The University Forum lecture series at UNLV will kick off its spring season in February with a variety of presentations, including talks dealing with balancing leisure and work, the effect of television culture on our knowledge of the world around us, and the need to place more emphasis on eliminating economic inequities in America.

All of the talks are free and open to the public and will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History. The series is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts.

"The Balancing Act: Work, Family, and Leisure" will be the first presentation of the spring semester. John R. Kelly, a professor in the department of leisure studies at the University of Illinois, will discuss maintaining balance between work, leisure, and family responsibilities in American life. This presentation will take place Feb. 6.

On Feb. 19, Patricia Clough will discuss "The Social in the Age of Television." Clough, a sociology professor at Queens College at the City University of New York Graduate Center, will talk about the relationship between mass media technology and the widespread transformation of late 20th century life. She will focus on televisual culture and the ways in which it has influenced what we know about ourselves and the world around us. Clough is the author of "The Ends of Ethnography," "Feminist Theory," and "Post-Structuralism and Beyond." Her presentation is being co-sponsored by the UNLV Women's Studies program.

"The Intellectuals and the Poor" will be the topic on Feb. 20 when Richard Rorty, a professor in the philosophy department at the University of Virginia, speaks at UNLV. Rorty maintains that both those to the left and those to the right in American politics spend an amazing amount of time discussing "cultural issues" and much too little time discussing economic issues. It would be better to spend time discussing the economic inequities that are splitting America apart than to spend it talking about deconstructionism, multiculturalism, prayer in schools, abortion, and family values, according to Rorty. His presentation is being co-sponsored by UNLV's philosophy department.

For additional information about the University Forum lecture series, call 895-3401.