2012-2013 Programs

Visit real ghost towns and those barely hanging on to life, such as Elkhorn, Montana. Travel through the high sierras to Bodie, once the third largest city in California and now a diminished but amazingly well-preserved ghost town. This is a modern Wild West adventure where you won’t believe your eyes, except that it’s all real!

Our Pacific island adventure begins in Honolulu and takes you through the Hawaiian Archipelago, then on to Fiji, Tonga, the Cook Islands, and French Polynesia. Along the way, you will learn of the origins and the cultures of the people and be amazed at the beauty of these Pacific island gems.

We start our journey in picturesque Prague, visiting majestic Hradcany Castle and Old Town. We then cruise through the scenic valleys along the Main, Rhine and Moselle rivers in Germany, visiting historic cities and towns, such as Nuremberg, Bamburg, Wurzburg, and Rudesheim.We end up in Paris visiting many beloved historic sites.

Join Doug in this retrospective of his lifetime of travel. Drawing from his extensive films, Doug takes us to fascinating destinations such as the Taj Mahal, the Pyramids, the Berlin Wall, Machu Picchu, Carnival in Rio and the Great Wall of China, showing us many of the changes in the world in the past 40 years.

Come experience the true majesty of our fourth-largest state, where cattle outnumber people three to one. Join an Indian Powwow, trace the steps of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and hike trails to sample Montana’s scenic wonders. Investigate the myths, legends and reality of the people who came west to help shape the future of this state.

This presentation will provide an overview of music and the brain and provide evidence for the efficacy of clinical applications of music to help in stroke rehabilitation, enhanced function in Parkinson’s disease and improved memory and quality of life in those with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Dr. Concetta Tomaino is the Executive Director and co-founder of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function and Senior Vice President for Music Therapy at Center Light Health System (formerly Beth Abraham Family of Health Services). Dr. Tomaino is internationally known for her research in the clinical applications of music and neurologic rehabilitation. She lectures on music therapy throughout the world. Her work has been featured in national programs including 48 Hours and 60 Minutes; in international programs including the BBC; and in books on health and healing. Dr. Tomaino is Past-President of the American Association for Music Therapy and founding board member for the International Association for Music and Medicine. She is on the faculty of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

In the last 50 years there have been 40 missions to Mars with over 60% failing to accomplish their science objectives. Starting in 2000 NASA embarked on a “follow the water” strategy for a string of tremendously successful missions of orbiters, landers, and rovers on Mars. These missions have made measurements that clearly show that Mars held a significant amount of water in its distant past. On Earth, where there is water there is life. With the successful landing of the Curiosity rover on Mars we start a new era of missions that involve “seeking the signs of life.” Curiosity is working flawlessly and has started on a two-year mission that will investigate the question of whether Mars was ever habitable.

Dr. James Green became the Director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in 2006. The Planetary Science Division encompasses missions from Mercury to Pluto with the exclusion of Earth orbiting spacecraft. Mars in particular has received special attention over the last several years leading up to the landing of the Curiosity rover. Dr. Green received his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Iowa in 1979. He has written over 110 scientific articles in referred journals. He has also worked at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center from 1980 to 1985 and at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) from 1985 to 2006.

This lecture will help you understand why sleep is important, how to recognize problems and how to seek solutions.

Dr. Meir Kryger joined the Yale school of medicine and the staff of VA Connecticut Health Systems in November 2011. Previously, he was the Director of Sleep Research and Education at Gaylord Sleep Medicine in Wallingford, Connecticut, and before that he was a professor of medicine at the University of Manitoba and Director of Sleep Disorders Centre at St. Boniface Hospital Research Center. Dr. Kryger has published more than 200 research articles and book chapters. He is the chief editor of the most widely used textbook in sleep medicine, The Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine. He is also the author of A Woman’s Guide to Sleep Disorders. His recent books published in 2009 are a Good Night’s Sleep, in 2010 the Atlas of Clinical Sleep Medicine, in 2011 Kryger’s Sleep Medicine Review and in 2012 The iGuide to Sleep and it’s Disorders. Dr.Kryger was the first to diagnose and report obstructive sleep apnea in North America.

You loved Monty’s and Marsha’s adventures in Wales: Land of Song. Now travel with them into England’s romantic West Country. Starting in the ancient city of Bath, we will move westward into the legendary lands of King Arthur and the fictional Wessex of Thomas Hardy. And we will continue on till we reach Land’s End.

You’ve journeyed with John and Jodie through the southern part of the Rocky Mountains. Now join them in traveling the northern part. Ride the back roads as they follow the Rockies from Glacier National Park to Jasper, Alberta in the spectacular Canadian Rockies, marveling at the many sights along the way.

Take a look beyond the news headlines at these two fascinating countries. Experience life in the streets and markets of Kabul. Travel across the Khyber Pass and see the home/fortresses of the Pashtun people. Visit numerous villages in Pakistan, meeting with warlords, village headmen, and an American woman teaching in a local school.

Let Buddy take you to this vast land of pristine, diverse landscapes and its nomadic people whose lives are largely unchanged from the days of Genghis Khan and the mighty Mongol Empire. Experience the world famous Nadaam Festival, stay with a nomad family in the Gobi Desert, learn the real story of Genghis Khan and more!

Visit the many famous sites in this “City on the Bay”, including Fisherman’s Wharf, Chinatown, Golden Gate Park and Alcatraz. But then go beyond what most visitors see and venture into many of the fascinating neighborhoods of this diverse city. Learn the history of San Francisco, including rare footage of the 1906 earthquake.