The American Founders and Their World

≡ Category: History, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Throughout this year, my program at Stanford has been celebrating its 20th anniversary, and we’ve put together some special courses for the occasion. This spring, we offered a class featuring some of the finest American historians in the country, and together, they looked back at “The American Founders and Their World.” (Get it free on [...]

‘Stanford Open Office Hours’ on Facebook

≡ Category: Stanford |Leave a Comment

Think back to the office hours you attended in college. Now put a Web 2.0 slant on it. On Facebook, Stanford faculty members are now holding public office hours. This week, you can watch an introductory video (view here or below) by Philip Zimbardo, the psychology professor best known for the Stanford Prison Experiment, which explains why [...]

Adult Content. For Mature Thinkers Only

≡ Category: History, Literature, Philosophy, Stanford |1 Comment

A new season of Entitled Opinions (iTunes Feed Web Site) recently got off the ground, and it doesn’t take long to understand what this program is all about. Robert Harrison, the Stanford literature professor who hosts the show, opens the new season with these very words:
Our studios are located below ground, and every time I go down [...]

Stanford Teaches You to Develop iPhone Apps (Free)

≡ Category: Apple, Stanford, iPhone |1 Comment

A quick heads up: Stanford has just launched a free software development course for the iPhone and iPod Touch. The lectures will be rolled out on iTunes first, and eventually they will be posted on YouTube as well. You can get the first lecture on iTunes here. This 10 week computer science course is officially [...]

Funny, Fascinating, Educational Lecture on Primate Sexuality

≡ Category: Science, Stanford |Leave a Comment

This is Part 1 of a funny but also substantive talk about primate sexuality given by Robert Sapolsky to his Human Behavioral Biology class at Stanford University. As Cory Doctorow noted when featuring this video over at Boing Boing, Sapolsky (author of Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers) does a great job of lecturing on biology, [...]

The Future of Human Health TED-Style

≡ Category: Science, Stanford, Video - Science |Leave a Comment

This week the 2009 TED Conference is kicking into full gear, and it’s getting live blogged by BoingBoing throughout the week. See for example here, here and here. If you’re familiar with the TED format, you’ll know that the goal is to take influential thinkers and have them deliver the “talk of their lives” in [...]

Darwin’s Legacy on YouTube

≡ Category: Science, Stanford, Video - Science |1 Comment

Back in October, I mentioned that Stanford had posted on iTunes a course called Darwin’s Legacy, which helped commemorate the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species.
The course brings together important scholars from across the US who explore Darwin’s legacy in fields as diverse as anthropology, religion, medicine, [...]

Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity: Now Live on YouTube and iTunes

≡ Category: Online Courses, Physics, Science, Stanford, Video - Science |3 Comments

This week, Stanford has started to roll out a new course, Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. Taught by Leonard Susskind, one of America’s leading physics minds, this course is the fourth of a six-part sequence – Modern Physics: The Theoretical Minimum – that traces the development of modern physics, moving from Newton to Black Holes. As the [...]

From the Civil War to the Vietnam War - The Geography of US Presidential Elections

≡ Category: Current Affairs, History, Online Courses, Stanford |Leave a Comment

The Geography of US Presidential Elections keeps rolling along. With his well-crafted lectures, Martin Lewis shows you this week how America’s political map and its political parties changed dramatically following the Civil War. In the space of 90 minutes, he takes you through the Reconstruction period, The Gilded Age, the Depression, World War II and The [...]

Darwin’s Legacy

≡ Category: Science, Stanford |1 Comment

For weeks, it’s been one of the most popular podcasts on iTunes: Created by the Cassiopeia Project, “Evolution” (iTunesU) offers a series of video podcasts that explains what scientists know about evolution in a visually appealing format. (If you don’t have an iPod, you can always watch the series on your computer by downloading iTunes here.)
This [...]

Invitation to Stanford’s Course on the US Presidential Elections

≡ Category: Online Courses, Stanford |3 Comments

Here’s a project that a few colleagues and I have had some fun developing. So it only seems fair that I get the scoop, right?
Starting on October 15, you can follow a timely, free course presented by Stanford University. Led by Martin Lewis, the course will explore the geography of U.S. presidential elections (both past [...]

The Top Five Collections of Free University Courses

≡ Category: MIT, Online Courses, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Yale |1 Comment

Last week, the launch of Stanford Engineering Everywhere, featuring 10 free computer science and engineering courses, got no shortage of buzz on the net. This led me to think, why not highlight other major collections of free university courses/resources. As you’ll see, each collection offers countless hours of free, high quality content. Download the audio [...]

Free Stanford Computer Science & Engineering Courses Now Online

≡ Category: Online Courses, Stanford, Technology, Video - Science |14 Comments

Stanford Engineering Everywhere is a new project rolling out of Stanford, and it’s making available to anyone, anywhere 10 complete online computer science and electrical engineering courses. This includes the three-course Introduction to Computer Science series taken by the majority of Stanford undergraduates.
The top-notch courses are free, which means that we’ve added them to our [...]

Stanford Online Writing Courses (Fall)

≡ Category: Stanford |2 Comments

A quick fyi: Stanford Continuing Studies opened up registration for its fall lineup of online writing courses. Offered in partnership with the Stanford Creative Writing Program (one of the most distinguished writing programs in the country), these online courses give beginning and advanced writers, no matter where they live, the chance to refine their craft [...]

Understanding Modern Physics: Download Leonard Susskind Video Lectures

≡ Category: Online Courses, Physics, Science, Stanford, Video - Science |5 Comments

What’s the “theoretical minimum” for thinking intelligently about modern physics? Here’s your chance to find out. Below, you will find three courses (the first of eventually six) presented by Leonard Susskind, a Stanford physicist who helped conceptualize string theory and has waged a long-running “Black Hole War” with Stephen Hawking (see his new book on [...]

Stanford Launches YouTube Channel; Oprah Gives Graduation Speech

≡ Category: Stanford |Leave a Comment

Today, Stanford is officially launching its YouTube channel (get it here). Among the videos, you will find Oprah Winfrey’s commencement speech (given this weekend) and other graduation speeches from recent years. From there, you can peruse the larger video collection. Notably, the channel offers access to some complete courses, including Clay Carson’s African-American History: [...]

Art by Committee: The Story Behind the Writing of “Shake Girl”

≡ Category: Books, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Here at Stanford, a couple of our teachers (Tom Kealey and Adam Johnson) took a novel approach to running a writing class. They wanted to see what happens when 14 students collectively write, edit and illustrate a graphic novel. (A graphic novel is a type of comic book that features a lengthy and complex storyline.) [...]

Stanford Online Writing Courses

≡ Category: Stanford |Leave a Comment

A quick fyi: Yesterday, Stanford Continuing Studies opened up registration for its summer lineup of online writing courses. Offered in partnership with the Stanford Creative Writing Program (one of the most distinguished writing programs in the country), these online courses give beginning and advanced writers, no matter where they live, the chance to refine their [...]

Thomas Friedman (While Not Dodging Eco-Pies) Argues “Green is the New Red, White & Blue”

≡ Category: Current Affairs, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Speaking at Brown University earlier this week, Thomas Friedman had to deal with some unfortunate extra-curricular activities. As he took the stage, two students calling themselves the “Greenwash Guerillas” launched pies (video here) at Friedman and largely missed. But they did leave behind some pamphlets spelling out their motives. According to The Brown Daily Herald, [...]

Global Geopolitics: A New Stanford Course on iTunes

≡ Category: Online Courses, Stanford |2 Comments

Today we’re highlighting for you a new course posted on Stanford University’s iTunes site. Originally presented by Stanford Continuing Studies (where I happily spend my days), Global Geopolitics is taught by geography expert Martin Lewis, and “examines the global political situation from a geographical perspective. Topics include: how the countries of the world were formed [...]

History, Power and our Global Society

≡ Category: History, Politics, Stanford |7 Comments

Here’s a new, free course from Stanford University. Taught by James Sheehan, the History of the International System (iTunes) offers a historical view of international politics in the 20th century, exploring how international players have attempted to project their will and protect their interests, all while negotiating fluid and not always manageable external forces. The [...]

Online Writing Courses at Stanford (Spring)

≡ Category: Stanford |Leave a Comment

Quick fyi: Starting Monday, you can sign up for online writing courses at Stanford. (See list below.) Offered by Stanford Continuing Studies and the Stanford Creative Writing Program (one of the most distinguished writing programs in the country), these online courses give beginning and advanced writers, no matter where they live, the chance to refine [...]

Lawrence Lessig’s Last Speech on Free Culture (Watch it)

≡ Category: Current Affairs, Law, Stanford, Video - Politics/Society |Leave a Comment

Below we have posted the last lecture that Lawrence Lessig will ever present on Free Culture. It’s an area where he has spent the past decade working, and this talk offers an excellent introduction to Lessig’s thought and work on this issue. Given at Stanford on January 31, the presentation is one that Steve Jobs [...]

Online Writing Courses at Stanford

≡ Category: Stanford |Leave a Comment

Quick fyi: Starting today, you can sign up for online writing courses from Stanford. Offered by Stanford Continuing Studies and the Stanford Creative Writing Program (which is one of the most distinguished writing programs in the country), these online courses give beginning and advanced writers, no matter where they live, the chance to refine their [...]

The Future of Collaborative Culture?

≡ Category: Media, Stanford, Technology |Leave a Comment

I just heard Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia, speaking at Stanford Law School today. Wales is working on some new projects that he hopes will harness the community-driven collaboration of Wikipedia. He’s already had some success in branching out from the encyclopedia idea with Wikia, which is a “wiki farm” compiling information on a variety [...]

Hannibal on iTunes: From the Classical World to Archaeology Today

≡ Category: History, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Let me elaborate on an item that we touched upon very briefly earlier this week. Stanford University has rolled out a new free course on iTunes (listen here) that takes you inside the life and adventures of Hannibal, the great Carthaginian military tactician who maneuvered his way across the Alps and stunned Roman armies in [...]

Straight Talk about Stem Cells: Another Stanford Course via Podcast

≡ Category: Online Courses, Science, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Last week, we mentioned The Future of the Internet. This week it’s another course available as a free podcast : Straight Talk About Stem Cells (iTunes).
The course was taught by Christopher Scott, the Executive Director of Stanford’s Program on Stem Cells in Society and the author of Stem Cell Now: An Introduction to the Coming [...]

The Future of the Internet: A New Stanford Course

≡ Category: Online Courses, Stanford, Web/Tech |2 Comments

Here is a new and free course to come out of a Stanford University program that (full disclosure) I help organize. It’s called The Future of the Internet: Architecture and Policy (iTunes), and it’s taught by Ramesh Johari. The course, designed for non-techies, gets into the important question of whether the internet will remain “neutral” [...]

Five Stanford Courses Available as Free Podcasts on iTunes

≡ Category: Online Courses, Stanford |Leave a Comment

Over the past six months, Stanford has released several podcasts of full-fledged courses on iTunes. This past week, the university released yet another — The Geography of World Cultures. You can now download five courses in total, all for free.Below, you’ll find links to each course, plus descriptions of what ground each course covers. Please [...]

Stanford Rolls Out Another Podcast Course and a New iTunes Look

≡ Category: Stanford |1 Comment

Stanford re-launched its iTunes site last week, rolling out a new sleek look and a host of new podcasts.
Among the new releases, you’ll find the latest in a series of full-fledged courses ready to be downloaded to your iPod for free. (See the previous courses we’ve mentioned here, here and here.) This time around, [...]

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    Open Culture editor Dan Colman scours the web for the best cultural and educational media. He finds the books you want, the classes you need, and plenty of enlightenment in between.

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