Category Archives: Philosophy

Berkeley update: grassroots edition

Posted on August 11, 2011 by

While University of California Berkeley has yet to restore any of the missing courses to its website (background and here, here and here), at least one Berkeley fan has taken matters into his own hands. You can now find audio … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Courses, History, Philosophy | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Leo Strauss still speaks

Posted on May 20, 2011 by

Philosopher Leo Strauss (1899-1973) taught at the University of Chicago and inspired a generation of prominent conservative intellectuals, including Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, and former Secretary of Education William Bennett. He criticized modern … Continue reading →

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Gems from the Internet Archive

Posted on May 3, 2011 by

If you’ve ever tried to rummage around in the Internet Archive for interesting courses and lectures, you know that it can be a profoundly frustrating experience. The Archive, a non-profit digital library, has vast collections of audio and video material, … Continue reading →

Posted in Courses, Lectures, Literature, Philosophy | Tagged , | 2 Comments

The Jewish Spirit of Secularism

Posted on April 27, 2011 by

In 1918 Max Weber famously wrote that the modern world “is characterized by rationalization and intellectualization and, above all, by the disenchantment of the world.” In other words, the rise of science and rationality has taken the magic and mystery … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Courses, Five-star professors, History, Jewish studies, Philosophy, Religion | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

More short courses from Vanderbilt U

Posted on March 9, 2011 by

Russia: Empire to Revolution is just one of several short courses available online for free from The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Vanderbilt University. Sadly, two courses are available only as streaming webcasts.  But if you want to do a … Continue reading →

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Why study philosophy?

Posted on December 13, 2010 by

The late, great Princeton philosophy professor Walter Kaufmann (1921-1980) enjoyed being a skeptic and a gadfly. He liked to ask: what’s the point in studying the works of philosophers with “dreadful views?” After all, Plato champions totalitarianism and Kierkegaard disdains … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Five-star professors, Lectures, Philosophy | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Treasure trove of philosophy resources

Posted on November 28, 2010 by

This one is for you philosophy fans. The blog WhooshUp has compiled a great list of philosophy podcasts and webcasts. There’s also a bit of literature thrown in for good measure. While the blog focuses mainly on the classes of … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Courses, Lectures, Literature, Philosophy | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

UCSD, UCLA classes begin this week

Posted on September 21, 2010 by

New class rosters are up at the UCSD and UCLA podcast websites. A few of my old favorites have returned. You might want to check out these: Introduction to Political Theory (feed) Brian Walker, UCLA. UCLA Professor Brian Walker has … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Art, Asian Studies, Courses, Five-star professors, Philosophy, Sociology | Leave a comment

Intellectual History of the United States since 1865

Posted on September 1, 2010 by

Richard Candida Smith’s promising new UC Berkeley course, Intellectual History of the United States since 1865 (audio feed, video feed), is a history course with a difference. Instead of focusing on events, trends and personalities, the course aims to examine … Continue reading →

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UCSD summer session underway

Posted on July 8, 2010 by

University of California San Diego (UCSD) summer session #1 is now underway and you can download 11 courses from its podcast website. Since most of these courses will only stay on the website until the beginning of the next summer … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Courses, Five-star professors, Philosophy, Psychology | Tagged , , | 2 Comments