Several video broadcasts exploring areas related to the work of the Maxwell Institute are available to view online through the BYU Web site. In February, the College of Humanities at BYU presented, as part of their "Voices in the Human Conversation" program that was originally broadcast on KBYU, a lecture by Roger Macfarlane, associate professor of humanities, classics, and comparative literature at BYU. Entitled "Illuminating the Papyri from Herculaneum, Oxyrhymchus, and Beyond," Macfarlane discussed Multi-Spectral Imaging and ancient texts. In the past, the Center for the Preservation of Ancient Religious Texts at the Maxwell Institute (then under the auspices of FARMS) assisted scholars like Macfarlane in retrieving images from such places as Herculaneum, Petra, and Bonampak. Although CPART's emphasis now involves digitizing ancient works through other methods, Macfarlane has carried on BYU's work of multispectral imaging.

"Voices in the Human Conversation" is a lecture series intended to help the public participate in a dialogue of the study of language, its structures and features, and the recognition that it is through language that we perceive and experience the world. The lecture series features college faculty members, their scholarly research, and their unique insights.

An earlier series of lectures is also available for online viewing as part of the "Voices in the Human Conversation" program. Most of the presenters have published with the Institute, and their subjects are of interest to the Institute. All originally aired in September 2007:

° "The Critical Text Project of the Book of Mormon," Royal Skousen, professor of linguistics and English language, BYU. Skousen discusses the monumental study of the Book of Mormon text detailing the translation and transcription processes involved in the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.

° "Seven Striking Features of the Dead Sea Scrolls Bible," Donald W. Parry, professor of Hebrew Bible studies, BYU. Parry, a member of the international team of translators of the Dead Sea Scrolls, discusses aspects of the scrolls.

° "Popol Vuh: The Creation," Allen J. Christenson, professor of humanities, classics, and comparative literature, BYU. Christensen has studied Maya culture, literature, and art for many decades. He has published an English translation of the Popul Vuh, the single most important ancient Maya book to have survived the impact of the arrival of Europeans in the new world in the 15th and 16th centuries.

° "The Great World of the Spirits of the Dead: Some Contexts for D&C 138," George S. Tate, professor of humanities, classics, and comparative literature, BYU. Tate lectures on this section that was received by President Joseph F. Smith shortly before his death in 1918.

To view the podcasts of each lecture, go to http://humanities.byu.edu/media and click on the hyperlinked sentence, "Click here for the Voices in the Human Conversation podcast," then select a lecture. ◆