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Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Southern Maine |
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Director’s Message
“Learn as though you were going to live forever/ Live as though you were going to die tomorrow.”
–St. Edmund of Abingdon, 12th century cleric and scholar.
OLLI Member David Murray shared the quote above with me recently. The sentiment captures the thirst for curiosity that embodies OLLI, and I share it as a motivation for 2024.
In the near future I hope to share good news about improvements at OLLI that will increase accessibility, including a new registration system and upgrades in classroom technology in Wishcamper. We want as many passionate learners as possible to participate in OLLI, virtually or in person, and to make that experience as easy and satisfying as we can. By the summer we hope to also have these elements in place.
In the meantime, we are planning more social activities for 2024—day trips and domestic or international travel experiences. Our spring catalog is at the designer and is full of exciting new courses and workshops that we know you will enjoy. I am excited by the expansion of SIGs. Stay tuned for more information about these great experiences in the New Year.
And finally, there is still time to sign up for a class or workshop. Don’t hesitate to put yourself on a waitlist for an offering that is full; often the instructor will expand the class, or people who signed up originally will drop out because of conflicts. If you are on the waitlist, we will contact you to add you to the roster, but you will not be “in line” unless you agree to put yourself on the waitlist.
I am optimistic about OLLI in 2024 and wish you all a very Happy New Year!
—Donna Anderson, Director
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In this edition . . .
- Director's Message (above)
- Update from the OLLI Advisory Board Chair (below)
- Winter registration still open
- A new Pictionary SIG
- The tapestry of conversations SIG
- January Trivia questions
- Science SIG note
- Passages
- January Trivia answers
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OLLI Winter Session
Registration is still open. There are open seats in many classes!
Click the button here to view the catalog
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Pictionary is now a Special Interest Group (SIG)! This means that, rather than registering online for each Pictionary session you have to register only once a year for our SIG—Remote—Pictionary Game. One of our hosts (Stephen Dorneman or Star Pelsue) will email you each month with the dates.
We will meet at our usual time, Thursday 3:30 to 5:00 p.m., and you will receive the Zoom link on the day we meet.
As always, we invite you to join us for the first time at any time during the academic year (July 1 through June 30). Just register for our SIG online, then come once or as often as you like. The only other requirement is being an OLLI member; there is no cost or fee for Pictionary.
Stephen Dorneman
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Electrify Your Minds…
Embark on a Stimulating Journey…
Join our newest Special Interest Group! Here are the details:
WHAT: Eclectic Dialogue Junction: A Tapestry of Conversations
WHERE: On Zoom
WHEN: Monthly the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m.
WHY: Topics that resonate with curious minds
Launch date is January 11, 2024.
You will enjoy diverse discussions sparked by thought-provoking articles, intriguing podcasts, or captivating topics. Each month there will be a different topic, so you may attend those that interest you.
Register now to be ready to say “yes” to be a member of this SIG. Subsequently, you will receive an email notifying you of the theme for the meeting that month, at which time you can respond that you will or will not attend. If the subject is of interest to you, do not miss the opportunity to join in. Your hosts for this exciting new SIG are listed below with their contact information.
Elizabeth Housewright, ehousewright@gmail.com
Star Pelsue, srpelsue@gmail.com.
—Paula Johnson
Advisory Board SIG Coordinator
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By Faye Gmeiner
The Trivia SIG (Special Interest Group) is up and running! We met twice in December and are looking forward to 2024.
If you are seeking some good cheer and fun during the long evenings of winter, we invite you to join us. You can register on the OLLI website and come once—or as often as you like and your schedule allows. There is no cost/fee for Trivia Night.
Here are some of the questions that we enjoyed most during December. You’ll find the answers later in this newsletter.
1. What popular fruit is considered radioactive?
2. Which President banned alcohol from the White House at the request of the First Lady?
3. Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Tom Brady own league teams in what popular sport?
4. What is the standard of measure for the sugar content of wine?
5. Which garrison did Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) conspire to betray?
6. What war caused China to cede Hong Kong to England?
Answers to the trivia questions can be found below.
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News from the Science
Reading Club
Here’s the topic we discussed at the December Science Reading Club Special Interest Group. It’s a quote from the December Scientific American article “Misdiagnosing Dyslexia.”
“Speaking comes naturally to most children being a gift of human evolution, but reading and writing are inventions that must be consciously and painstakingly learned. No one is born with neural circuits for connecting the sounds of speech to squiggles on paper. Instead, when someone learns to read, their brain improvises, splicing and joining sections of preexisting circuits for processing vision and speech to form a new “reading circuit.”
—Elizabeth Housewright
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David Morton
Longtime OLLI member David Morton died in December. He was an active member of OLLI for over 17 years, as a board member, committee member, instructor, and student. David was very passionate about teaching and he offered over 30 courses based on his interest in the science, philosophy, and metaphysics of consciousness. He loved technology and tried to incorporate it into his classes.
Here are some excerpts from an OLLI Newsletter profile several years ago, written by Polly Bennell:
“Morton says that ‘teaching at OLLI is what I do.’ Asked to elaborate, he adds that studying in preparation for teaching his course keeps him thriving…. Admitting that his passionate interest in the foundational philosophies of what exactly constitutes ‘human being’ is not of interest to all people, Morton says that his classes are usually small and are heavily weighted toward those who have an interest in metaphysics. Asked to characterize his course, he said it was always evolving, based on his studies…. Morton describes his students as largely ‘seekers’ asking ‘What’s this world I’m living in? How did I get here? Who the hell am I?’ In other words, Morton’s courses navigate the mysterious boundaries between material and spiritual existence…. [W]hen asked what benefit he’s received from teaching at OLLI, Morton responded, ‘This has been my life now since I started teaching. Teaching offers me a focus; gives me an intellectual area to roam around in.’”
David was the epitome of what lifelong learning is about, and a prime example of the OLLI philosophy of “teaching your passion.”
David’s daughter Kim shared this about her father:
“David Nelson Morton, 86, passed away peacefully at Maine Med early yesterday, Friday morning. While he was in overall decline this year, the onset of pneumonia this week became too much for him. Beloved father and husband, he had family with him until the end.”
An obituary has not been posted as of this writing.
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Dr. Harold Osher
The founder of The Osher Map Library and Smith Center of Cartographic Education, Dr. Harold Osher, died peacefully on December 23. The older sibling of OLLI benefactor Bernard Osher, Dr. Osher was a noted cardiologist, map collector, and philanthropist based in Portland, Maine. He and his wife Peggy greatly enhanced cultural life in Portland, including gifts to the University of Southern Maine and The Portland Museum of Art.
To learn more about this exceptional benefactor and noted cardiologist, please click on this button:
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1. What popular fruit is considered radioactive?
Answer: Bananas. Bananas have a high level of potassium, and a very small portion of all potassium is radioactive. Each banana can emit 0.1 millirem of radiation. If you ate 100 bananas a day, you would be exposed to the same amount of radiation as you get from natural causes every day—so, no worries!
2. Which President banned alcohol from the White House at the request of the First Lady?
Answer: Rutherford Hayes (1877–1881). Lucy Hayes was a teetotaler. She was born and raised in Ohio and signed a pledge to abstain from liquor at a young age. The Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was very active at the time—and very pleased when she carried out her husband’s decision to not serve alcohol in the White House. Did you know that Maine was the first state to enact a prohibition law?
3. Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Tom Brady own league teams in what popular sport?
Answer: Pickleball. The teams are part of the first team-based, professional level, pickleball league.
4. What is the standard of measure for the sugar content of wine?
Answer: The Brix. The term is named after Adolf Brix and is a measure of dissolved solids in a liquid. One degree Brix is one gram of sugar in 100 milliliters of water. Did you know that the highest levels of sugar in table wines are in white wines, with Moscato measuring in at 60 degrees Brix or more? For comparison, Coke comes in at about 100. Most red wines are drier than most whites and have less sugar, thus lower degrees of Brix.
5. Which garrison did Benedict Arnold (1741–1801) conspire to betray?
Answer: The US Army Garrison at West Point. In 1780 General Benedict Arnold met with a British Major to discuss handing over the garrison at West Point to the British in return for 20,000 British pounds and a high position in the British army. When the conspiracy was uncovered, Benedict fled to the enemy side and a British vessel. He turned his coat and led British troops in Virginia and Connecticut. Later, he moved to England. Did you know that West Point is the longest continuously occupied US Army Garrison in the country, and that the military academy there was established in 1802?
6. What war caused China to cede Hong Kong to England?
Answer: The First Opium War (1839-1842). The British occupied Hong Kong in 1841 and used it as a staging point. The British defeated China, which was forced to cede Hong Kong to end the war via the Treaty of Nanking (August 1842).
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Are you considering submitting an article to the OLLI Newsletter? Get in contact with us! | |
Email ollinews@maine.edu
to submit your piece.
Phone:207-780-4406
Tim Baehr, Editor
Don King, Editor Emeritus
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Deadline for the next issue is January 15. |
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Maine Senior College Network | | |
OLLI National Resource Center | | |
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Non-discrimination Notice
The University of Maine, including USM, is an EEO/AA employer and does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, transgender status, gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information, or veteran’s status in employment, education, and all other programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Director of Equal Opportunity, 101 North Stevens Hall, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469-5754, 207.581.1226, TTY 711 (Maine Relay System).
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