Lecture

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “America’s Erotic Past,” a journey back through surprisingly queer and kinky centuries, with Rebecca Davis, professor of history and of women and gender studies at the University of Delaware and author of the acclaimed book Fierce Desires: A New History of Sex and Sexuality. When Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring the existence of two biological sexes, he not only was putting his stamp on scientific errors, he also was contravening four centuries of American history. We might assume that we live with a “puritan” legacy of repression. But America’s sexual history is full

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “Kafka and Prague,” on how a great author and his works were shaped by the history, culture, and landscape of a city, with Cynthia Paces, professor of history at The College of New Jersey, teacher of courses on European history and Holocaust studies, and author of two books on Prague. Where we’re from can profoundly shape how we think, what we create, and what we end up doing with our lives. Gain a much deeper understanding of Franz Kafka, the acclaimed and influential author whose prophetic work anticipated European totalitarianism and still shapes dystopian visions,

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “Fake News and War of the Worlds,” a look at an infamous Orson Welles broadcast as an early lesson on mass media’s dangers, with Daniel H. Foster, associate professor and chair of liberal arts at Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute. On the evening of October 30th, 1938, somewhere between 6 and 12 million Americans tuned in the radio version of New York City’s experimental Mercury Theater. It was a decision that some, no doubt, came to regret. What they heard was an all-male chorus of talking heads—scientists, journalists, politicians, and military experts—repeatedly telling them that

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “The Happiness Workshop,” a look at what recent research and centuries of wisdom tell us about bringing more joy and contentment to our lives, with Eric Zillmer, professor of psychology and the director of the Happiness Lab at Drexel University. Are you happy? If not, how do you get there? Gain insights into happiness with Eric Zillmer, an award-winning teacher who leads a creative think tank that investigates the ingredients for happiness among individual people and communities. You’ll learn how the study of happiness is a growing, evidence-based field known as positive psychology, which aims

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “The Dark Side of Fairy-Tale Romance,” on the nightmarish elements of the tales we’ve repackaged as the stuff of lovers’ dreams, with Linda Lee, lecturer in folklore and fairy tales at the University of Pennsylvania. From romcoms to reality TV shows to wedding venues to Valentine’s Day, we’re inundated with messages idealizing the idea of a “fairy-tale romance.” But the fairy tales underlying all the hype about charming princes, grand balls, true love’s kiss, and the happily-ever-after actually can be profoundly unsettling and full of reasons to run like hell. Gain an appreciation of how

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “Sex with Shakespeare,” a surprising look at how the Bard thought about gender and sexuality and how it influenced his works, with Abdulhamit Arvas, scholar and historian of sexuality and assistant professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania. Before “gender” became a culture-war keyword, London audiences watched William Shakespeare’s plays with an open secret: Because women were barred from the public stage, every Juliet, Desdemona, and Rosalind was played by a boy actor. What did that theatrical reality do to ideas of masculinity, femininity, desire—and to the plays themselves? Hear such questions tackled in

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “Brain Stories,” a crash course on the basics of neuroscience interspersed with surprising tales from research in the field, with Stuart McCaughey, who teaches courses on neuroanatomy, neuropharmacology, and neurological disorders as an assistant professor at the University of Delaware. Gain insights into how our brains work, and learn what research tells us about the causes of our behavior and the links between our brains and those of animals, with brain expert Stuart McCaughey of the University of Delaware. Using an approach that wins him and his courses rave reviews from his university’s students, Dr.

Profs and Pints Philadelphia presents: “Medical Ethics and ‘The Pitt,’” an interactive discussion of how physicians navigate tough questions, with Sean Aas, associate professor of philosophy at Georgetown University, research scholar at its Kennedy Institute of Ethics, and author of the innovative textbook Bioethics: 50 Puzzles, Problems, and Thought Experiments. Nothing has higher ethical stakes than the field of medicine, where decisions can be life-or-death. And nowhere are the stakes of medicine more evident than in the emergency department, where split-second decisions can forever alter the course of the lives of patients and, sometimes, practitioners. Life-or-death decisions drive the drama