The College of Liberal Arts at the University of Central Arkansas will host a series of public lectures, seminars and workshops that will examine different topics from a humanities perspective.
“Exploring Our World” will touch on different disciplines. Each lecture or seminar will be led by a member of the UCA faculty. With the varied backgrounds of participants, this promises to be a venue for exciting discussions.
“The ‘Exploring Our World’ lecture series is an exciting outreach project for UCA to connect with the residents of Conway and surrounding communities,” says Dr. Maurice A. Lee, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. “The topics are designed to engage the mind and ignite discussion amongst all participants. It is our hope that this series of lectures, seminars and workshops will be a way for UCA to engage the community in intellectual conversations with each another.”
The “Exploring Our World” series will kick off on Saturday, Feb.19 with a seminar entitled, “Darwinism and American Religious Thought.” This three-part presentation and discussion will focus on the philosophical, theological and historical impact of Charles Darwin’s ideas concerning biological evolution on American religious thought.
The free seminar will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center located on the UCA campus.
Dr. Jesse Butler, assistant professor of Philosophy, will explain the philosophical ideas behind Darwinian evolution, and their impact on intellectual and scientific communities in the past 150 years. Dr. Jeff Williams, visiting professor of religion, will explore the theological impact of Darwin’s ideas on American religious thought from the late-19th to the early-20th centuries.
Mr. Phillip Spivey, lecturer of Philosophy and Religion, will examine the social history of Darwinian evolution in relation to Arkansas’ Anti-Evolution Law (1928), Epperson v. Arkansas (1967) and Mclean v. Arkansas Board of Education (1982).”
Future seminars include “Watching Woody Allen Seriously”, “Agricultural Biodiversity Conservation”, “Understanding China: Beyond the Economic Miracle”, and “Minds & Machines: Artificial Intelligence.”
These are public seminars. Admission is free. Participants are advised to sign up early. For more information and how to register, visit: http://www.uca.edu/outreach/world/.
