The majority of my daily work involves transfering fruit flies from one vial to another. While I do this, I like to listen to lectures on my mp3 player, so that I can continue to learn while I work.
So, I was hoping that others with a similar interest in the academic resources that have recently begun to emerge from the web will help me make a list of the available lectures, and give them each a rating. I'll begin:
The Medieval Intellectual Tradition
This lecture series covers the major philosophers and philosophical questions of the Middle Ages. It includes a fair bit of material on medieval life, and the section on early universities is recommended for anyone going into academia. However, one of the lecturers tends to make a bizzare moaning noise between sentences, which sounds like the dying gasp of a butchered lamb. This, and a few other minor oratory problems are the only things that prevent me from giving the series a perfect score.
Grade: A-
Existentialism in Literature and Film
Existentialism is a difficult subject, and any help understanding it is appreciated. Unforunately, Professor Dreyfus has choosen to explore it in part through various books, which makes the class an odd hybrid of Philosophy and World Literature. The audio quality is decent but not perfect, and the classes consist of long stretches of boring facts followed by short pieces of genuinely interesting information.
Grade: B-
Biophysics 101
This set of classes covers the basics of Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics. The lectures are well done, but learning about these subjects often requires visual aids, and video access is restricted to Harvard students. In addition, beginners may find some of the material to be confusing.
Grade: B+ |
