Category Archives: Science

More about chaos

Posted on November 9, 2011 by

Sometimes I get a comment from a reader that’s just too good to leave in the comments section where readers of the main blog page will not see it. So, I call your attention to Kemlo Aki’s helpful comment on … Continue reading →

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Enhanced math and science courses from MIT

Posted on July 21, 2011 by

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was among the pioneers of the open courseware (OCW) movement 10 years ago, when it created its OCW website, which offers study materials including syllabi, reading lists and recorded lectures for anyone with a web … Continue reading →

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Astrophysics for the rest of us

Posted on March 21, 2011 by

Columbia University astronomer David Helfand gives a brisk and bracing introduction to the cosmos in Frontiers of Science – Astronomy (website, iTunes), a series of three lectures on astrophysics, and you don’t need to remember any of your high school … Continue reading →

Posted in Five-star professors, iTunesU, Physics, Science | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

A great human biology course

Posted on February 8, 2011 by

If you like your science spiced with drama, Robert Sapolsky is the professor for you. In his Stanford University course Human Behavioral Biology (iTunes), he serves up nature in all its gory glory, and narrates the tale of scientific breakthroughs … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Biology, Courses, Five-star professors, Health, iTunesU, Science, YouTube courses | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Open Courseware from Carnegie Mellon

Posted on February 7, 2011 by

Saturday’s New York Times has an article about the Open Courseware movement which points out that Carnegie Mellon University recently joined the free Open Courseware club with its Open Learning Initiative website. Here you’ll find 14 courses, mostly math and … Continue reading →

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More courses from NYU

Posted on December 21, 2010 by

New York University’s YouTube channel and Open Education Website recently posted two new courses: Introduction to Sociology (website, YouTube), taught by Harvey Molotch. Natural Science II: Genomes and Diversity (website, YouTube), taught by Mark Siegal.   Related: NYU joins Open … Continue reading →

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Learning and Memory

Posted on July 13, 2010 by

How is Hollywood’s portrayal of amnesia almost always wrong? Can MRI brain imaging be used as a lie detector? How does the brain consolidate new memories? All of this and more is in Learning and Memory: How it Works and … Continue reading →

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E.O. Wilson And Will Wright on NPR’s “open mic”

Posted on September 21, 2009 by

What happens when you get really talented, accomplished people to interview other really talented, accomplished people? That’s the idea behind National Public Radio’s “open mic” series. Here’s a great clip of game designer Will Wright (creator of The Sims) interviewing … Continue reading →

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Taming technology

Posted on June 16, 2009 by

What should we do when a technology might be spreading too fast? Consider nano-silver, an antimicrobial compound that some fear might be damaging to many kinds of living cells. What happens if nano-silver gets into our waterways and oceans before … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic podcasts, Anthropology, Five-star professors, Idea of the week, Lectures, Science | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Introduction to Biological Anthropology

Posted on May 13, 2009 by

UC Berkeley neurobiologist Terrence Deacon gives a rousing grand finale to his spring 2009 course Introduction to Biological Anthropology (iTunes). The final three lectures explore the ways that our bodies and minds have been shaped by evolution, sometimes in ways … Continue reading →

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