Professors Kelly Askew, Derek R. Peterson, and Thad A. Polk, Collegiate Professorship Inaugural Lecture
This event will take place both in person and virtually.
Professor Kelly Askew, the Niara Sudarkasa Collegiate Professor of Anthropology and Afroamerican & African Studies
Lecture Title: Art in Adversity: Swahili Poetry, Philosophy & Political Action
Lecture Abstract: Poetry pervades the histories and politics of the East African countries of Tanzania and Kenya. Alternatively sung, read in newspapers, painted on buses, rapped at festivals, and more, poetry is a longstanding mode of political action. Through a potent combination of verbal artistry, social embeddedness and philosophical discourse, Swahili poets articulate that which is and that which should be. Engaging the work and words of ordinary and renowned poet-philosophers from both countries, we’ll explore the mirror-effects, X-ray-effects and hammer-effects of their art.
Professor Derek R. Peterson, the Ali Mazrui Collegiate Professor of History and African Studies
Lecture Title: A Popular History of Idi Amin’s Uganda
Lecture Abstract: Idi Amin, who ruled Uganda between 1971 and 1979, is one of the 20th century’s most menacing monsters. This lecture will bring the political logic of his government into view. The singular accomplishment of the Amin regime was this: to transform the boring, technical work of administration into a thrilling battle for liberation. Amin’s regime invited ordinary Ugandans to see themselves as front-line soldiers in a war against cultural and racial outsiders. In the study of Idi Amin’s regime we gain insights into the infrastructure of popular demagoguery in our own time and place.
Professor Thad A. Polk, the Samuel D. Epstein Collegiate Professor of Psychology
Lecture Title: The Aging Brain: Age-related Changes in Neurochemistry, Neural Activity, and Behavior
Lecture Abstract: As we age, we sometimes become a little more forgetful and take a little longer to process information. But why? My lab has been investigating that question by recruiting a large sample of older and younger adults, testing their perceptual, motor, and cognitive abilities, and using MRI to scan their brains. In this talk, I’ll present studies that have identified specific changes in both neurochemistry and in neural activity that accompany aging, and that might contribute to age-related behavioral deficits.
If you are unable to join us in person, please click the link below to join the webinar:
Join from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android:
https://umich.zoom.us/j/95617163605
Phone one-tap:
+16469313860,,95617163605# US
+13017158592,,95617163605# US (Washington DC)
Join via audio:
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+1 647 374 4685 Canada
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Webinar ID: 956 1716 3605
International numbers available: https://umich.zoom.us/u/abkGdCwN99
Professor Kelly Askew, the Niara Sudarkasa Collegiate Professor of Anthropology and Afroamerican & African Studies
Lecture Title: Art in Adversity: Swahili Poetry, Philosophy & Political Action
Lecture Abstract: Poetry pervades the histories and politics of the East African countries of Tanzania and Kenya. Alternatively sung, read in newspapers, painted on buses, rapped at festivals, and more, poetry is a longstanding mode of political action. Through a potent combination of verbal artistry, social embeddedness and philosophical discourse, Swahili poets articulate that which is and that which should be. Engaging the work and words of ordinary and renowned poet-philosophers from both countries, we’ll explore the mirror-effects, X-ray-effects and hammer-effects of their art.
Professor Derek R. Peterson, the Ali Mazrui Collegiate Professor of History and African Studies
Lecture Title: A Popular History of Idi Amin’s Uganda
Lecture Abstract: Idi Amin, who ruled Uganda between 1971 and 1979, is one of the 20th century’s most menacing monsters. This lecture will bring the political logic of his government into view. The singular accomplishment of the Amin regime was this: to transform the boring, technical work of administration into a thrilling battle for liberation. Amin’s regime invited ordinary Ugandans to see themselves as front-line soldiers in a war against cultural and racial outsiders. In the study of Idi Amin’s regime we gain insights into the infrastructure of popular demagoguery in our own time and place.
Professor Thad A. Polk, the Samuel D. Epstein Collegiate Professor of Psychology
Lecture Title: The Aging Brain: Age-related Changes in Neurochemistry, Neural Activity, and Behavior
Lecture Abstract: As we age, we sometimes become a little more forgetful and take a little longer to process information. But why? My lab has been investigating that question by recruiting a large sample of older and younger adults, testing their perceptual, motor, and cognitive abilities, and using MRI to scan their brains. In this talk, I’ll present studies that have identified specific changes in both neurochemistry and in neural activity that accompany aging, and that might contribute to age-related behavioral deficits.
If you are unable to join us in person, please click the link below to join the webinar:
Join from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android:
https://umich.zoom.us/j/95617163605
Phone one-tap:
+16469313860,,95617163605# US
+13017158592,,95617163605# US (Washington DC)
Join via audio:
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 587 328 1099 Canada
+1 647 374 4685 Canada
+1 647 558 0588 Canada
+1 778 907 2071 Canada
+1 780 666 0144 Canada
+1 204 272 7920 Canada
+1 438 809 7799 Canada
Webinar ID: 956 1716 3605
International numbers available: https://umich.zoom.us/u/abkGdCwN99
| Building: | Weiser Hall |
|---|---|
| Event Type: | Lecture / Discussion |
| Tags: | african and african american studies, african and afroamerican studies, Anthropology, History, Psychology |
| Source: | Happening @ Michigan from The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, Department of Afroamerican and African Studies, African Studies Center, Department of Anthropology, Department of History, Department of Psychology |
