November Classes Cover Genealogy, Gluten, Bread, Beer
Patricia Ingalls
LifeLong Learning’s November classes teach methods for tracing family history, culinary skills to satisfy artisan appetites, as well as techniques using cellphone technology to create and share images.
Each class costs $20 and requires registration online at www.lifelonglearningatpc.org. Here’s a rundown:
Eastern European Genealogy, Nov. 4, 1 to 3 p.m.: Learn about ethnic and religious forces in Eastern Europe that affect genealogical searches. Uncover new information recently added to database research for that part of the world.
Denise Beeson, an adjunct instructor, teaches genealogy at Santa Rosa Junior College. She is a member of the Sonoma County Genealogical Society and Arizona Genealogical Board Speakers Bureau.
Brewing Beer at Home, Nov. 9, 1 to 3 p.m.: Learn from PebbleCreek’s home brewer how to craft your own beer. He will explain beer’s primary ingredients—malt, hops, yeast and water—and how they impact a brew’s flavor. You’ll see a home brewery and learn about the equipment needed and the steps in the brewing process.
Mike Andersen, who enjoys brewing beer at home as a hobby, will host 15 people, safely masked and socially distanced, on his large patio.
Gluten–Free Lifestyle, Nov. 10, 1 to 3 p.m.: Many people have been diagnosed with allergies and food sensitivities, ranging from an inconvenience to a deadly serious health issue. The instructor will provide tips and tricks for ordering in a restaurant, easy substitutions for cooking, and some basic recipes.
PebbleCreek resident Lois Chohon is a retired human-resource professional and a home chef/foodie. She will discuss her journey to becoming gluten-free, offer suggestions on how to manage in social situations, and share her personal experiences with gluten-free cooking.
Cell Phone Photography, Nov. 16, 1 to 3 p.m.: Learn what all those symbols mean on your cell phone’s camera and how to use them. The camera options allow you to edit, load, save, and send photos. You will learn how to create better photos to share with friends and family.
Adriana Greisman is president of the PebbleCreek Camera Club. She is a nature photographer who has won awards in competitions sponsored by the Phoenix Camera Club, Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards, and the North American Nature Photography Association Showcase, among others.
Artisan Bread Making, Nov. 16, 1 to 2:30 p.m.: Using Zoom technology on your home device, watch a demonstration direct from the instructor’s home. You also will receive the recipe and how-to tips for baking healthy artisan bread. (This is an update from LLL’s 2021-2022 schedule, which reports this as an in-person demonstration.)
Gene Fioretti, a retired cardiologist and PebbleCreek resident, learned to bake bread in 1979 from one of his patients, a retired German baker. Fioretti has taught this short class for eight years, earning excellent feedback from students.
Introduction to Database Research, Nov. 18 and Dec. 2, 1 to 2 p.m.: Denise Beeson designed this class to teach you about the genealogical databases that you will need to trace your family’s history. This two-part class (one hour each day) will be beneficial, whether you are a beginner or advanced.
November Lectures Explain Two Types of History
Patricia Ingalls
The two Monday Morning Lectures (MML) in November feature two types of history. One explores the Grand Canyon’s geologic history, by studying rocks in its canyon walls. The other explains why and how the U.S. Constitution continually attracts scrutiny and proposed revisions.
Tickets to MMLs cost $5 each and will be available in the lobby of the Renaissance Theater beginning at 9 a.m. on the day of the lecture, which begins at 10 a.m. No advance registration is needed. Go to www.lifelonglearningatpc.org for details.
Grand Canyon’s Geologic History, Nov. 1
The Grand Canyon, one of the world’s seven natural wonders, is the most visited site in the United States. Steven Semken, Ph.D., will reveal what the canyon walls’ ancient layers of rocks tell us about almost two billion years of Earth history.
A professor of geology and education at the ASU School of Earth and Space Exploration, Semken was one of a group of geologists and park rangers who built the Trail of Time, an almost three-mile, paved walk along the canyon’s rim. The trail provides a visceral appreciation of the magnitude of geologic time, with every meter along it representing one million years.
In his presentation, Semken will borrow elements from the Trail of Time and discuss recent research findings to offer a virtual journey through the geologic history of the Grand Canyon.
Semken is an ethnogeologist and geoscience education researcher whose work integrates geology, geography, ethnography, education, and technology. He investigates the influences of place and culture on teaching and doing research on the Earth sciences. He earned his doctorate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a master’s from the University of California, Los Angeles. Before joining ASU in 2003, he taught for 15 years at the Tribal College of the Diné (Navajo) Nation.
Does the U.S. Constitution Need Fixing?, Nov. 8
The U.S. Constitution set as its primary purpose “to form a more perfect Union.” Ever since its drafting, often raucous calls have demanded changing its provisions or processes to “perfect” that Union. Since its adoption in 1789, it has been amended 27 times—a tiny fraction of the more than 11,000 proposed amendments.
Proposed changes range from the bizarre—Congressman Lucas Miller proposed renaming the United States of America to the United States of Earth in 1893—to those that had widespread support, such as the Equal Rights Amendment, which failed to win the required number of states’ approval.
Thomas J. Davis, a historian, lawyer, and professor emeritus at Arizona State University, will explore how and why efforts to perfect the Constitution have changed over time. His discussion will help explain, from a historical perspective, today’s calls to change the nation’s fundamental law.
Davis taught constitutional and legal history at ASU. He earned his doctorate in U.S. history from Columbia University and his law degree from New York’s University at Buffalo School of Law.
LLL Contact Information
•Website: www.lifelonglearningatpc.org
•Email: [email protected]
•LLL Center hours: Closed until further notice
MML Ticket Expirations Extended
Patricia Ingalls
Were you among the lucky ones who received free tickets to Monday Morning Lectures (MML) before COVID hit? You don’t need to worry about their original March 2020 expiration dates. They’ll still get you in the door at any MML through March 2022.
Internment Pain Extends Beyond WWII
Patricia Ingalls
The one Premier Lecture offered this month features a survivor of a World War II internment camp, describing his family’s experiences during and after imprisonment.
During World War II, the U.S. government forced 9-year-old Sam Mihara and his family to move from their home in San Francisco to a Wyoming prison camp for people of Japanese ancestry. Mihara will speak about his wartime experience and the devastating effect it had on his family.
Mihara earned his undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and received graduate degrees in engineering from UCLA. He joined Boeing Company, serving as a rocket scientist and space program executive.
After retirement, Mihara became a national speaker on mass imprisonment. Mihara’s book, Blindsided—The Life and Times of Sam Mihara, will be available for purchase at the lecture.
Tickets to all Premier Lectures cost $15 per person and can be purchased online at www.lifelonglearningatpc.org. Tickets also may be purchased in the theater lobby, using cash only, beginning an hour before the lecture, subject to availability.
Local Solution Reduces Ocean Overfishing
Bill Nee
The world’s ocean ecosystems are under stress. Overfishing in tropical waters is impacting the lives of millions of coastal villagers who rely on local fishing harvests as their primary source of food and livelihood.
Marine biologist Alasdair Harris began working with local fishermen in Madagascar more than 10 years ago to design and expand approaches to improve their food supply, while protecting their surrounding ocean.
The world needs a radically new approach to ocean conservation, Harris says. In his visionary talk, he lays out a surprising solution to the problem of overfishing that could both revive marine life and rebuild local fisheries—all by taking less from the ocean.
“When we design it right, marine conservation reaps dividends that go far beyond protecting nature,” he says.
Harris’ project has resulted in marine protection and poverty alleviation. His process of local involvement and success has been reproduced over thousands of miles of coastal waters and could be applied worldwide.
To view this eleven minute talk, go to TED.com, and click “watch” in the header, then “TED Talks.” In “Search talks” input: “How a handful of fishing villages sparked a marine-conservation revolution.” Scroll a little lower, and click on the talk you selected.
Registration Open for Great Decisions
Patricia Ingalls
For a 15th season, LifeLong Learning again is offering PebbleCreek residents access to America’s largest discussion program on world affairs: Great Decisions (GD), an eight-week curriculum developed by the Foreign Policy Association (FPA), headquartered in New York City.
Registration is underway at www.lifelonglearningatpc.org for a choice of five eight-week class times beginning the week of Jan. 24, including one available using Zoom. A $20 class fee, plus $40 for a required GD briefing book, is due at the time of registration. An e-book is available, but it does not include pictures and maps.
The FPA’s mission has remained constant for more than a century: To serve as a catalyst for developing awareness, understanding, and informed opinions on U.S. foreign policy and global issues.
The program involves reading GD’s briefing book (one chapter each week), watching GD’s DVD about the topic, and discussing the issue in a small group with other PebbleCreek residents. The GD program provides background information and policy options, while avoiding partisan politics. The timely topics generate lively discussion.
The topics this session are changing demographics, outer space, climate change, Russia, Myanmar and ASEAN, the Quad Alliance, industrial policy, drug policy in Latin America, and Biden’s agenda.
For complete descriptions of the topics and to register, go to www.lifelonglearningatpc.org.