Thank you to everyone who braved the dementor weather on Sunday and filled Dr. Emmons’s talk past capacity!
We’ve had a Potions class and two Herbology talks so far in our Hogwarts University series. This week we’re offering a new subject: Dr. Beth Johnson will be presenting a Muggle Studies class entitled “But It’ll be Fascinating to Study Muggles from the Wizarding Point of View!” From the description of her talk on our libguide:
Hermione’s opinion on why she should want to take Muggle Studies, even though she’s Muggle-born, still resonates outside the Harry Potter World.  Here, our magic is science, and social science has been researching the impact of the Harry Potter series on readers’ attitudes and behavior since the series established itself as a cultural icon. For example, psychologists have found that reading Harry Potter books reduces people’s prejudice toward disadvantaged people and minority groups. This talk will share some of the amazing findings from studies on the Muggle fans of the books and invite listeners to participate in discussion of the implications of those discoveries.  
Dr. Johnson will be speaking this Sunday, September 20th, at 4:00 pm in the Herrick Library Seminar Room. On the same day, the Alfred Village Farmer’s Market will be running their special Hogsmeade Market, with events and vendors themed around the world of Harry Potter. We recommend making a day of it by browsing the Hogsmeade Market and then coming to hear the talk!
Does Sunday seem too far away for more Harry Potter? Fortunately for you, Herrick will also be hosting a showing of the movie Discovering the Real World of Harry Potter. This critically-acclaimed documentary explores the myths and legends that inhabit the real world of Harry Potter, including gods and goddesses, ghosts, alchemy, and much more. The film showing will be at 8:00 pm in the Book End Lounge at Herrick Library, Thursday, September 17th.
In brief: Movie on Thursday, lecture and market on Sunday. Come on by!