Category: Presentations and Talks

Join The Sunflower for a free panel discussion about renters’ rights from 2 to 3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29 in the Beggs Ballroom of the Rhatigan Student Center. Bring questions and enjoy free snacks.

Professor Emeritus Dr. Marcel Danesi, University of Toronto — world renown anthropologist, linguist, semiotician and scholar of popular and political culture — is giving a public lecture at 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 in 100 Lindquist Hall on “Dangerous Rhetoric: How Putin and Trump Strategize Discourse.”

Aside from being a prolific speaker and author of more than 30 academic books, Danesi tackles the most difficult issues of political discourse in intricate ways.

Some of his books include “Signs of Crime: Introduction to Forensic Semiotics” (2013); “Made Men: Mafia Culture and the Power of Symbols and Ritual” (2013); “The Semiotics of Emoji” (2020); “The Art of the Lie: How the Manipulation of Language Affects our Minds” (2020); “Comedic Nightmare: The Trump Effect on American Comedy” (2023); and “Pseudology: The Science of Lying” (2024).

The event is organized by the Department of Anthropology and the Global Learning Center of Wichita. Light refreshments will be served.

Are you interested in studying abroad? The first step would be to attend one of the informational sessions, the first one this semester will be at 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 23 in 265 Rhatigan Student Center, Lucas Room.

See the Study Abroad website for the complete list of information sessions or for video options and to register to attend.

The Office of Student Accommodations and Testing will offer a new resource for all students this fall semester. Join a virtual presentation from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, July 10 on how Kurzweil 3000 can help increase student success. Participants will need to sign up online, and a training link will be sent to them.

Kurzweil 3000 is an accessibility software designed to help students learn course materials in school. With functions such as text-to-speech, highlighting and integrated notetaking and brainstorming, this assistive technology enables students with learning difficulties to fully engage in what they are learning and to focus on the tasks at hand.

Register to attend a Zoom webinar from Hispanic Serving Initiatives related to supporting undocumented students and mixed status families from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday May 8.

The presenters will be Raymond Rico, an immigration attorney; Alex Perez, Hispanic Development Fund Greater Kansas City; and Dr. Melisa Jimenez, Johnson County Community College. The panel will be moderated by Dr. Sara Mata, executive director of Hispanic Serving Initiatives.

The informational session will provide a better understanding of the unique struggles and ways to support undocumented students and mixed status families.

Andreas Papaefstathiou, assistant professor from Kennesaw State University who specializes in the phenomenology of particle physics, and will give a talk, “Imprints of Electro-Weak Symmetry Breaking at Colliders,” 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 1 in 128 Jabara Hall.

The Physics Seminar is part of a series of talks sponsored by the Eddy and April Lucas Fund and brings speakers to campus several times each semester.

Join Interstellar Seminar from 2:30 to 3:20 p.m. Wednesday, May 1 in 104 Jabara Hall or online for the last session of the semester and see how science fiction is useful in crewed interstellar missions.

When looking towards interstellar travel in the distant future, science may not be ready to provide a clear vision. Science fiction can go outside the box and into the realm of what can only be imagined. Dr. Rachelle Smith — former professor of English, modern languages and journalism at Emporia State University, who specializes in science fiction — will provide insights into how science fiction can lead people into a science future that will rely on creativity before technology.

Zoom details and an archive of previous seminars can be found on the Wichita Space Initiative website.

The Department of Biological Sciences’ Seminar Series continues from 4 to 5 p.m. Monday, April 29 in 218 Hubbard Hall, with Dr. Sufi Thomas of KU Medical Center with her talk, “The Role of the Tumor Microenvironment in Head and Neck Cancer Progression.”

As always, seminars are open to the public and undergraduates are encouraged to attend.

Come celebrate the 2024 graduates of the MFA program in creative writing as they share selections from their literary works at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, April 27 in the Ulrich Museum of Art.

A reception will be at 2 p.m. Everyone is welcome to attend the free event.

Visit the Ulrich Museum starting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 25 for an evening with Marianne Marti, founding partner of Russell-Marti Conservation Services, in connection with Fully Dimensional: Artists of the Outdoor Sculpture Collection.

Marti is a sculpture conservator who specializes in working with bronze, stone, terracotta, plaster and wood, with an expertise in outdoor public art. For more than 25 years, she has performed biannual maintenance treatments and major conservation work on sculptures at WSU, and she will speak about her experiences, including the conservation of the Ulrich’s Joan Miró mosaic (2011-2017).

Reception at 5:30 p.m. is in the upstairs Ulrich Gallery lobby, with the program following at 6 p.m. in 210 McKnight Art Center. Everyone is welcome to attend this free talk.