A13: What Happens When the Universe Doesn't Make Sense: Douglas Adams


Start date: September 12, 2025

Time: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Location: Zoom

Category: WISE Class

Event Summary:

This is a five-week class that will meet online via Zoom; meeting dates are Fridays, Sept 12, 19, 26, Oct 3, 10

Event Description


Class dates: Fridays, Sept 12, 19, 26, Oct 3, 10 (5 weeks)

Class time: 10:00 am to 11:30 am

Location: Online (via Zoom)

From Cambridge University to work as a chicken-shed cleaner and living at home with his mother, Douglas Adams seemed destined for obscurity. The Universe was having none of it. The BBC radio series, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” led to a four-five-or-six-part trilogy of books along with comic books, a TV series, video games, and a place deep in the hearts of his many fans.

We’ll read some books, listen to radio clips, and watch a bit of TV before it’s time for lunch.

Recommended readings:

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - First volume of the series in print or audio formats available for purchase on Amazon. The book also available on CWMARS for borrowing. Each of the sites offers the additional books of the series.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Radio Series recordings are available on Audible for purchase and for free listening on the Internet Archive.

The TV series of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is available for purchase on Apple+.

Instructor: Karl Hakkarainen is a long-time WISE instructor with an academic background in American studies and career in information technology. He has taught courses on social networks, American history, education, music, intellectual property law, and artificial intelligence. He is chair of the WISE AI SIG.