The Humanist Association of Connecticut

The Unitarian Society of New Haven has announced the first of its 2026-2027 Author Talk series, presenting Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Beverly Gage. She will discuss her latest book, This Land Is Your Land: A Road Trip through US History.

Billed as "the ultimate road trip into the American past," the book explores the museums, historic sites, roadside attractions, and souvenir shops where Americans learn—and fight—about our history. From the nation's founding in Philadelphia to Disneyland and the California dream, Gage takes us through thirteen iconic places that define America’s greatest ideals, contradictions, and challenges.

There will be time for questions and copies of the book will be available for purchase (at a 20% discount, courtesy of Possible Futures of New Haven) and signing.

Beverly Gage is a professor of American history at Yale University. Her bestselling biography, G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century, won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Biography, the Bancroft Prize, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.

The typos are gone. The awkward grammar is gone. The "Dear Sir/Madam" is gone. AI has given attackers flawless writing, perfect impersonation, and the ability to personalize thousands of scams at once. This 30-minute session looks at how phishing has changed and what still works to stop it.
We'll cover:

• How AI changed the game: polished, personalized emails built from public info like LinkedIn profiles and company websites
• Beyond the inbox: voice cloning, deepfake video calls, text message scams, and QR code phishing
• Real-world examples: the executive who was never on the call, and the "vendor" invoice that looked perfect
• Why old advice fails: "look for spelling mistakes" no longer protects anyone
• What actually works: verification habits, MFA, email security controls, and a culture where people feel safe reporting mistakes

Attendees will leave knowing what modern attacks look like and with a few simple steps they can put in place right away, whether they run a business or just have an inbox.

Our speaker is Scott "Scambuster" Gombar, founder and Chief Information Security Officer of Nwaj Tech, a Connecticut cybersecurity and managed IT firm that protects small and mid-sized businesses across the Northeast. He is a member of ISACA Greater Hartford, the CISSP Southern Connecticut chapter, and the New Haven County Bar Association.
We meet for coffee and conversation at 6:30 PM followed by Scott's presentation at 7:00 PM.