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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260509T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260509T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T172422Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T172422Z
UID:10000107-1778342400-1778347800@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Euclid's Elements
DESCRIPTION:Here’s an interlinear Greek/English translation: farside.ph.utexas.edu/Books/Euclid/Elements.pdf \nHere’s a series of videos: Euclid’s elements: definitions\, postulates\, and axioms \nEuclid’s Geometry was built on assumptions. But what if you altered one of those assumptions? Nikolai Lobachevsky: Non-Euclidean Geometry and Euclid’s Fifth Axiom – Kronecker Wallis \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/euclids-elements/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Euclid-elements.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Cindy Smith":MAILTO:spawnofajewishcarpenter@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260516T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260516T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T145542Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T170156Z
UID:10000095-1778947200-1778952600@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Homer's Odyssey: Scylla and Charybdis
DESCRIPTION:The Odyssey is an account of how Odysseus made his way home to his wife Penelope after the Trojan War. (The Trojan War itself was discussed in Homer’s Iliad.) At one point\, Odysseus must steer his ship between two perils: a sea monster named Scylla and a whirlpool named Charybdis. The whirlpool was probably inspired by the whirlpool in the Strait of Messina\, which is the narrow passage between Italy and the island of Sicily.  If you try to steer well clear of the whirlpool\, you might smack into the cliff.  For this reason\, Scylla and Charybdis became a metaphor for any situation in which you are faced with only two options\, both of them bad. Odysseus is facing the dilemma that all commanders must face. He must give an order. One order would result in some of his men dying. His other option is an order that would result in everyone dying.  Either way\, men will die. \nHere’s an English prose translation of the text: HOMER\, ODYSSEY BOOK 12 – Theoi Classical Texts Library \nThe Iliad and Odyssey are attributed to a poet named Homer\, who is often described as “the blind poet.” Yet nobody really knows if Homer was one person\, two people (i.e.\, the Iliad and Odyssey were written by separate authors)\, or many people (i.e.\, the poems were the product of a long oral tradition). The date of the works is also unclear. Some people believed that Homer was an eyewitness to the Trojan War\, whereas others think that he lived up to 500 years later.  Others feel that the poems evolved through the oral tradition over centuries but were eventually written down long after the events of the Trojan War. \nMany of the events in the Iliad and Odyssey are clearly mythological. Yet they were set in a context that was probably historical. In the late 19th century\, a German archaeologist named Heinrich Schliemann used surviving ancient place-names as a guide to find sites to excavate\, to establish the historicity of the Trojan War: Schliemann at Troy and Mycenae. Although Schliemann turned out to be wrong about some things\, he did make important contributions\, including his insight that pottery can help one align the timelines of neighboring societies. \nThe Homeric epics may be telling some tales that predate even the Trojan War. Some scholars believe that the similarities between the Homeric epics and some epic poems of ancient India are evidence that both traditions drew on an older Indo-European source: (94) Homer and Indo-European Myth \nThe Homeric epics were written in Homeric Greek. They were in verse\, in the form of dactylic hexameter\, which feels like a galloping horse: \nDA-duh-duh\, DA-duh-duh\, DA-duh-duh\, DA-duh-duh\, DA-duh-duh\, DA \nThis poses a serious challenge to translators. How can they express the literal and figurative meaning of the words in a poetic rhythm that works in English? One recent translator\, Emily Wilson\, chose to use iambic pentameter\, which is the most common meter in English poetry: \nduh-DA\, duh-DA\, duh-DA\, duh-DA\, duh-DA \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/homers-odyssey-scylla-and-charybdis/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/homer-scylla.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260523T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260523T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T173507Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T173507Z
UID:10000108-1779552000-1779557400@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Rene Descartes: Discourse on the Method
DESCRIPTION:Rene Descartes’ Discourse on the Method of Rightly Conducting One’s Reason and of Seeking Truth in the Sciences was published in French in 1637.  It was later translated into Latin. This discourse is famous for Descartes’ assertion Je pense\, donc je suis (I think\, therefore I am–cogito ergo sum). The discourse was intended to serve as an introduction to three other works: one on optics\, another on meteorology\, and the third on geometry. The geometrical work introduced the Cartesian coordinate system that we use to this day. \nDiscourse on the Method \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/rene-descartes-discourse-on-the-method/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/descartes.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Cindy Smith":MAILTO:spawnofajewishcarpenter@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260530T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260530T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T151855Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T170131Z
UID:10000096-1780156800-1780162200@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: Cancer Ward
DESCRIPTION:Cancer Ward is a semiautobiographical novel by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn\, who won the Nobel Prize in Litrature “for the ethical force with which he has pursued the indispensable traditions of Russian literature.” Like Solzhenitsyn\, the protagonist of Cancer Ward is a Russian World War II veteran who served time in the Gulag (Soviet forced labor camps) because of careless remarks about Stalin and who then faced internal exile\, got a cancer diagnosis\, and was treated for the cancer at a hospital in Tashkent. However\, the protagonist of Cancer Ward was born in Leningrad (Solzhenitsyn was born in the North Caucasus region) and was unmarried. \nAleksandr Solzhenitsyn Center — Cancer Ward \nCancer Ward addresses the problems of illness and death\, but it gives immediacy to the question of the meaning of life. As one medical journal article explained: \nThe prospect of love and life helps the protagonist patient psychologically through his disease. \nHow Tolstoy and Solzhenitsyn define life and death in cancer: patient perceptions in oncology – PubMed \nSolzhenitsyn had a form of testicular cancer (malignant seminoma) that had already spread. Fortunately\, his treatment involved a therapeutic dose of what is now an approved chemotherapy drug\, which had been made by soaking a mandrake root in vodka. Did Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Cure His Own Testicular Cancer? \n  \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn-cancer-ward/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Cancer-ward.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T155153Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T170058Z
UID:10000097-1780761600-1780767000@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Snow White\, the Brothers Grimm\, and Tolkien
DESCRIPTION:Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (the Brothers Grimm) were German academics who studied the history of the German language and collected and published folktales. They popularized these “Grimms’ Fairy Tales” through books that were translated into many languages. They also laid the groundwork for the study of folklore as an academic discipline. \nHere’s an English translation of Grimm’s Snow-White: Snow-white – Grimm \nFolktales evolve through a process of selection. Each storyteller reshapes the tale to appeal to his or her audience. The tales that make the deepest impression on that audience are then retold to the next generation. Although the Brothers Grimm were trying to create a decidedly German body of folklore\, it is clear that these stories have crossed national boundaries over the course of thousands of years. This allows stories from many different cultural traditions to be classified\, such as in the Aarne–Thompson–Uther Index (ATU Index). Snow White falls under ATU type 709. \nThis video suggests that the story of Snow-White was originally a story of real crimes that occurred in medieval Germany. (1) The Disturbing True Origins of Snow White – YouTube \nGrimms’ fairy tales laid the groundwork on which Walt Disney built a huge empire.  However\, not everyone approved of the way in which Disney rendered these stories.  J.R.R. Tolkien\, author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings was an authority on Anglo-Saxon literature\, was offended that folktales were being infantilized.. The Movie Date That Solidified J.R.R. Tolkien’s Dislike of Walt Disney – Atlas Obscura \nOn Fairy-Stories – Tolkien Gateway \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/snow-white-the-brothers-grimm-and-tolkien/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Snow-white.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260613T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260613T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T155907Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T165305Z
UID:10000098-1781366400-1781371800@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:George McDonald:
DESCRIPTION:Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/george-mcdonald/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/George-McDonald.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260627T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260627T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T162718Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164949Z
UID:10000099-1782576000-1782581400@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Mark Twain: Huckleberry Finn
DESCRIPTION:Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/mark-twain-huckleberry-finn/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Huckleberry-Finn.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260704T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260704T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T162939Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164901Z
UID:10000100-1783180800-1783186200@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Declaration of Independence
DESCRIPTION:Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/declaration-of-independence/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/declaration-of-independence.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260711T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260711T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T163201Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164833Z
UID:10000101-1783785600-1783791000@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Constitution of the United States of America
DESCRIPTION:Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/constitution-of-the-united-states-of-america/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Constitution.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260718T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260718T170000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T163424Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164805Z
UID:10000102-1784361600-1784394000@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Benjamin Franklin: Autobiography
DESCRIPTION:The Project Gutenberg eBook of “Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.” \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/benjamin-franklin-autobiography/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Benjamin-franklin.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260725T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260725T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T163832Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164745Z
UID:10000103-1784995200-1785000600@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Rudyard Kipling: Jungle Book
DESCRIPTION:Read the text: The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling | Project Gutenberg \nAudiobook: The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling Full Audiobook \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/rudyard-kipling-jungle-book/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Jungle-book.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260801T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260801T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T164336Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164720Z
UID:10000104-1785600000-1785605400@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:Lewis Caroll: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass
DESCRIPTION:  \nAlice’s Adventures in Wonderland\, by Lewis Carroll. Illustrated by John Tenniel – Free ebook download – Standard Ebooks: Free and liberated ebooks\, carefully produced for the true book lover \nThrough the Looking-Glass\, by Lewis Carroll. Illustrated by John Tenniel – Free ebook download – Standard Ebooks: Free and liberated ebooks\, carefully produced for the true book lover \nLearn more from the Lewis Carroll Society of North America \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/lewis-caroll-alices-adventures-in-wonderland-and-through-the-looking-glass/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Alice-wonderland.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260808T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260808T173000
DTSTAMP:20260506T045012
CREATED:20260114T164632Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T164632Z
UID:10000106-1786204800-1786210200@nnjmensa.org
SUMMARY:George Orwell: Animal Farm
DESCRIPTION:  \nRead the text: Animal Farm \n\n\n	Related
URL:https://nnjmensa.org/event/george-orwell-animal-farm/
CATEGORIES:Great Books and World Classics
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://nnjmensa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Animal-farm.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Laurie Thomas":MAILTO:lthomas521@verizon.net
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