On March 10, the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS) program at the University of Delaware will sponsor a half-day experience for all members of the community craving intellectual stimulation. The speakers, who are all associated with MALS, will be:

• Karen Rosenberg, “Why Do Humans Have Difficult Births and Helpless Babies?” Anthropologists traditionally interpret infant helplessness as a result of selective pressures for early birth to allow large-brained infants to pass through the bipedal pelvis. Cultural adaptations such as fire, clothing, shelter and child care allow them to survive. Rosenberg argues that in addition to these costs, early birth and helplessness have the benefit of exposing infants to social, emotional and other stimuli in the rich extra-uterine environment and that this has important implications for cognitive development.

• David Teague, “Tripping the Light Ekphrastic:  Poetic Form, Public Art, and Community Engagement.”  Ekphrasis is the act of creating a work of literary art in response to another work of art. Think "Ode On a Grecian Urn," by John Keats or "Mona Lisa," by Evans and Livingston, sung by Nat King Cole.  Ekphrasis provides a rich and deep nexus of engagement between imaginations, cultures, and creative traditions, as it provides a form in which artists can explore, honor, and ultimately exalt one another's accomplishments.  In "Tripping the Light Ekphrastic," we will encounter the work of UD students and Delaware artists meeting in just this way, and we will explore what they've created.

• Ellis Wasson, “The Great Divergence: Why the West Industrialized and China and India Did Not." This talk focuses on industrialization and modernization. Historians debate both the causes of the economic transformation of Europe and particularly Britain in the 18th and 19th centuries and why the largest and richest states in Asia took a different path. The "Great Divergence," as it is called, had huge consequences for the global economy in the 20th century and reverberates through the political and cultural history of modern times. What can we learn about the world and our own society and economy through understanding different responses to innovation, technology, and change?

The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. Registration is required:  http://www.udel.edu/004572. For more information, contact mals-info@udel.edu  or call 302-831-4130.

The event is sponsored by the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program, an interdisciplinary degree for intellectually curious adults who want focus in their search for enrichment. Learn more at mals.udel.edu.