UMich Retirees Podcast

UMRA Mindfulness: How to Best Practice Your Mindfulness

UMRA Movie Reviews - Song Sung Blue

Based on a true story, two down-on-their-luck musicians (Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson) form a joyous Neil Diamond tribute band, proving it's never too late to find love and follow your dreams.

UMRA Reads: Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

"Achilles, "the best of all the Greeks," son of the cruel sea goddess Thetis and the legendary king Peleus, is strong, swift, and beautiful, irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward…

UMRA Reads: James by Percival Everett

"A brilliant reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn—both harrowing and satirical—told from the enslaved Jim's point of view." "When Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a man in New…

UMRA Mindfulness: What is Mindfulness?

Discussion of the book: "Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life" by Jon Kabat-Zinn "The author maps out a simple path for cultivating mindfulness in one's own life.…

UMRA Reads: In Ascension by Martin Macinnes

"An astonishing novel about a young microbiologist investigating an unfathomable deep vent in the ocean floor, leading her on a journey that will encompass the full trajectory of the cosmos and the…

The Power of Singing, the Power of Song with guitarist Matt Watroba

The Power of Singing, the Power of Song Matt Watroba Folk Singer Join us and enjoy a demonstration of the healing and unifying power of community singing. Inspired by the work of Pete Seeger, Watroba…

UMRA Reads: Books You Were Supposed to Read But Probably Didn't by John Atkinson

Abridged Classics: Brief Summaries of Books You Were Supposed to Read But Probably Didn't by John Atkinson is a humorous, cartoon-illustrated book that offers ultra-short, witty synopses of famous…

UMRA Reads: The Tennis Partner by Abraham Partner

"When Abraham Verghese, a physician whose marriage is unraveling, relocates to El Paso, Texas, he hopes to make a fresh start as a staff member at the county hospital. There he meets David Smith, a…

UMRA Reads: The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates began The Message intending to write about writing, but it evolved into a meditation on how stories and myths shape—and distort—our realities. In three linked essays, Coates journeys…

UMRA Reads - The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson

"When Jennifer Doudna was in sixth grade, she came home one day to find that her dad had left a paperback titled The Double Helix on her bed. As she sped through the pages, she became enthralled by…

UMRA Reads: An Elephant in the Kitchen by Francoise Malby-Anthony

"A heart-warming sequel to the international bestseller The Elephant Whisperer, by Lawrence Anthony's wife Françoise Malby-Anthony." "A blonde, chic Parisienne, Françoise never expected to find…

UMRA Reads: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

"The beloved American classic about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the century, Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is a poignant and moving tale filled with compassion and cruelty,…

UMRA Reads: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman

"Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar habits and routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him when he…

UMRA Reads: Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the Word by Anne Applebaum

"All of us have in our minds a cartoon image of what an autocratic state looks like, with a bad man at the top. But in the 21st century, that cartoon bears little resemblance to reality. Nowadays,…

ChatGPT Unveiled: Exploring the Power of AI Conversations

ChatGPT Unveiled: Exploring the Power of AI Conversations Edward Adams Former Chief Technology Officer Stephen M. Ross School of Business Ever wonder what it would be like to have an intelligent…

UMRA Reads: Tom Lake by Ann Patchette

"In the spring of 2020, Lara’s three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor…

UMRA Reads: The Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison

"Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon, a novel of large beauty and power, creates a magical world out of four generations of black life in America, a world we enter on the day of the birth of Macon Dead,…

Why Incompetence Fails to Recognize Itself with Professor David Dunning

Why Incompetence Fails to Recognize Itself David Dunning Professor of Psychology in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts Faculty Associate in the Research Center for Group Dynamics,…

UMRA Reads: The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn is a book about three female code breakers -- Osla, Mab and Beth -- at Bletchley Park during WWII. The women form a friendship (and a book club) over the years, but a…