Profs and Pints Meetup-Metro DC

Profs and Pints Northern Virginia presents: “Unmasking Superheroes,” a thoughtful look at the meaning and messages of Superman, Batman, and other powerful pop icons, with Matthew Brake, associate professor of philosophy at Northern Virginia Community College, former religious studies instructor at George Mason University, and editor of the book series Theology, Religion, and Pop Culture and Studies in Comics and Religion.

[Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-superheroes .]

The buzz surrounding the latest Superman movie shows how superheroes continue to flex muscle at the box office. They also remain forces to be reckoned with on television, in comics, and in video games.

Recently, however, such masked and caped figures face a new challenge: Critics who argue that they represent empty entertainment or something much more insidious, such as fascist strongmen.

Would we be better off if today’s superhero fans found other characters to follow? Would Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne, or Diana Prince be doing us a favor by not revealing themselves as beings with incredible powers?

Join Matthew Brake, a philosophy professor who has written extensively about the theological and philosophical value and meaning of superheroes, for a deep discussion of whether superheroes teach us anything important about ourselves and our potential to change the world for better or worse.

We’ll start by grappling with the criticisms of superheroes offered by legendary film directors like Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola, who argue that superhero movies don’t represent “true cinema” and are instead akin to amusement park rides, offering thrills and little more. Then we’ll venture into a deeper realm to look at what superheroes stand for if not pure escapism.

You’ll hear Bill Maher’s take that the dominance of the superhero genre undermines efforts to encourage all citizens to be proactive, by teaching us instead to wait for some strongman to come save us. You’ll learn how one of mainstream comics’ most celebrated writers, Alan Moore, created the Watchmen as a critique of the very idea of the superhero, arguing that superheroes are fine for children, but fascist tendencies are enforced by adults’ celebration of superheroes and their powers.

Taking a more positive view are comic creators like Grant Morrison, known for All-Star Superman—an inspiration for the recent movie—who depicts superheroes as a type of humanist ideal worth striving for in their goodness.

You’ll learn about the great thinkers whose ideas underly such debates. Watching someone leap tall buildings in a single bound will never be the same. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image by Canva.

Profs and Pints DC presents: “The New Politics of Public Health,” on the Trump administration’s impact on federal health agencies and policies, with Richard Hughes IV, healthcare policy expert and professorial lecturer in law and former professorial lecturer in health policy at George Washington University.

[Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/politics-public-health .]

The re-election of President Donald Trump has had major implications for health policy, especially when it comes to vaccines and matters of public health. Trump’s selection of Robert F. Kennedy to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services—along with his choice of other like-minded appointees to head the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control—has led to disruption and uncertainty within such agencies.

Closely following such developments has been lawyer Richard Hughes, a nationally recognized expert (and teacher of courses on) law and policy dealing with vaccination and disease prevention. In his former position as vice president of public policy at Moderna he guided the company’s policy strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has led many efforts to expand and protect access to vaccines and preventive services and also advised Congress, federal agencies, businesses, and patient advocacy organizations.

Join Hughes at Washington D.C.’s Penn Social for a talk in which he’ll examine President Trump’s picks for health agencies, the administration’s actions and policies related to health, and the implications of it all for public health and vaccine access. He’ll look at the views of appointed officials, the short-term and long-term impacts of their thinking and actions on public-health outcomes, and the legal and policy considerations that such developments raise. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. Talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image: A subsequently edited photograph of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. by Gage Skidmore. (Creative Commons.)

Profs and Pints DC presents: “How Do You Fly This Thing?” A discussion of the basics of piloting airplanes and navigating DC airspace, with Nate Young, FAA-certified commercial pilot and flight instructor at Washington International Flight Academy.

[Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/fly-this-thing .]

For many of us, riding in an airplane from point A to B is an act of faith. Lacking much understanding of how the plane flies, how anyone flies it, or what’s happening around us, we sit there experiencing varying degrees of trust and trepidation.

Profs and Pints is offering those who want a deeper understanding of airplane flight the next best thing to a seat in the cockpit: An evening with an airplane pilot and instructor at one of the region’s largest flight schools.

You’ll learn the basics of how airplanes fly, focusing on the importance of lift, weight, drag, and thrust and how airplanes harness the laws of physics. You’ll be introduced to the various dials, gauges, and gizmos that are standard flight instruments in airplane cockpits and enable pilots to know airspeed, direction, and basic orientation to the ground. We’ll cover the basics of how to read a navigation chart and look at the “roadmaps” that pilots of all types use in getting around the United States.

You’ll learn how to read and predict weather like a pilot, based on how they take into consideration cold or warm fronts, low- or high-pressure systems, radar, and weather information sites. You’ll gain a sense of how to view clouds through their eyes, considering cloud shape, color, and height to predict bumpiness or unstable air and whether a nasty thunderstorm is brewing.

Young, who trains private pilots, commercial pilots wanting to become flight instructors, and retiring U.S. military pilots seeking to transition to commercial airline work, also will discuss how pilots make risk assessments using FAA-approved frameworks. We’ll cover explanations for in-flight turbulence and other things you might experience as a passenger.

Finally, we’ll cover the region’s rich aviation history and heritage and what makes airspace over Washington D.C. especially complex and restrictive, touching upon why pilots follow the Potomac River into Reagan National and what F-16s have in store for aircraft headed toward the White House without permission. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image: Photo by Nate Young.

Profs and Pints Northern Virginia presents: “The Truth About Confessions,” an exploration of police interrogation practices and how they can lead the innocent to falsely admit guilt, with Hayley Cleary, associate professor of criminal justice and public policy at Virginia Commonwealth University.

[Advance tickets: $13.50 plus sales tax and processing fees. Available at https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/profsandpints/nv-confessions .]

Would you ever confess to a crime you didn’t commit? Most people say no, yet scores of research studies show it’s surprisingly easy to induce false admissions of guilt. Real-world data confirm that innocent people have falsely confessed to heinous and violent crimes under the stress of interrogation by police.

Join Dr. Hayley Cleary, an internationally recognized expert on police interrogations and false confessions, for an in-depth look at contemporary American interrogation practices and how they can pave the way toward wrongful convictions of crime.

She’ll discuss how police interrogation tactics both intentionally and inadvertently trade on the psychological weaknesses of vulnerable suspects.

She’ll also look at the risk factors that make people more likely to give false confessions. These can be dispositional, related to adolescence and developmental immaturity, intellectual disabilities, or certain forms of psychopathology. Or they can be situational and related to aspects of the interrogation environment or interactions taking place there, with examples being prolonged custody and isolation, the presentations of false evidence, or implied promises of leniency.

There will be some good news. Dr. Cleary will also discuss the innocence movement to free wrongfully convicted people and also the remarkable progress being made in the development of evidence-based investigative interviewing techniques that promote due process and elicit accurate, reliable information. (Doors: $17, or $15 with a student ID. Listed time is for doors. The talk starts 30 minutes later.)

Image by Canva.