YCLML 001 - MCLL Lectures

This lecture is brought to you by the Cummings Centre 

Presenter: Charlotte Temple

Through her camera’s lens, our daring guide, Charlotte Temple, leads us into the past as we focus on the lands of Bohemia. From Berlin to Dresden, from the picturesque towns of the Czech Republic to Slovakia, from the Sudetenland and the tragedy of Theresienstadt to Budapest, Charlotte’s photos reveal the somber truths of pre-World War II Jewish life. 

Presenters: Peter Strobach & Marna Murray 

How have you learned history? Dates? Names? Battles? Places? The lecture offers a new approach – yes, places, people, events, and development on a timeline, but with a global perspective. Taking the period from 1492 to 1530, the perspective looks at many concurrent civilizations. Watch a demonstration of a multi-media tool to link these events and experience an alternative way to learn history. 

Presenter: Paul Kuai-Yu Leong 

Tiny Qatar has an area less than the Falkland Islands, with a population of about 2.8 million, of which only some 0.313 million are citizens, yet it made disproportional impacts in world affairs. Come to discuss the multi-facetted role Qatar played (e.g., on housing the largest U.S. military base in Middle East; the popular 2700-capacity Catholic church in a Wahhabi state; Al Jazeera etc.) 

Presenter: Ante L. Padjen, MD, MSc, DSc 

There is abundant literature about the positive effects of music on health and well-being. Equally plentiful are reports that music can cause physical and mental illness. Music-induced harm started to be seen as a medical issue two centuries ago. Excessive or wrong type of music could lead to illness, immorality, and occasionally death by overstimulation of the vulnerable nervous system. This idea continued to provide a model for explaining harm caused by music as diverse as Wagner and rock ’n’ roll, leading in certain circumstances to the concept of “degenerate music.” The excessive stimulation and “strain of nerves” in the form of brainwashing could lead to mind control, with music becoming a weapon. I will explore the complex relationship between music and various harmful effects, including physical and physiological harm, adverse impacts on cognitive functioning, aggression, and risk-taking behaviors, affective and interpersonal harm, and even spiritual harm. This variety reflects a multifaceted music experience with numerous sides—contextual, deliverer, and music and recipient-based factors. In all these explorations, it is hard to recognize music as a pathogen per se. Rather, the harm depends on the complex interactions between the person's relationship with music, preferences, and moods specific to certain situations. 

Presenter: Marna Murray

Who can image the girl from a ‘bussed’ California kindergartener to Westmount High graduate to Howard University to City and State Prosecutor to Madam President? Wishful thinking or prophesy – time will tell. This lecture will focus on the many phases of the personal and political development of Kamala Harris. 

Presenter: Joanna Avanitis 

This lecture is based on Joanna Avanitis's text, A Historical Journey of the City of Westmount - 1874-2024. Participants will experience the history related to the settlement of the City of Westmount as it is proudly celebrating its 150th Anniversary. The city was designated National Historic Site in 2005.  The process of preservation and evolution of its architecture has been keenly respected by its Local Heritage Council. A hand-out map will be provided documenting the city’s evolution and will enable participants to tour the city at their own pace. 

Presenter: Robert N. Wilkins 

From horrific murders to petty crime, this presentation will illustrate strikingly, and occasionally shockingly, that Montreal's policemen sure had their hands full in the first decade of the twentieth century. Specifically, the talk will zero in on a few of the more notorious homicides that took place in this city during the Edwardian Period, including that of an irreproachable child in bucolic Westmount. Not to be missed! 

Presenter: Raymond Stern

The breathtakingly beautiful art created deep inside the caves in prehistoric times from 60,000 years ago provokes awe and wonder.  How did this major, arguably the most major transition into becoming what we call human, come about?  What do these symbols and animals tell us about the nature of our ancestral mind?   What are some of the interpretations as to how this phenomenon came into existence? The interweaving of art, using rock as the canvas intermingled with anthropological and neurological insights, attempts to explain how we became human, and in the process began to make art.   

Presenter: Marcelo M. Wanderley, BEng, Meng, PhD 

Computer music interfaces, aka musical interfaces or gestural controllers, have been a topic of interest since the beginning of academic gatherings and journals on computer music, including the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC) and the Computer Music Journal (CMJ) established in the mid-1970s. This interest builds upon previous developments in electronic music instruments, which have been proposed for over a century (Chadabe, 1997). The establishment of the International Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME) in 2002 has decoupled the number of academic publications in the field from a few hundred to thousands. In this talk, I will discuss the research on musical interfaces from the late 70s until today, pointing out various trends with more or less longevity that permeate the development of interfaces. Examples include works on interface design and evaluation, as well as tools to help the community navigate among the works published before and around the NIME conference. 

Presenter: Jeff Sidel

The people have made their choice about the future of the United States of America. What does this mean for the U.S. and, indeed, for the world, going forward? 

Presenter: Jeff Sidel

Repeat of the 10:00 a.m. lecture, YCLML 827 2024 Presidential Election: Post-Mortem.