October
The Etruscans
Angela Ziskowski, Provost; Associate Professor of History
October 3 & 10
Everyone knows something about the ancient Greeks and Romans, yet few know about the Etruscans. Based in the area north and west of Rome, which would become known as Tuscany, the Etruscans were active by the eighth century BCE and occupied a territory with twelve major cities. They interacted extensively with other civilizations but were a unique society with their own distinctive language, culture and religion. Because the Etruscan language remains undeciphered, much remains unknown about this fascinating civilization. But we can begin to understand them through literary texts by Greek and Roman authors like Herodotus and Livy who provide glimpses of the Etruscans and archaeological evidence left behind by the Etruscans themselves, especially their lavish burials and tomb complexes. This two-week forum led by Angela Ziskowski, provost and dean of the faculty and associate professor of history, will provide an overview of what is known about the ancient Etruscan civilization. We will examine the language the Etruscans spoke, the gods they worshiped, the political organization of their city-states, the beautiful art they produced, why they disappeared and their influence on Roman and later Italian society. In the first session, we will introduce the origins of the Etruscans, the geographic organization of their civilization, the structure of their government and religion, their interactions with contemporaneous Greek and Near Eastern civilizations and their still undeciphered language. The second session will explore Etruscan influence on what would be Roman civilization. It will explain which aspects of early Roman government and culture come from Etruscan practices, how and why the Etruscans disappeared and which elements of their civilization left a lasting mark.
Understanding and Learning the Birds of Cedar Rapids and Eastern Iowa
Jesse Ellis Associate Professor of Biology
October 17, 24, 31, November 7
Our counties, cities and backyards are filled with a stunning variety of birds. These creatures play important roles in our ecosystem and provide beauty, song and personality to our everyday lives and environments. This four-week forum presented by Associate Professor of Biology Jesse Ellis will introduce the bird populations that inhabit and migrate through eastern Iowa and provide knowledge and resources to begin learning bird identification. We will learn about the permanent winged residents of our area, seasonal visitors and those that choose to breed here, as well as the major habitat types that influence which species we see. The first session in the series will focus on the birds of our area who are year-round residents and winter visitors. We will offer an introduction to the biogeography of Iowa and Cedar Rapids, including its major habitat types of woods, water and grassland, and its most common year-round and winter resident birds and how those creatures survive the winter. In week two, we will turn to migration and migratory birds. This session will explain why and which birds migrate and how migrating birds use our local habitats. Week three will highlight summer breeding birds, including surveying which species breed in our area and the basics of territoriality, mate choice and nesting behaviors. The series will culminate in week four with communication and conservation. We will learn how and why birds communicate, how we can identify birds by their songs and calls, which areas of Cedar Rapids and eastern Iowa are important hotspots for birds and how we can conserve such areas. Throughout the series, participants will learn some ornithology of the species that live in and move through our area as well as the basics of identifying birds, the challenges of identifying certain birds and the joys of getting to know the feathered friends who share our environment.