Faculty Webinars
We are very excited to present a series of Faculty Webinars at this year’s Homecoming Week! Find out all the details for each event and register below!
Code Nation
Personal Computing and the Learn to Program Movement in America with Prof. Michael J. Halvorson, Benson Family Chair in Business and Economic History
Tuesday, Oct 6 at 4:30 p.m. PT
How have people learned to write computer programs in the past, and how have the experiences of programmers changed over time? Are there cognitive, social, or financial benefits that come from learning to program? If so, how should communities teach these skills to their citizens?
History professor Michael Halvorson invites the PLU community to a webinar related to his newest book, Code Nation. The project explores the fascinating history of learning to program in America, including early research on software development in government labs, popular movements that emphasized programming, and the early history of technology companies such as Apple Computer and Microsoft Corporation.
Code Nation can be purchased at the Lute Locker! To learn more about the Code Nation project, visit www.thiscodenation.com.
For the Love of Chocolate
Aphrodisiac and Food of the Gods
Wednesday, Oct 7 at 3 p.m. PT
Did you know that chocolate is actually fermented? That cocoa powder contains some of the same ingredients as nail polish remover? Join Erica Fickeisen, Lead Baker, and Dr. Justin Lytle, Professor and Chair of Chemistry for a special webinar about the science of making (and enjoying) chocolate.
Please bring chocolate to the presentation to participate in a taste-testing! Perhaps a kind you have never had before but plain chocolate – no nuts, flavors or candies inside –
to concentrate on the chocolate flavor.
In 2007, Prof. Lytle started the “Chemistry of Food” series with Erica Fickeisen. Lytle, Fickeisen, and Dining and Culinary Services have joined together to create fun, informative sessions that look at the chemistry of different foods, like cheese, chocolate, spices and bread.
Election 2020
Wednesday, Oct. 7 at 4:30 p.m. PT
Join Dr. Michael Artime as he discusses the upcoming Presidential Election! In this talk, we will explore the current state of the presidential race, the critical issues at the center of the contest,
and what to watch out for in the final days of the campaign.
Dr. Artime has a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Missouri-St. Louis and is interested in the intersections between new media and political behavior, voting and elections, and the institutions of American government.
The Spirituality of Wine
Wednesday, Oct 7 at 7:30 p.m. PT
In this webinar, Dr. Samuel Torvend (who grew up in the wine country of California), will invite participants to consider what wine – its making and its uses – reveal about a spirituality informed by Jewish and Christian traditions. This will be an informative and engaging discussion for Lutes whose alma mater rests in one of the major wine-producing states in the country. For those who are registered, Dr. Torvend will send an illustrated handout prior to the webinar – you know, just to wet your whistle! Bring your glass of wine and enjoy the presentation!
Dr. Torvend is a historian of early and medieval Christianity in the Department of Religion. He has offered previous gatherings on wines and breads of the Mediterranean, the wines and breads of Jesus and the first Christians, and wine in the movies.