must be life beyond the Earth, what intriguing experiments we are undertaking to find or communicate with such life (hint: AI will help), and what we propose to do if we do find “them.” We’ll also look at some of the most imaginative science and science-fiction ideas about what aliens will be like, how we might exchange information, and what the results of getting in touch with aliens might be. (No background in science will be required or assumed.)
Week by Week Outline
1. The Realms of the Universe
• What’s out there and how is it organized
• How the universe evolved to make life possible: from atoms to stars to planets to biology • Science fiction about life out there: science versus pseudo-science
2. The Discovery of Exoplanets: As Common as Dirt, But Can They Support Life • How to find planets far, far away
• The different types of exoplanets (and the possibility of exomoons)
• The search for Earth 2.0
• Life in weird environments
3. The Origin of Life and Life Elsewhere
• What are the odds? The Drake Formula
• Experiments about the origin of life and what they tell us
• Life as we don’t know it: Suggestions from science fiction
4. The Fermi Paradox and its Solutions [The paradox asks: if there are really advanced aliens out there, why are they or their robot representatives not here already?]
• Where are they? Why it’s hard to know
• Von Neumann Machines and the Post-Biological Universe
• The Zoo hypothesis and too many solutions to the paradox
5. Science Fiction Speculation Versus Science Experiments
• UFO’s and spaceship visits: What the evidence shows
• Good science fiction about contact
• SETI: past experiments, and what’s in the works to find out if they are there • The Cosmic Haystack Problem
6. The Future: Success and Beyond
• Breakthrough Projects: Listen and Starshot
• What if we succeed? What’s next?
• Do you speak Martian: How do we communicate with aliens?
• Who speaks for Earth?
**This class is a Hybrid. This section of the class will be taught on Zoom**
Few areas of astronomy excite our imaginations as much as the search for alien life, out among the stars. It is a staple of science fiction stories and films, but, recently it has also become a legitimate branch of scientific inquiry. In this non-technical class, we will take a look at why astronomers are more optimistic than ever that there must be life beyond the Earth, what intriguing experiments we are undertaking to find or communicate with such life (hint: AI will help), and what we propose to do if we do find “them.” We’ll also look at some of the most imaginative science and science-fiction ideas about what aliens will be like, how we might exchange information, and what the results of getting in touch with aliens might be. (No background in science will be required or assumed.)
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- OSHER ONLINE ZOOM: Biology & Society
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Fee: $100.00
Item Number: 2026FSTO371
Dates: 10/1/2026 - 11/5/2026
Times: 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM
Days: Th
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor:
REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
This course introduces the scientific study of life, with an emphasis on real-world applications and the societal, social, ethical, and legal consequences of biological advances. We will place key biological principles within the context of issues that affect individuals and society, highlighting the connection between biology and everyday life. Designed for non-scientists with little or no recent college-level science experience, the course encourages discussion and reflection. Many topics are at the leading edge of scientific discovery, and we will examine the ongoing ethical and legal debates surrounding how and whether these advances should be applied.
This course will be taught by the instructor Eric Simon.
Eric Simon, PhD, is a professor of biology at New England College and holds a PhD in biochemistry from Harvard University. An avid traveler and award-winning nature photographer, he leads educational trips to destinations such as Belize, the Galapagos, Tanzania, Cuba, the Amazon River, and Patagonia. Simon is also the author of a best-selling series of college biology textbooks—used in over 40 countries—with more than 2 million copies in print.
Osher Online Course - produced by the Osher National Resource Center
**To get to the course you will not be sent the Zoom link, but log into a portal (instructions will be provided to those enrolled)
**This course will be presented via Zoom and will not be recorded. Space is limited.**
**If you have a course package that you would like to use, please contact olli@sfsu.edu**
This course introduces the scientific study of life, with an emphasis on real-world applications and the societal, social, ethical, and legal consequences of biological advances. We will place key biological principles within the context of issues that affect individuals and society, highlighting the connection between biology and everyday life. Designed for non-scientists with little or no recent college-level science experience, the course encourages discussion and reflection. Many topics are at the leading edge of scientific discovery, and we will examine the ongoing ethical and legal debates surrounding how and whether these advances should be applied.
This course will be taught by the instructor Eric Simon.
Eric Simon, PhD, is a professor of biology at New England College and holds a PhD in biochemistry from Harvard University. An avid traveler and award-winning nature photographer, he leads educational trips to destinations such as Belize, the Galapagos, Tanzania, Cuba, the Amazon River, and Patagonia. Simon is also the author of a best-selling series of college biology textbooks—used in over 40 countries—with more than 2 million copies in print.
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