Late Spring 2021 - Lifelong Learning Program

‘Make sense’ of the pandemic, or be distracted from it, with topics you’ll love: rock music history, Atlantic Canadian literature, advances in medical research, sociological analysis of the pandemic’s impact, and a study of Ottawa’s beloved ‘third places’.

Our 6-week and 3-week lectures series provide participants with entertaining learning opportunities, without required readings, assignments, or tests. Participants can easily interact with the experts and with other lifelong learners, and many participants attend with a friend or family member. See for yourself why participants love our fully supported online events, and sign up for our mailing list to receive notifications of our program offerings, as well as selected free events at Carleton University.

Below are details for our Late Spring 2021 session. We hope to see you soon!
(image sources: Matthew Fournier, Milana, jarmoluk)

Lecture Series:
Rock in the Late 1960s and Beyond
A Race to Arms: The Pace of Advancement in Medical Research
Making Sense of the Pandemic
Ottawology II: A Study of Ottawa’s Third Places
Contemporary Literature of Atlantic Canada
A Voyage Through Classical Music
NEW 3-week series! The Rise of Asia: China and the Indo-Pacific

Lecture Series 1
Rock in the Late 1960s and Beyond
Lecturer: Keith McCuaig

By the mid-to-late 1960s, rock music had solidified its place as a respected art form. This series focuses on the musical and cultural significance of rock music from 1967-1980, including subgenres such as psychedelic rock, blues rock, progressive rock, and early punk. Rock styles from the 1980s to the 21st century will also be examined, as well as the major figures, and social and historical context of this genre. Discover the characteristics, sounds, and cultural influences of this exciting era of rock music, through lectures, audio and video examples, and live demonstrations.
Note: Keith also offered “The Story of Rock and Roll: 1951-1966” in Early Spring, but there are no prerequisites for this series.

Days: Mondays, May 17, 31, June 7, 14, 21, 28 (no lecture May 24, Victoria Day)
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $150 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline
Registration Closed

Lecturer biography: With an MA in Music and Culture, and over 25 years’ experience as a musician, Keith McCuaig is dedicated to all things music and art. He loves exploring the histories of popular music, especially the interconnectedness of genres, and the socio-cultural significance of music. Keith has extensive experience in researching, writing, and teaching a variety of music-related topics; he’s taught musicology courses through Carleton University and the University of Ottawa, and presented at international musicology conferences. From performing, writing, recording, and producing, to lecturing, giving music lessons, and working with community music programs (such as Ottawa Bluesfest’s Blues in the Schools and Be in the Band), Keith’s life and passion is music. Read what participants have said about Keith McCuaig’s lecture series.

Lecture Series 2
A Race to Arms: The Pace of Advancement in Medical Research
Lecturer: Dr. Daniel Burnside

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how incredibly quickly and effectively modern medicine can innovate when called upon. However, there are other areas of medical research that seem to have reached stalemates, or roadblocks, unable to overcome certain hurdles or develop revolutionary new technologies. Dr. Daniel Burnside returns to the program to offer this series focusing on the varying pace of advancement in medical research. It will address how different fields have experienced dramatically different patterns of progression. Local and Canadian research will be highlighted. No previous scientific knowledge is needed to enjoy this series.  (Note: while a small amount of this series’ base content was covered in an earlier lecture series, “Biological Warfare: Modern Medicine vs Modern Disease”, this is a new lecture series, with little overlap.)

Days: Tuesdays, May 18, 25, June 1, 8, 15, 22
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high-speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $150.00 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline
Registration Closed

Lecturer biography: Daniel Burnside is trained as a molecular microbiologist and has been involved in research and innovation in a variety of different fields over his career. Daniel also worked for a Biotechnology company that evolved out of the research completed during his PhD. He currently works as a patent professional at an intellectual property firm, focusing on securing patent protection primarily in the fields of health, chemical inventions, biotechnology, and bioengineering.

Daniel’s goal is to make science accessible and understandable to anyone. He has taught a variety of undergraduate courses at Carleton University including Microbiology of Health and Human Physiology. His seminars are not only informative, but also entertaining, engaging, and directly applicable to everyday life. He uses simplified explanations, metaphors, and modern examples to impart knowledge that can be translated directly from the classroom to the community. No previous scientific knowledge is needed to enjoy this series.  Read what participants say about Dr. Burnside’s lecture series.

Lecture Series 3
Making Sense of the Pandemic
Lecturer: Team-taught by faculty from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University

What are the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic from sociological and anthropological perspectives, and what are the implications for the future? Join this diverse team of faculty from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University, as they share how this global pandemic has impacted social institutions and has highlighted already existing inequalities. The lecturers each offer a lecture coming from their own expertise and will include the following topics: anti-Asian racism; the pandemic in a global context (with African examples); criminalization and punishment during the pandemic; stories of care work in residential and institutional settings; the pandemic’s long-term effects on work; and how people have collectively clung to and/or adapted seasonal traditions throughout this year of pandemic restrictions.

Days: Tuesdays, May 18, 25, June 1, 8, 15, 22
Time: 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Lecture Series Outline
Fee: $150 (HST included)
Registration Closed

Lecturer biographies: Please find the lecturer biographies listed below.

Lecture Series 4
Ottawology II: A Study of Ottawa’s Third Places
Lecturer: Dr. Tonya Davidson

Dr. Tonya Davidson follows up her popular Ottawology series with a second set of lectures drawing on sociology, cultural geography, and social history. This series offers a critical, interdisciplinary perspective on Ottawa, with a particular spotlight on Ottawa’s third places. Sociologist Ray Oldenburg defines third places as places that are neither home, nor work; third places include cafes, bars, malls, libraries, and community centres. In these places, people can interact with strangers, develop a sense of community, and be exposed to new and surprising things. Third places are crucial to processes of socialization and social solidarity; and are some of the places that have been keenly missed during the pandemic.  In this series, we will focus on many of the cherished third places in Ottawa: libraries, arenas, malls, markets, festivals, and hotels. Finally, lectures on trees and transit offer analysis of Ottawa’s past and present uses and engagement with the natural environment.
NOTE: This series is a good companion to, but is distinct from, the initial Ottawology lecture series. It has no pre-requisites. It takes place fully online (Spring 2021).

Days: Wednesdays, May 19, 26, June 2, 9, 16, 23
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $150 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline
Registration Closed

Lecturer biography: Tonya Davidson is an Instructor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University. Her research interests have focused on questions of memory, national belonging, the built environment, and Ottawa. She most recently published Seasonal Sociology (co-edited with Ondine Park), which won an American Association of Publishers award for “best textbook in the social sciences” in 2021. Read what participants say about Dr. Davidson’s lecture series.

Lecture Series 5
Contemporary Literature of Atlantic Canada
Lecturer: Peter Thompson

Tourist advertisements, brochures, and cultural representations often depict Atlantic Canada as an idyllic, laid-back, and welcoming tourist destination. Yet the contemporary literature of the region pushes back on this, suggesting that, like every other place in the world, Atlantic Canada is impacted by globalization, tensions around race, class, and gender, and profound cultural shifts. Join Dr. Peter Thompson in this lecture series to look at how contemporary Atlantic Canadian literature tries to come to terms with these questions.

Days: Thursdays, May 20, 27, June 3, 10, 17, 24
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $150 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline
Registration Closed

Peter Thompson grew up in Stellarton, Nova Scotia. His research focuses primarily on the contemporary literature and popular culture of Atlantic Canada and looks specifically at representations of deindustrialization in the region. Peter published a book, Nights Below Foord Street: Literature and Popular Culture in Postindustrial Nova Scotia with McGill-Queen’s University Press in 2020. His work has appeared in Studies in Canadian Literature, English Studies in Canada, Acadiensis, and Journal of New Brunswick Studies. He has won numerous teaching awards at Carleton University, including a Provost’s Fellowship in Teaching for sustained excellence in teaching in 2015. Read more details here.

Lecture Series 6
A Voyage Through Classical Music
Lecturer: Julian Armour

Whether you are a long-time enthusiast or a newcomer to classical music, you’ll find something to enjoy in this series highlighting the unique characteristics of this remarkable genre. Accomplished cellist Julian Armour will help you explore and understand the periods of classical music, from before the Middle Ages to Romanticism and beyond. The series will include attention to folk songs and nationalism, the concerto, and 20th century music. Each week will contain musical examples, to demystify and help you enjoy the great forms of music including the sonata, the symphony, and the overture. (Note: this series is repeated from Early Spring 2021.)

Days: Thursdays, May 20, 27, June 3, 10, 17, 24
Time: 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $150 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline
Registration closed

Julian Armour has distinguished himself over the past 25 years as a performing musician, arts administrator, and artistic director. He is currently Artistic and Executive Director of one of Canada’s major cultural festivals, Music and Beyond. As well, he is Artistic Director of the Chamber Players of Canada, Principal Cellist of the chamber orchestra Thirteen Strings, and teaches regularly at the University of Ottawa and Carleton University, offering courses in both music performance and arts administration. One of Canada’s most active cellists, he has performed throughout Canada and Europe and has been heard regularly on CBC Radio and Radio-Canada. As a chamber musician, he has appeared in television broadcasts on CBC, CTV, PBS, EWTN, and Vision TV. He has played in most of Canada’s concert halls and many in the United States and Europe. He has recorded over 30 CDs for many labels including Marquis, Crystal, ATMA, CMS Classics, CentreDiscs, SRI, CanSona, Studea Musica, NAXOS and CBC. One of the country’s foremost experts on Canadian music, Julian Armour has programmed and performed works by over 400 different Canadian composers and premiered over 200 different works, most of which were written especially for him. Read more details here.

Lecture Series 7
The Rise of Asia: China and the Indo-Pacific
Lecturer: Dr. Elliot Tepper

This mini lecture series (three 2-hour lectures) provides an exploration of the great story of our age: the return of Asia as a centre of global politics. Join Dr. Elliot Tepper for a sweeping analysis of this region’s states, dynamics and stories that will shape our headlines and our future.

Days: Wednesdays, June 9, 16, 23
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time
Location: Zoom (This lecture series is offered via Zoom, which can be used on computers and mobile devices. We recommend you use a computer/laptop with high speed internet. A camera and microphone will enable you to participate more fully, but they are not required. See our Support page for details.)
Fee: $75.00 (HST included)
Lecture Series Outline: n/a
Registration closed

Dr. Tepper is a veteran professor of comparative politics and international relations at Carleton University. He regularly provides media commentary at home and abroad on a wide range of topics, providing context and deep background to the news stories of the day. Dr. Tepper’s career in academia and public policy provides the basis for thoughtful analysis on current events, and his lifetime of teaching on-campus and through the public media provides the basis for an engaging, interactive classroom experience. An internationally recognized scholar, Dr. Tepper provides analysis and policy advice to national and international organizations. Read what participants have said about Dr. Tepper and the Behind the Headline series.