Carlson Conversations Lecture Series
The University Libraries Carlson Conversations Lecture Series returns for the 2024-25 academic year. This year the libraries will bring in 6 lectures to cover a wide range of topics from local history to craft beer to A.I. Beginning in September the lecture series will feature:
The Toledo Papers: Uncovering the Hidden Backstories of Toledo's Past
Lecture by Tedd Long
September 18 at 3 p.m.
Tedd Long is a multi-talented author, blogger, photographer, lecturer, and curator
known for his work on holytoledohistory.com. His deep passion for the history of the Maumee Valley shines through in his engaging
storytelling, uncovering fascinating backstories and surprising facts. Tedd has earned
acclaim for his award-winning books and his contributions to the Emmy-winning series
Untold: Hidden Stories of Northwest Ohio.
Suburban Nightmares: Teenage Terror and the Slasher Film
Lecture by Dan Compora
October 24 at 7 p.m.
During the latter half of the Twentieth Century, as fears of urban sprawl and crime
weighed on the minds of Americans, citizens left the cities for the perceived safety
and comfort of the suburbs. The emergence of the slasher film challenges this concept,
presenting suburban America as neither safe nor secure. Infamous horror villains use
the American suburbs as their playground: Halloween’s Michael Myers attacked people
in their homes, while Freddy Krueger invaded the subconscious minds of the teenage
residents of Elm Street. Despite people’s best efforts to enjoy middle-class life,
these films proved that nowhere is safe.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood: The Urban Geography of American Craft Breweries
Lecture by Neil Reid
November 20 at 3 p.m.
Neil Reid, Ph.D. is Professor of Geography at the University of Toledo. Much of his
recent research has focused on the economic geography of the American craft brewing
industry. Dr. Reid’s academic research has covered a variety of topics including craft
breweries and neighborhood change, the role of craft breweries as Third Places, craft
breweries and adaptive reuse of abandoned buildings, and craft beer tourism. Dr. Reid
writes a blog on the beer industry, www.thebeerprofessor.com.
The Three Lives of Philip Markowicz
Lecture by David Neil & Steven Markowicz
Januray 29, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Some stories should not be left untold, and the life experiences of Philip Markowicz
comprise one such story. In fact, when he looks back upon his past, Philip feels like
he has lived three lives, not just one. His first life was growing up as a young boy
in Przerab, Poland. But that was all disrupted and his second life began when the
Germans invaded Poland at the start of World War II. Of his large family just he and
his brother, Henry, survived the ghetto only to be sent to Auschwitz and a series
of other concentration camps ending the war on a death march that few survived. Philip
did survived the Holocaust to start his third life, one of rebuilding in spite of
what he had lost. He met and married his wife, Ruth, in a Displaced Persons camp,
and they eventually moved to the United States, where Philip worked hard to give his
wife and three children every opportunity his new country offered.
Code, Collage, and Critique: Exploring Creativity and Control in the Age of A.I.
Lecture by Ashley Pryor, John Sarnecki & Ammon Allred
February 26, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Join us for a discussion about the complex relationship between human creativity and
the increasing power of artificial intelligence. Three philosophers will examine the
complex technical, political, ethical, and artistic considerations around AI and art
to consider what makes something 'creative.'
Toledo's Tenderloin in the Pre-Prohibition Era
Lecture by Doug Tracy
April 9, 2025 at 3 p.m.
Doug Tracy is a retired software engineer and project manager. A child of the sixties,
he grew up on the far east side of Columbus, Ohio. Always involved in creative pursuits
of some kind, from art to music to writing, his innate inquisitiveness led him to
the rich world of Toledo history and the many untold stories of the Tenderloin, Toledo’s
Red-Light District, all of which will be featured in his upcoming book, “Wide Open.”