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TUE, JAN 10, 7 pm
ZÓCALO
Greg Critser
“Generation Rx”
L.A.-based writer Greg Critser discusses his new book, “Generation Rx: How Prescription Drugs Are Altering American Lives, Minds, and Bodies,” which explores the overmedication of Americans—from children on ADD medication to senior citizens ingesting larger and occasionally fatal drug cocktails.
THU, JAN 12, 7 pm
Richard Schickel
and Leo Braudy
“Elia Kazan:
A Conversation”
In conversation with
Steven J. Ross,
professor and chair,
USC History Department
The actions, work, and words of this towering figure in American cinema are put into context by authors of two new books on Kazan: Schickel—TIME Magazine film critic—and Braudy—USC professor and film scholar.

Tue, Jan 17, 7 PM
Richard Reeves
President Reagan:
The Triumph
of Imagination
In conversation with
Gregory Rodriguez,
L.A. Times Op-Ed columnist
The veteran journalist who wrote books on Kennedy, Nixon, and Ford discusses his surprising and revealing portrait of the only American president whose name became a political creed: “Reaganism.”
Presented by The Council of the Library Foundation and sponsored by City National Bank and KPMG LLP.
THU, JAN 19, 7 pm
Temple Grandin
Animals in Translation:
Using the Mysteries
of Autism to Decode
Animal Behavior
Grandin draws upon a long, distinguished career as an animal scientist and her own experiences with autism to deliver an extraordinary message about how animals act, think, and feel.
TUE, JAN 24, 7 pm
The WIRED Speakers Series
and ALOUD present
Craig Newmark
Customer Service Rep & Founder, craigslist.org
In conversation with Thomas Goetz, Articles Editor, WIRED Magazine
People use craigslist.org to find a house, a date, a job, a wheelbarrow, or a French teacher. The founder of craigslist.org discusses the implications and future of this community-run website that “restores the human voice to the Internet.”
Co-sponsored by WIRED magazine and Senseo®
TUE, JAN 31, 7 pm
Gaspar Pedro Gonzalez and Frances Dixon
“The Return of the Maya: EL RETORNO DE LOS MAYAS”
Guatemala’s first contemporary Mayan (Q’anjobal) novelist discusses the post-civil war future of his people with the director of a humanitarian organization aiding returned war refugees in rebuilding their lives in northwestern Guatemala.
In English & Spanish, with translation.
thu, jan 19, 7 PM
Temple Grandin
Photo © Jason Fulford
Temple Grandin, Ph.D., is inarguably the most accomplished and well-known adult with autism in the world. She has been featured on "ABC's Primetime Live", the "Today Show", "Larry King Live", "48 Hours" and "20/20" and written up in Time magazine, People magazine, Forbes, U.S. News and World Report, and New York Times, among others. In addition, Bravo did a half-hour show on her life, and she was one of the "challenged" people featured in the best-selling book, Anthropologist from Mars.

Dr. Grandin didn't talk until she was three and a half years old, communicating her frustration instead by screaming, peeping and humming. In 1950, she was labeled "autistic," and her parents were told she should be institutionalized. She tells her story of "groping her way from the far side of darkness" in her book Emergence: Labeled Autistic, a book which stunned the world because, until its publication, most professionals and parents assumed being diagnosed "autistic" was virtually a death sentence to achievement or productivity in life.

Dr. Grandin has become a prominent author and speaker on the subject of autism because "I have read enough to know that there are still many parents, and, yes, professionals, too, who believe that 'once autistic, always autistic.' This dictum has meant sad and sorry lives for many children diagnosed, as I was in early life, as autistic. To these people, it is incomprehensible that the characteristics of autism can be modified and controlled. However, I feel strongly that I am living proof that they can." (Taken from Emergence: Labeled Autistic)

Even though she was considered "weird" in her young school years, she eventually found a mentor, who recognized her interests and abilities, which she later expanded into becoming a successful livestock handling equipment designer, one of very few in the world. She has designed the facilities in which half the cattle are handled in the United States, consulting for firms such as Burger King, McDonald's, Swift and others.

Dr. Grandin earned her Ph.D. in animal science from the University of Illinois, went on to become an associate professor at Colorado State University, and wrote two books on autism, including the seminal Thinking in Pictures. One of the most celebrated--and effective --animal advocates on the planet, Grandin revolutionized animal movement system and spearheaded reform of the quality of life for the world's agricultural animals. When not traveling the world speaking on both autism and animal handling, she lives in Ft. Collins, Colorado.

Visit her website at www.templegrandin.com