YCLML 001 - MCLL Lectures

Presenter: Tim Ewbank

Social media is now ubiquitous. While it offers many benefits, it also has had some unexpected negative consequences. This talk will reflect on how this came about, how social media has been used to influence democratic processes around the world and what should and can be done to better control its negative aspects.

Presenter: Eduardo Cabrera

More than a hundred years after it was revealed to the world, Einstein’s relativity theory is still being confirmed by the latest astronomical discoveries. Let us explore how this theory has revolutionized our understanding and our perception of our world through its mind-bending predictions and its everyday applications.

Presenter: Maxine Iannuccilli

Despite great social and economic strides, we are still far from gender equality. Stereotypes about gender remain embedded in our society and start to affect behavior at a very young age. This lecture will take a closer look at how parents transmit beliefs about gender to their children.  Guest lecturer, MA, Department of Psychology,   Concordia University.

Presenter: Elizabeth Robinson

This lecture will summarize the book The Citizen’s Guide to Climate Success – Overcoming Myths that Hinder Progress, published in 2020 by Prof. Mark Jaccard, an energy economist at Simon Fraser University. (The book is available online in pdf form for free).  We will also discuss implications for the United Nations Climate Change conference (COP26) in Glasgow in November, 2021.

Presenter: Arturo Esquivel

In this lecture, I will discuss the process of deportation and the institutional barriers that Mexican and Central American deportees face when they (re)settle in Mexico. I will also look at the different ways in which deportees cope with their new realities and the impossibility of returning to the United States. Guest lecturer, PhD student, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Concordia University.

Presenter: Kym Taylor Reid

As Canada’s immigrant population continues to grow, how do native residents of Montreal and Calgary feel about non-native speakers in their communities? We will take a look at how attitudes compare between the two different linguistic contexts, as well as the role that background and exposure play in forming these attitudes. Guest lecturer, PhD student, Department of Education, Applied Linguistics, Concordia University.

Presenter: George Lapa

Even after more than 2,000 years, Cleopatra, the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, remains a figure of mystery and fascination and has been the subject of many books and movies. She lived during an era of major historical upheaval.  We will explore her life and her influence.

Presenter: Nadia Alexan

In her book, The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People's Economy, economist Stephanie Kelton topples the idea that the federal government should budget like a household, that deficits will harm the next generation, crowd out private investment, undermine long-term growth, and that spending will propel us toward a grave fiscal crisis.

Presenter: Wolfgang Schneider

Thanks to the Bible, everybody knows about Babylon and Nineveh.  But what about Uruk, home of Gilgamesh and the goddess Inanna, or Ishtar?  That’s where it all started: urbanism, bureaucracy, writing, literature, monumental architecture, mass production, even toilets!  We will explore the beginnings of Uruk as human civilization changed from village life to life in the big city.

Presenter: Angella Lambrou

George Bizos spent his life fighting injustice in apartheid and post-apartheid South Africa. He defended many of the African National Congress activists, including Nelson Mandela, with whom he had a lifelong friendship. In this lecture, I will share with you what I have learned about this remarkable man.

Presenter: John Felvinci

In this lecture, we will discuss the science behind the 2021 Nobel prizes. All three scientific Nobel prizes - Physics, Chemistry and Physiology/Medicine - will be covered. The actual subjects will be decided after the presentation of the Nobel Prizes this fall.

Presenter: Andrew Macdougall

Andrew Macdougall will recreate Charles Dickens reading two of his Christmas stories The Chimes and The Poor Traveller.