Who and where are America's indigenous descendants now, and how are they faring? Topics will cover Kansas Tribes, including the Wyandot Nation; the 2012 Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Pottawatomie Prairie Band Nation and the historic Cobell v. Salazar case, alleging the U.S. government's mishandling of Indian trust funds (filed in 1996 and settled for $3.4 billion in 2009); and the Doctrine of Discovery (will it ever  be repudiated?). And, finally, with visits by Native American tribe members, we will discuss current tribal issues and also learn about the Native Americans recently elected to government positions.

This course examines three historical disappearances,one in 17th century, and two in the 19th century: The Roanoke Colony, the Franklin Arctic Expedition and the Mary Celeste. Although the sites where they vanished are widely distant from one another, they have one thing in common: no one knows for sure what happened to the people involved. There are many theories, some reasonable and some quite mad. We will set the stage, analyze the known facts and try to answer the most important question of all from these perplexing mysteries - what really happened?

Please note the dates and location for this course are different that those published in the catalog. The dates are Mondays, April 15, 22 & 29 at the North Kansas City Public Library, 2251 Howell St., North Kansas City, Mo. We apologize for the change and any inconvenience.

Imagine a day without space-based capabilities. What would happen to television? How would we forecast the weather? Global finance would grind to a halt. The stock markets would crash.Credit cards would be useless. Air travel would stop. These capabilities touch your daily life in ways that are unperceived. This course will examine the American and global dependency on these systems: Where are the satellites? How do they orbit? Do solar flares really cause problems on earth? How does GPS really work? How critical are satellites to national security and commerce? And in all of those movies, what is fact versus fiction?

In this course we will explore the music and lives of some of the great composers of classical music. We will track their careers from their early work, through influences that impacted their musical styles, to the late work that culminated their careers. Each class will explore one or two composers in detail, with many musical examples. Composers will range from Johann Sebastian Bach to Philip Glass and several in between.

June 6, 2019, marks the 75th anniversary of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy, France. The largest military operation of the war, Overlord was the high point of the Greatest Generation's campaign to rid the world of Nazi tyranny. Gen. Dwight Eisenhower led thousands of Allied soldiers, sailors and airmen in an operation that witnessed extraordinary acts of courage, heroism and determination. We will discuss the planning, preparation and personalities of Overlord, highlighting the airborne and amphibious forces whose extraordinary accomplishments made legendary Pointe du Hoc, Ste.- Mère-Église, and Utah and Omaha beaches.

This course will explore the historical development of the U.S.-Mexico border from the perspective of both Mexico and the United States.Together, we will explore how the border evolved and hardened through the creation of the Border Patrol, the Mexican Revolution and the effects of Prohibition. We'll review personal accounts, photographs and songs of"borderlanders," along with government officials providing crucial context to today's current debates. Finally, we will examine how to negotiate the border in the age of nationalism.

Please note that while the dates for this course are correct (March 21, 28 & April 4), the Osher spring catalog incorrectly lists this course as meeting on Tuesdays; it is actually meeting on Thursdays.