PLATO Weekly Update

October 18, 2022

CURRICULUM

WINTER COURSES
If you are interested in offering a Winter Course, please contact Therese Stevens (thmstevens@gmail.com) or Kathie Burman (kburnam@burnamcoffee.com). They can help set it up. Winter courses are usually 6 to 8 weeks and most begin the week of January 9th. 

FALL COURSES
 Fall Courses continue through November.

SPECIAL EVENTS

THEATER TRIPS
Sunday's trip to Milwaukee Repertory's production of Titanic was enjoyed by all from whom we heard. Join us next time when we venture to: Stones in His Pockets –Thursday, November 17 at American Players Theater. Irish village meets Hollywood in this hilarious and heartbreaking "timeless hit". Register and learn more  – registration deadline is Tuesday, November 1.

WALKS OF DANE COUNTY
NEXT WEEK! Tuesday, October 25 at 9:30am – explore the natural beauty of the Hills of Donald Park. Register and learn more here.

Tuesday, November 8 at 9:30am – enjoy the prairies and waterways of Pheasant Branch Conservatory. Register and learn more.

BREAKFAST GATHERING 
NEXT WEEK! Fourth Friday, October 28 at 9:30am, join fellow PLATO members and guests for breakfast and conversation at Marquette Hotel Café in Madison's Willy Street neighborhood. RSVP and learn more here.

LECTURES

NOVEMBER 9! The History of Television Soap Operas will take place virtually on Wednesday, November 9 from 1pm – 2:15pm. Dr. Elana Levine, a professor of media, cinema, and digital studies in the Department of English at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, is a longtime soap opera fan who looks at the genre through two connected lenses: the role soaps have played in shaping cultural understandings of gender, as well as the rise and fall of network television’s influence on pop culture. Register and learn more here.

NOVEMBER 15! Clint Smith's Go Big Read Lecture on his new book: How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America on Tuesday, November 15 from 1pm – 3pm. PLATO is proud to host a virtual presentation of this important talk. We will spend the first hour+ watching his November 1 talk, followed by an online discussion of the many issues raised in his talk and the book. Register and learn more here.

Cozy up with an archived PLATO Lecture – choose from topics galore.

PLATO SATISFACTION SURVEY IS COMING

Next week Wednesday, October 26 you will be asked to participate in a brief satisfaction survey regarding your experiences with PLATO. Your feedback will enable the PLATO board and committee volunteers to better serve PLATO members. You will receive the survey in an email with the subject line “PLATO Members’ Annual Satisfaction Survey” sent from noreply@surveygizmo.com. When you receive the survey please take a few minutes to let PLATO know how the organization and its programs are performing. Thank you for your involvement and support of PLATO!

THE AGORA
A juried literary magazine published by PLATO.

Visit The Agora Features webpage for highlights from this past season, created and curated by fellow PLATO members for your enjoyment. 

SOCIAL JUSTICE EVENTS & READINGS

Select from a range of topics and formats 

for your October reading, viewing, or listening, 

curated by PLATO's Diversity Awareness Committee.

NEW on the Social Justice webpage – review of the book, The Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America by Candacy Taylor.

DID YOU KNOW? for October 11 – 24, 2022

Did You Know… African American scientist and inventor Valerie L. Thomas (b: 1943) loved math and science but because she was a girl, she was discouraged from studying them. Once she got to college Thomas chose to major in physics which led to a career at NASA where she developed and patented the illusion transmitter – a key component of NASA’s digital imaging technologies, as well as worked as leader of a computer team researching Halley's Comet, and earned multiple NASA awards including the prestigious Goddard Space Flight Center Award of Merit. Thomas’ illusion transmitter was used not just by NASA but also adapted for surgical applications and in television and video screens.

Visit the Social Justice webpage for more about Valerie Thomas 
& past DID YOU KNOW? features.

DID YOU KNOW? – spotlighting notable contributions made by non-mainstream individuals you might not have learned or read about. Suggestions for inclusions are welcome (send to Kathy at: ksmichaelis@gmail.com).