Dear Oakmont Lifelong Learning Community,

We hope this message finds you well. To continue providing you with the best possible experience, we will be performing scheduled maintenance on our website.

Maintenance Window:
Thursday, August 15, 8 – 10 p.m.

During this time, our website may be temporarily unavailable. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding as we work to improve our services.

Thank you for your patience and continued support.

Warm regards,
The Oakmont Lifelong Learning Team

Buy 2 or more classes at the same time and save 25% off the total.

The Fascinating World of Microorganisms – Purchase At Door

Instructor: Andrew Rogerson
Mondays, February 10, 17, 24 and March 3, 3:00 – 5:00 PM, Berger Center
4-week session. Cost: $65

Course Description:
Explore the unseen but amazing diversity of microorganisms and their beneficial or detrimental impact on humans. Explore new discoveries in this exciting science – new emerging infections, new organisms, and new tools to facilitate discovery.

Course Detail:
In case you wondered, it is not the Age of Man, or the Age of Insects – as Darwin thought when thousands of species were being found in the 1800s. It is the ‘Age of Microbes’, always has been and always will be. Almost daily come reports of new discoveries in this exciting science – new emerging infections, new organisms, and new tools to facilitate discovery. This course will introduce you to the diversity of these microorganisms that abound on the planet and how they affect humans through their vital activities (without them life as we know it would not exist on earth), as well as their beneficial and harmful roles in our lives. The amount of information in the field of microbiology is enormous but this 8-hour course will give you a new appreciation of the invisible and amazing world of microbiology. You will look at soil, at lakes and rivers, and even your skin with a new appreciation of the millions ‘of bugs’ you are looking at without seeing them! I would also like this course to be very interactive – we can wander off on interesting topics when the mood takes and discuss topical articles that appear almost daily in the press. Today, I read in the paper about another case of ‘brain eating amoeba’ in Georgia. Who doesn’t want to better understand what that infection is all about? I do, and I hope you do as well.

Week One:
The Microbial World with some Historical Milestones. The scientific study of microorganisms began with their observation under the microscope in the 1670s by Antony van Leeuwenhoek. Using a primitive microscope, he was able to observe and publish drawings of microbial life in pond water. In this session we shall explore some of the discoveries that shaped our understanding of microbiology. Ever wonder where the name listerine came from? The British physician Joseph Lister (1827-1912) used carbolic acid to exclude bacteria from wounds and operating instruments and was rewarded by mouthwash! Focusing on early discoveries we shall see how scientists like Jenner, Pasteur, Koch, and Fleming influenced our understanding of microbiology. And what constitutes the microbial world? We shall talk about the three domains that encompass all life – Bacteria, Archaea, and the Eucarya (i.e. protists and fungi at the microbial level). And what about viruses, viroids and prions?

Week Two:
Microscopy and Cell Structure: The microscopic study of cells has revealed two fundamental types of cells: prokaryotic and eukaryotic. This session will compare the two structural types. We shall also explore the structure of viruses which are neither prokaryotic nor eukaryotic. Much of what we know about cell structure comes from microscopy but why are light microscopes today, often costing $50,000 or more, limited to 1000 times magnification. Seems like modest progress given that Leeuwenhoek’s handcrafted microscope in the 1600s magnified an image 300-fold (300 times). Of course, today we also have electron microscopes and we shall cover how these work and how they have greatly enhanced our understanding of cell structure and function.

Week Three:
Microbial Ecology: In short, Microbial Ecology is the study of the relationships of microorganisms to each other and to their natural environment. The microbial world encompasses most of the phylogenetic diversity on Earth, as all Bacteria, all Archaea, and most lineages of the Eukarya are microorganisms. Microbes live in every kind of habitat (terrestrial, aquatic, atmospheric, or living host) and their presence invariably affects the environment in which they grow. Their diversity enables them to thrive in extremely cold or extremely hot environments. Their diversity also makes them tolerant of many other conditions, such as limited water availability, high salt content, and low oxygen levels. One reason to study microorganisms is their impressive abundance. Another is the amazing diversity of forms, and diversity of metabolic pathways, particularly amongst the prokaryotes (bacteria). Microbes can be found everywhere as long as there is water and they are crucial in the cycling of elements. Without their activity, life on the planet as we know it would cease. Let’s delve into the vital beneficial activities of microorganisms.

Week 4:
Humans and the Microbial World. If I asked you a simple question ‘why we should study microorganisms’ many of you would say because they cause disease. However, there are very, very few harmful microbes causing disease in humans relative to the huge numbers of microorganisms that inhabit our planet. Nevertheless, microorganisms do play a sinister role in our lives. More Americans died of influenza in 1918-19 than were killed in World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War combined. Of course, in the last 50 years, prevention of infectious diseases with vaccines and antibiotics has yielded spectacular results. Although progress has been impressive against bacterial diseases, much work remains in the treatment of viral diseases and so-called emerging diseases such as Legionnaire’s disease, Lyme disease, and cryptosporidiosis. This session will cover how antibiotics work but also delve into some of the more enigmatic disease challenges. Did you know that the largest waterborne disease ever recorded in the US was in Wisconsin in 1993. The protist Cryptosporidium, a parasite of some warm-blooded animals, was excreted into the municipal water supply. Over 403,000 people developed a diarrheal illness, over 4,000 required hospital care, and several died of complications. We shall also look at promising new approaches. How many had the messenger RNA vaccine for covid but didn’t really understand the genius of this new vaccine?

Instructor Biography:
Since earning my doctoral degree at the University of Stirling, Scotland, I have spent 40 years in academia, as a professor, researcher and ultimately as a senior Vice President at Sonoma State University followed by Chancellor at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock. My academic journey has taken me to work in 8 Universities, and 2 government research laboratories.

I have been a Principal investigator on research grants totaling over $3 million from agencies including EPA, NSF, and NOAA. Along the way I have published 124 papers and book chapters in the fields of biology, ecology, microbiology, and toxicology.

I have given over 100 invited talks at professional scientific meetings and been an occasional reviewer for 10 scientific journals. I was associate editor of the Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology for 5 years.

I was a member of a committee organized by the US Coast Guard to develop protocols for determining the efficacy of ballast water treatment systems to stop the spread of invasive species and a member of a committee organized by the Council of Cruise lines to develop best practices for sewage management on cruise ships. This committee was chaired by Sylvia Earle, a National Geographic Society Explorer-in-residence, and world-renown expert on oceans.

I retired in 2020, reside in Santa Rosa, and serve as a member of the Sonoma Arts Guild – paint pictures!