The Last Voyage of the CSS Shenandoah (October 1 - 7) 
The CSS Shenandoah was the only ship in the Confederate navy to circumnavigate the globe. History scholar Alan Harris (ODU) notes the Shenandoah was also the last raider to learn about the end of the Civil War and thus continued to sink ships all over the world for two-and-a-half months after Appomattox.
Also: Religious Studies professor Kip Redick (CNU) leads students on a walking journey along the Appalachian Trail each summer and believes the experience leaves them with a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them.
Tobacco Buyout - the End of An Era (October 8 -14)
After years of subsidizing tobacco, the federal government ended its tobacco quota program one year ago. Agricultural economics professor Dixie Reaves (VT) left is the daughter of a tobacco farmer and Cliff Sommerville left bottom advises growers for VSU’s Small Farm Outreach Program. They discuss the economic and emotional implications of the biggest change in farm policy in 70 years. Also featured: Wendell Berry, below, an activist, author and farmer who writes extensively about rural life, offers his insight into preserving traditional family farms and their communities. And a short outtake from Jim Crawford’s (VT) recent documentary “Down in the Old Belt” about the demise of tobacco farming in Virginia.
Bullies and their Victims (October 15-21)
Bullies enjoy what they do. Psychology professor Thomas Moeller (UMW) has analyzed 25-years of research and says newer data suggests that, while bullying is a learned behavior that kids have gotten away with, some bullies are just plain mean and enjoy inflicting pain. Also: Attorney and psychology professor Elaine Cassel (Lord Fairfax Community College) chides the entire community of Red Lake, Minnesota for missing the warning signs left by school shooter, Jeff Weise. And: the father of a 12-year-old bullying victim tells the story of his son’s experience and how it led to a new Virginia anti-bullying bill.
Cleanliness is next to Godliness (October 22 -28)
Back in the 1700s, people rarely bathed. They thought disease infiltrated the body through the pores and that natural body oils helped fight off illness. Spanish scholar Anne Gilfoil (UVA-Wise) left discovered in her research of 19 th-century Spanish novels, that hygiene practices dictated many aspects of a person’s life—from ventilating their homes to frequency of sexual relations.
Also: Otolaryngologist Evan Reiter (VCU) right treats people with smell and taste disorders and says their safety and health can be severely affected as well as their capacity to enjoy life.
Virginia Politics After the Shadplanking (October 29 - November 4)
The political landscape in Virginia has shifted dramatically during the past 30 years. A panel of political scientists will engage in a round-table, free-wheeling discussion about what these changes mean for the citizens of the Commonwealth in advance of the November 8 th election.
Stephen Farnsworth (UMW) left, Quentin Kidd (CNU) right and John McGlennon (W&M)below may even make a few scholarly predictions.
