Humanities   

This course will expose the scandal of a massive mountain of discarded clothing in Chile that is visible from space as well as the way our clothing discards are undermining the local clothing industry in Ghana West Africa. From production to disposal, the fashion industry has three major negative impacts on the world's water supply: high usage, high levels of chemical pollution, and high microfiber pollution.

Growing up in the American West is an adventure steeped in mythology, the gilded lore of cowboys and Indians, the rugged individualist, tall in the saddle, taming the wilderness, prying a living from the land. That's the legacy. The West was always just west of wherever we were at the time. Kentucky was way west when Daniel Boone carved the Wilderness Road out of the Cumberland Gap. In that sense, we all are a product of the Mythologies of the Modern West. This is a study of conflict between that romantic notion and the practical outcomes of "settling" the region, of trying to come to terms with the iconic images that inspire us and the disquieting realizations that come our way. This class looks at both the legendary and the practical worlds of the Modern West, the real people and their fictional counterparts, the cowboys and Indians ordinary and extraordinary both met along the way, living with the Blackfeet people, and buying movie star Gary Cooper's home. It's the story of a city boy finding his way in the contemporary West that is presented via lecture and multi-media with discussion.

It is the hidden force accelerating climate change, Methane accounts for around 1% of total greenhouse gases but around 21% of global greenhouse emissions. Even though much less methane is emitted than carbon dioxide, methane is 84+ times more potent than carbon dioxide in the first 20 years of its emissions. We'll examine ways that methane pollution is being reduced from cows and new and old wells.

Did you know? The e-waste output in one year weighed the equivalent of 350 cruise ships? Or if you piled a year of America's e-waste on an interstate highway it would be a pile that was 77 miles long. Yes, there are efforts to recycle old cell phones and TVs, but these efforts are falling far short of solving the problem. This is why e-ways is our biggest recycling challenge.

Electric vehicles will save owners big bucks because they don't burn fossil fuel. In addition, EV owners spend half as much on maintenance and repairs. But people worry how long that big battery will last and whether they'll be able to find a place to charge their car when they are on a trip. In this class we'll learn helpful tips from owners dealing with the unique challenges that come with EV ownership.

In the late 19th century, Ellen Swallow Richards helped developed the new science of home economics with the goal of involving women in the public sphere of social activism rather than simply teaching them in effective ways to run their households. However, the movement quickly shifted its focus to educating professional experts. Consequently, the political goals of the home economics movement were superseded by the professionalization of domesticity. This class will look at the history of home economics and its representation in popular culture of the time. It will also look at how the movement led, in part, to women becoming radio broadcasters—known as radio homemakers—in the early days of radio.

Forever chemicals are in the water supply and the air we breathe. We'll learn how PFAS came to be developed in the 1940s and found their way into a broad range of consumer products and what is being done to protect our health from this silent threat.

The states in the U.S. least affected by climate change include the New England and Midwest regions. Should Californians concerned about wildfires relocate there? By the end of the century parts of the US will no longer be livable. Curiously, these are the states where many people are moving. Discover what the scientists are learning about the climate factors that most effect our well-being. Perhaps it's best to stay where are in the foothills of Northern California.

For most of the first 150 years of our republic, most presidents were laid to rest at their estates or in a church graveyards near their homes. For the most part their gravesites are relatively simple and unadorned with a few exceptions. With the development of presidential libraries, the graves of some of our recent presidents are presented in monumental splendor.