Math and Science   

Dr. Jeff Cashman and Dr. John Simmons are team teaching this course on medical ethics. They will start with an introduction to ethics and introductory cases. They will have sessions on the ethics of medical payment models and touch on topics within cultural differences in the practice of medicine. They will discuss the regulation of medical practice by outside authorities. There will be a session on the history of the opioid epidemic and ethical factors that played a role.  They will hold other discussions as time allows that can be prompted by historical medical cases and a discussion of doctor-patient relationships that have changed over the years.

Years ago, Ed and his wife were inspired by naturalist Rudy Mancke (SCETV Naturescene; 1945-2023) to create a workshop and booklet to answer the questions that children and adults have asked since the beginning. "The question being: What is it?" Being able to identify and correctly name living/non-living things on Earth helps us to better understand our place in the natural world. In this course, participants will explore how to use field guides, the internet, dichotomous keys, and other resources used by scientists to identify plants and animals in our state, region, and country. 

The period of 250,000 years is an instant in geological time. Still, during that time, the human race has gone from a marginal species whose extinction was highly likely to the dominant species on earth. We will read a recent book by Joseph Henrich entitled "The Secret of our Success" to seek an understanding of the factors that have led to our species's success. Students should borrow or purchase the book for class. 

Since the 1950s, vaccines have proven to be the most successful medical intervention available. Yet, disinformation and distrust have driven an exponential rise of “antivaxxers” and “vaccine-hesitant” people in the U.S. since 2000. Diseases controlled or eliminated in the country, like measles and pertussis, are coming back because of the low level of vaccines. Many states, including ours, have passed laws that may lack support for the vaccines. Yet the entire community's health depends on nearly everyone being vaccinated! We will learn about the science behind vaccination and controversies surrounding the procedure. You will become a far more informed 'consumer' out of the class!