Center for Teaching Excellence
Brown Bag Events

Tuesdays with

Join us for a TED Talk and discussion. Bring your lunch and we will provide beverages and dessert.

January 22, 11:30 - 12:30 The Danger of a Single Story with Chimamanda Adichie
Our lives, our cultures, are composed of many overlapping stories. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice -- and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding. Inspired by Nigerian history and tragedies all but forgotten by recent generations of westerners, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novels and stories are jewels in the crown of diasporan literature.

February 5, 11:30 - 12:30 Half a Million Secrets with Frank Warren
"Secrets can take many forms -- they can be shocking, or silly, or soulful." Frank Warren, the founder of PostSecret.com, shares some of the half-million secrets that strangers have mailed him on postcards.

February 19, 12:00 - 1:00 Connected, but Alone with Sherry Turkle
As we expect more from technology, do we expect less from each other? Sherry Turkle studies how our devices and online personas are redefining human connection and communication -- and asks us to think deeply about the new kinds of connection we want to have. Sherry Turkle studies how technology is shaping our modern relationships: with others, with ourselves, with it.

March 5, 11:30 - 12:30 The Great Penguin Rescue with Dyan deNapoli
A personal story, a collective triumph: Dyan deNapoli tells the story of the world's largest volunteer animal rescue, which saved more than 40,000 penguins after an oil spill off the coast of South Africa. How does a job this big get done? Penguin by penguin by penguin ...

March 19, 12:00 - 1:00 The Hidden Power of Smiling with Ron Gutman
Ron Gutman reviews a raft of studies about smiling, and reveals some surprising results. Did you know your smile can be a predictor of how long you'll live -- and that a simple smile has a measurable effect on your overall well-being? Prepare to flex a few facial muscles as you learn more about this evolutionarily contagious behavior.

April 2, 11:30 - 12:30 How to Fool a GPS with Todd Humphreys
Todd Humphreys forecasts the near-future of geolocation when millimeter-accurate GPS "dots" will enable you to find pin-point locations, index-search your physical possessions ... or to track people without their knowledge. And the response to the sinister side of this technology may have unintended consequences of its own. Todd Humphreys studies GPS, its future, and how we can address some of its biggest security problems.

April 16, 12:00 - 1:00 The Power of the Informal Economy with Robert Neuwirth
Robert Neuwirth spent four years among the chaotic stalls of street markets, talking to pushcart hawkers and gray marketers, to study the remarkable "System D," the world's unlicensed economic network. Responsible for some 1.8 billion jobs, it's an economy of underappreciated power and scope. To research his new book, "Stealth of Nations," Robert Neuwirth spent four years among street vendors, smugglers and “informal” import/export firms.

Brown Bag Wednesday, Casual Discussions over lunch

Bring your lunch and we will provide beverages and dessert.

January 16, 11:30 - 12:30
January 30, 11:30 - 12:30
February 13, 11:30 - 12:30
February 27, 11:30 - 12:30
March 27, 11:30 - 12:30
April 10, 11:30 - 12:30
April 24, 11:30 - 12:30