The difficulties drawing the right conclusion from random data.This talk will aim to explain some of the biases (acquired or genetic) in dealing with randomness and the mechanisms by which the brain sees the world as less, far less, random that it actually is. This misperception can lead to misinterpret many events of everyday life in business, economics, politics and other areas of human affairs.

MAJOR CONTROVERSIES. The Continent had a Reformation and sometimes also a Counter-Reformation.  Why didn’t England share either.

MEMOIRS BY CARMELLA DIGHT. In order to whet curiosity the talk is entitled: “When Hitler visited my Home” – “What? Hitler visited her home? When, where? Some members would be questioning and doubting. Thus, in order to allay further suspense, the true title of the memoirs is “Bombshells and Butterflies” written under the real name of Karola Feld. Who is Karola? Why not Carmella Dight as known to U3A members? Further confusion would arise, which later in the book would be brought to light.

The old ways of living on earth are falling apart as the energies change. A New Age of Enlightenment is beginning and it’s time to “Be the Change”. With topics as diverse as spirit guidance, extra-terrestrial intervention on earth, healing, the shift of consciousness and even the truth about the Loch Ness Monster, there will be something for everyone.

There are many differences in culture between Japan and the UK and this lecture highlights some of those in respect to language, work, management, employment, schooling, policing, family life, Government, getting around, food , the seasons and the scenery. The presenter lived in Japan with his wife for seven and a half years and during that time travelled extensively in the country.

Ismakogie is a training of posture and invisible movement which originated in Vienna, Austria. It is especially for people who don’t like heavy physical exercise, but who still want to be fit and vital, have more energy and always feel fantastic. It is a special way of living to stay fit without a heavy-duty fitness regime.

With one of the highest life expectancies in the world, Spain should be the place to retire blissfully. But as life expectancy increases, so does disability expectancy- not so blissful. This informative and fun workshop challenges the current view of ageing and health. Looking at how we were designed to age healthily, we explore the beliefs and behaviours which get the best long-term results. 

The Italian campaigns of the French Kings during the Italian Wars encouraged the introduction of a new architectural style. That style was influenced by antiquity through architectural books and later with imported Italian craftsmen.  Therefore Early Renaissance detail was merely grafted on to traditional building types such as Châteaux and Churches with Gothic vaults, in what might be described as a veneer Renaissance.

MAJOR CONTROVERSIES.’God’s greatest Englishman’ or the Devil Incarnate.  How to justly interpret Britain’s only non-royal ruler?

Words are central to being human but people are often unconscious of their impact. This talk examines how thought influences language, how one’s native language shapes thought, and how both affect behaviour. Drawing on art history, semiotics, theories of cognition and her own experience in travelling and living in a variety of countries, writer Joan Burton- Jones explores the interplay between language and thought and what it reveals about national cultures and homo sapiens as a species.

In this wide ranging presentation author, consultant and academic, Alan Burton-Jones, discusses the emergence of a new form of collaborative, crowd-based capitalism that promises a potential middle road between individualistic capitalism and the communal  lockstep of extreme socialism. Drawing on latest research and examples from around the world he describes key features of the collaborative economy.

Major Controversies. A persistent theme in British history with complicated causes and often less important to the country than emigration.

Major Controversies. Why was Britain one of the last of the major powers to grant full equality to its female citizens?

With one of the highest life expectancies in the world, Spain should be the place to retire blissfully. But as life expectancy increases, so does disability expectancy- not so blissful. This informative and fun workshop challenges the current view of ageing and health. Looking at how we were designed to age healthily, we explore the beliefs and behaviours which get the best long-term results. 

This lecture will:- set out the main features of the current system of global governance, including its strengths and weaknesses, provide a broad assessment of its achievements and failures to date, review the new threats that have arisen to the continued existence of the system, highlight some dire consequences of a breakdown of the current system and discuss reforms required to defuse current threats to its existence and to improve its longer-term effectiveness.

The transition from Gothic to Renaissance architecture in Spain took place during the later years of the fifteen century and the first quarter of the sixteen. The period is dominated by a style known as Plateresque meaning ‘silversmith-style’.  It is descriptive of a taste for ornamental surface decoration with no relation to the underlying structure. The Portuguese Manueline style was contemporary with the period of Renaissance Plateresque in Spain.

Canals are a familiar sight around the countryside of Great Britain but the question is why there are so many either meandering along following the shape of the land or rising many metres through complex locks or other structures. This talk examines how canals have developed over the centuries to become the World’s First Integrated Transport System long before railways or anything else known today.

Major Controversies. Why is yet another analysis of Dunkirk needed after all the books and movies there are about it?

With one of the highest life expectancies in the world, Spain should be the place to retire blissfully. But as life expectancy increases, so does disability expectancy- not so blissful. This informative and fun workshop challenges the current view of ageing and health. Looking at how we were designed to age healthily, we explore the beliefs and behaviours which get the best long-term results. 

Major Controversies. Why is history ‘strip-mined’ for drama and the real story ignored?  Is it because the best known writers today are journalists and not historians?

Architecture in England from 1500 to 1830 did not pass through a chronological sequence of styles as found in the continental Europe. There was an initial delay in the arrival of the Renaissance which makes very difficult to identify architectural styles with specific periods.  For these reasons, several divisions based on the successive dynasties of the Royal family have been retained.

The presenter’s goal is to help people change their lives one minute at a time.“WHEN YOU MASTER YOUR EMOTIONS, YOU MASTER YOUR DESTINY!” Based on the history of people’s emotional experiences, they habitually react to the triggers of the environment 40-45% of the time unless a conscious choice has been made to recognize the patterns and to change them.

BRITISH INSTITUTIONS: An appreciation of the Uplands and Lowlands of Britain is crucial for an understanding of the histories of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and how they have interacted with each other over the years.

THE LATEST UPDATES ON SPACE DISCOVERY PROGRAMMES: Space agencies around the world have recently invested $ billions on space and land-based observatories. It can take years to decipher, collate and interpret the data collected. What are the emerging discoveries from these programs and what is in the pipeline for further exploration? How is the resulting view of the Universe changing?

BRITISH INSTITUTIONS: An essential part of the Constitution of Britain, how it has evolved and what its present and future prospects are.

Paddy O’Farrell discusses his books about a village twinned with Shangri La and Brigadoon and the villagers who don’t get out much but when they do create absolute international havoc causing confusion, hilarity and heartaches. He talks about his inspirations, and the trials and tribulations of publishing.

BRITISH INSTITUTIONS: The real governance of Great Britain and how it came to be the power that it is.

Pending

BRITISH INSTITUTIONS: This unique institution, how it evolved and how it kept its influence even though its religious influence has waned.

In Central Europe Renaissance elements were introduced by native architects around 1510 into largely Gothic buildings, while contact with Italian trading centres, particularly Venice, inspired several examples. The Austrian Habsburgs continued the tradition of importing Italian architects as well as craftsmen and as their power increased they produced magnificent examples of the style.

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