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I am not a robot
Having lived in the Adams Morgan neighborhood in Washington, D.C., where parking was often quite tight and at a premium, I took great pride as I became a world-class parallel parker. Then, one day, several years ago, I saw a commercial for a car that—gasp—could parallel park itself! Imagine my horror that my one true skill was doomed to become obsolete. Soon, we’ll find out that cars can drive themselves. Oh wait, that’s already happened. Is artificial intelligence supplanting human intelligence? I haven’t had the gumption to feed any keywords into ChatGPT to have it “write” my newsletter intros or other musings. That seems like cheating. While I’m not fond of the idea of a computer program creating art, literature, and music, I’m more than happy to have a robot endlessly vacuum my floor. Sometimes it’s nice to have Spotify or Netflix recommend new music or a film based on my listening and viewing preferences. Other than the moment a few weeks ago when I almost drove head on into a lake, GPS has come in handy more often than not. How nice is it to not have to remember facts anymore and just ask Siri or do a Google search? Yet, we have to fire up the synapses from time to time. Use it or lose it, right? I am a fan of the human element and hope that no matter how prevalent computers, apps, robots, and the like become, our brains don’t become mush in the process. Some things are just better done by real live people with their actual knowledge even if they may include mistakes. Even mistakes are mitigated to a degree. For example, I can’t tell you how ducking glad I am that autocorrect was invented and one day I hope that I’ll be as smart as my phone.
Stay safe and healthy,
Tracy Jacobs
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Classes Start September 11th
Please register online* by clicking HERE. Follow these instructions to ensure that your registration goes through correctly. Please add your name to the waitlist for any full courses. We are monitoring the number of available seats in each course, so space may become available.
*Please note: If you wish to register by mail, please download and print out the registration form. Mail your registration and check (made payable to Towson University) to the address below. Please notify Osher staff that you are mailing in your registration by emailing osher@towson.edu with your course selections. Edenwald residents and TURFA members should contact osher@towson.edu with their course selections instead of registering online.
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Helpful Online Registration Tip
Your registration is not complete until you have paid for your courses. If you realize that you have not paid for your courses, please log back into the system and follow the instructions below. CLICK HERE to get back into the registration site.
At the top of the page, click on the words Tuition Payment then select the amount owed based on the number of courses you are taking. Continue to the payment screen and pay securely with your credit card.
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Watch the Preview of Fall Classes Online
Hear from the instructors themselves as they tell you about their fall courses.
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View the Fall Course Catalog
Read the course descriptions and plan out your fall schedule.
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To renew or join for the 2023–2024 membership cycle, please CLICK HERE and follow the instructions to pay securely online with a credit card.
Please note: if you are a TURFA, Supporting Member, or Edenwald Member, we will send you a different link to renew/join.* If you prefer to pay by check, please download the 2023–2024 membership form to print out. Return the completed form with check made payable to Towson University. Our mailing address is Osher at Towson University, 8000 York Road, Towson, MD 21252-1000.
Osher at Towson University is a dynamic membership organization. Osher at Towson University members can:
- Enroll in thought-provoking and stimulating semester courses that cover a wide range of topics in subject areas including literature, history, science, the arts, and more! Fall and spring semesters offer both online and in-person classes.
- Register for intriguing individual lectures offered at various times throughout the year.
- Participate in book groups and shared interest groups.
- Receive priority registration for day trips, workshops, and special lecture series.
- Receive discounted registration for the SPARK program.
- Use the Towson University Cook Library and its online databases.
- Receive discounts at the Towson University Store and at various TU cultural and athletic events.
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Banned Books and American Culture by Beth Jane Toren
Wed., Sept. 6, 2:30 - 4:00 p.m. EST
WVU Interdisciplinary, Cultural, and Film Studies Librarian
co-hosted by the WVU Committee of Retired Faculty
Sharing perspectives from parents, educators, authors, protestors, young readers, and judges, all illustrated with archival quotes, case citations, and photographs, Toren will place book banning in a historical context and reflect on current events. The 1974 Kanawha County West Virginia Textbook Controversy has a significant role as we approach the 50th anniversary. As a 1974 elementary school student who experienced the controversy first-hand, Toren presents the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect and seek peaceful and cooperative resolutions to current school and public library controversies.
Register to receive the Zoom link.
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Effective August 1, Osher at Towson University will have a new mailing address. If you are sending any correspondence to Osher, please use this address:
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
Towson University
401 Washingon Avenue
3rd Floor
Towson, MD 21204
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Support Osher at Towson University. Your tax-deductible contribution helps to provide a rich experience for our members and a vibrant, affordable program for years to come.
Donate online through the link below. If you prefer to donate by check, please make check payable to “Towson University Foundation, Inc.” and note Osher fund in the memo line. Mail to: Towson University Foundation, Inc., P.O. Box 17165, Baltimore, MD 21297-0219.
If you would like to honor a friend or loved one with a donation in their memory, please consider supporting Osher at Towson University with a gift to the Osher Excellence Fund.
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It’s come to our attention that while some of you are on our mailing lists, you have not been getting our newsletters and other communications. After you confirm that you are on our mailing list, we encourage you to check your spam folder and check that your email security settings allow you to get mail from @towson.edu. If you continue to experience problems and are not able to rectify it with your email provider, we strongly recommend that you check our website regularly for links to our newsletters, membership payment, registration, and other important information.
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