Summer Seminars
During the summer, BOLLI offers member-only lecture series, seminars, and other engaging talks from BOLLI members and scholars.
Check back often for updates!
Featured Summer Seminars
Social and political conflict in the United States seems to have increased significantly in recent years. However, this phenomenon isn’t limited to the U.S.; it is plaguing societies across several continents. Many of us are left pondering the reasons for this disturbing trend and what can be done to reverse it. Trying to find a handful of causes can become a fool’s errand, because societies are complex systems driven by intertwining relationships. This course offers a view of these conflicts looking through the lens of complexity science, a theory of life that posits that the world we live in is relational rather than atomistic. It will take participants through the rules that guide complex systems, applying this lens to better grasp the uncertainty and nonlinear nature of complex systems and how they play out in social conflict. It will also offer insights into how we can approach social, political and even personal conflicts in a healthier manner.
Suggested reading: Notes on Complexity: A Scientific Theory of Connection, Consciousness, and Being (2023) by Neil Theise
WHEN: Eight Tuesdays, June 16- Aug 18, TIME: 10am-12:00pm ET
No class June 30 & August 11
WHERE: Zoom
Who: This seminar is available to active members. To purchase a membership for this seminar, please register here.
Attendance: While Zoom gives members flexibility, we ask that you enroll only if you can attend at least six of the seminar sessions in real time. Members' presence makes for a more lively and community-oriented experience for all.
To register: Active members will receive an email with a personal registration link on May 21, 2026 at 12:00pm ET. Signs-ups are first come, first served. In the event that the seminar becomes full, we will maintain a waitlist.
The new Frankenstein movie has focused attention on Mary Shelley's great novel. In this class we'll discuss the novel in some detail over the first three or four sessions (including the fascinating background story of how she came to write it), and also look at some scenes from three or four cinematic versions -- definitely the 20Del Toro's, and the 1931 version by the great James Whale, and definitely Blade Runner, and possibly some of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994), directed by Kenneth Branagh starring him, Robert De Niro, and Helena Bonham Carter, Some of the scenes with De Niro as the creature which are worth the price of admission!
WHEN: August 10-14, 9:30am - 12:15 pm ET
WHERE: Zoom
Who: Active BOLLI members will receive priority in registration. The public may register if spots are available.
Attendance: While Zoom gives members flexibility, we ask that you enroll only if you can attend at least four of the five of the seminar sessions in real time. Members' presence makes for a more lively and community-oriented experience for all.
How To Register : Active members will receive an email with a personal registration link on May 21, 2026 at 12:00pm ET. Signs-ups are first come, first served. In the event that the seminar becomes full, we will maintain a waitlist.
Cost: The fee for this seminar is as follows:
Annual Members: (Fall/Spring/Summer or Spring/Summer/Fall): $145
Seasonal Member: (Spring/Summer or Summer/Fall) $215
Trial Members: $285
Non-members: $285