Miami University

'Titanic' speaker to open Lecture Series

09/08/1998

OXFORD, Ohio -- A Nobel Peace Prize winner and an attorney from the

infamous O.J. Simpson trial are among the speakers scheduled to take part in

the Miami University Lecture Series for 1998-99.

Marine geologist Robert Ballard, who led the expedition that discovered the

Titanic wreckage in 1985, will kick off the series Tuesday, Sept. 22, with

Living The Dream: Deep Sea Exploration. He has led or participated in

more than 50 deep sea expeditions, including the first exploration of the

Mid-Ocean Ridge.

On dry land, Ballard is a senior scientist in the department of ocean

engineering as well as head of the deep submergence laboratory at the Woods

Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Karen Armstrong, one of the foremost commentators in Great Britain on

religious affairs, will deliver A History of God on Monday, Nov 2.

Barry Scheck, the controversial DNA expert on O.J. Simpson's defense team,

will deliver DNA Evidence: The Innocence Project on Tuesday, Jan. 26.

The Innocence Project, created in 1992 by Scheck and Peter Neufeld, utilizes

DNA to free wrongly convicted inmates.

Lech Walesa, former president of Poland and 1983 winner of the Nobel Peace

Prize, will deliver Value and Its Role In Politics on Monday, March 29.

Welesa, now retired from politics, heads the Lech Walesa Institute, whose goal

is to champion free market reform and democracy in eastern Europe.

All lectures in the series will be held in Hall Auditorium on Miami's Oxford

campus at 8 p.m. Lectures are free and open to the public. However, seating

is limited. Tickets will be made available at 6 p.m. the day of the lecture.

For additional information, contact Lana Kay Rosenberg at 513-529-2730 or the

news and public information office at 513-529-7592.