Registration for Continuing Studies autumn courses has begun

Registration for Continuing Studies' fall courses began Aug. 20 and continues to Monday, Sept. 17. The courses, which are open to the community, begin the week of Sept. 24.

This quarter's offerings include more than 100 courses, lectures, workshops and special programs in subjects ranging from foreign languages to studio art, literature to personal development. The courses are taught by distinguished faculty, instructors and researchers from Stanford and elsewhere.

A few offerings from this quarter's catalog include Astronomy and Cosmology of the Ancient World; Top 10 Archaeology Discoveries in History; Modern Art from Picasso to Pollock; History and Mystery of Design; Beginning Chinese; Beginning Russian; Statistics: A Gentle Introduction; The United States and the Rise of China; The Future of Energy: Understanding the Alternatives and Solutions; Startups: From Idea to IPO; Creativity and Leadership; English for Non-Native Professionals; and What Hath Google Wrought: Managing Information in the Information Age.

The fall program will introduce two multi-quarter course sequences: Modern Physics: The Theoretical Minimum and The Examined Life: The Story of Philosophy in the West. Edward Steidle's popular series Crossroads, which studies the great civilizations of the world, also will return this fall.

Continuing Studies will offer seven online creative writing courses this fall, created in close partnership with the Stanford Creative Writing Program. Early enrollment is encouraged for these classes, which have filled up quickly in previous quarters.

Two Continuing Studies courses are free: Medieval Matters, a new series of public lectures, explores the relevance of medieval history and culture for understanding the modern world. Understanding Buddhist Art: Ancient India, a series of Saturday seminars, will include illustrated lectures, discussion and a gallery tour and talk at the Cantor Arts Center.

Stanford Summer Theater, the Department of Drama and Continuing Studies will extend the summer theater festival, "Africa on Stage: Let us tell you a story," into the fall with Miracle in Rwanda, a one-woman show by Leslie Lewis Sword in performance Nov. 1-4. The show spotlights the story of Immaculée Ilibagiza, who survived the Rwandan genocide of 1994. For reservations and information visit http://drama.stanford.edu/.

Continuing Studies is the main sponsor of the United Nations Association Film Festival Oct. 24-28. This year's festival theme is "Camera as Witness"; the program includes 30 film screenings at Stanford with additional screenings in East Palo Alto and San Francisco. For tickets and more information, visit http://www.unaff.org/.

The festival was established 10 years ago at Stanford by film critic and educator Jasmina Bojic in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

About 2,000 people enroll in Continuing Studies courses each quarter. Stanford employees who work at least half time may use Staff Training Assistance Program (STAP) funds to pay for tuition and registration fees. Most classes meet from 7 to 8:50 p.m. Monday through Thursday, to accommodate work schedules. Weekend workshops also are available. For more information and course registration visit http://continuingstudies.stanford.edu/.

-30-