Open Yale Courses

So many resources, so little time. This is one of those weekends when I am just overwhelmed with the sheer quantity and quality of the resources that lifelong learners have available on the Internet.

It's hard to know what to share today. I guess it has to be Yale University. What this site, Open Yale courses, lacks in number of courses, it makes up for in resources for each course. You can take a look a very diverse line-up, from astronomy to poetry.

ENGL 310 - Modern Poetry with Professor Langdon Hammer looks very interesting, as does PLSC 114 - Introduction to Political Philosophy with Professor Steven B. Smith.

You can choose from audio or video lectures and quite a bit of supporting material for each course.

It's getting ever more difficult to be an independent learner. Just choosing what to study can be extremely taxing. What wonderful dilemas we find ourselves facing.

Extremophiles at the NSF

The Special Report X-treme Microbes at the National Science Foundation presents a compact overview of radiation-eating and amazing survivors extremophiles. At first you think it's just a simplistic little program, but look further and be sure to "click" on everything available or you'll miss some great information.

Available for download are pdf's and a most interesting video. The related resources pages add other dimensions to the report in case you want to learn more. A text only version is available by clicking the button in the left lower corner.

Of course, you know how we independent learners are, never satisfied, can't have enough resources. So, guess what? I can't wait to see what else NSF has to offer.

Nature's Wonders in a Grocery Cart

Buying study materials in the food market is not standard operating procedure for me. But there I was, standing in line to check out. I had all the groceries out of the cart and a good two minutes to spare. So what to do? Browse the magazine displays of course. Guess what I found right between the weekly tabloids and the The Next Big Diet? A beautiful addition to my independent learning resources.


It's like the planet in a nutshell. Time, Inc. has done it again. Portrait of the Planet: TIME Nature's Wonders, The science and splendor of Earth's most fascinating places is 121 pages of amazing photos and concise explanations. It's the earth from a different point of view.


Divided into five sections, atmosphere, hydrosphere, pedosphere, cryosphere and geosphere, it's a quick read, but you won't be able to get the photographs out of your mind. The one of the San Andreas Fault in San Luis Obispo County, CA is unlike any I have seen. I can't decide on what else to share, they're all amazing, so you'll just have to see for yourself.

You really should buy this one for your learning toolbox. At this point, I'm not sure where to direct you, although I think that bookstores like Barnes and Noble will have it on their magazine rack. You might want to check out your local supermarket first!

Update: It's also available at Wal-Mart!

Thank You Google

This addition to our learning toolbox may seem obvious to all you lifelong learners. No drum roll of expectation here. However, Google Books has to be at the top of the list when you're ready to do research on the Internet.

I was reminded again today just how many nineteenth century volumes with full view are now available on Google Books. My favorite discoveries are little unexpected snippets of history that show up almost every time I do a search in Google Books.

For instance, I've been doing research on both the Lowell Institute (started because in the Lowell Observatory library there is a display that mentions Lowell Institute) and Amelia Blanford Edwards (started because I wanted to confirm when this monumental figure in Egyptology started her first American lectures.) I certainly didn't expect the two to be mentioned in the same sentence. But here it is, "The efforts made to secure a place for Miss Amelia B. Edwards as one of the lecturers before the Lowell Institute in Boston have been unsuccessful. No woman has ever yet delivered a Lowell course. The coming of Miss Edwards to America is anticipated with much interest." This popped up in on page 128 of The Literary World, Boston, April 13, 1889.

When one would normally read something to the effect that Amelia Edwards gave her first series of lectures in the United States in 1889, little jewels like this add a backdrop, a sense of what the atmosphere actually was at the time. I guess it could be called "timely local flavor."

As you can tell, it doesn't take many words to make this everyday scholar happy. I hope you enjoy Google Books as much as I do.

What Smart Students Know

Lifelong learners seem to never get enough of ways to learn. What Smart Students Know, by Adam Robinson, is written for high school and college students, but has dozens of very effective strategies for studying and learning that you will use everyday. It's one of those books that makes readers wish for a sequel. And on top of that, this paperback is so reasonably priced.

Robinson says, "Forget passively accepting what the education system has to offer: being a smart student means taking charge and teaching yourself. Becoming a smart student means taking responsibility for your education. The central message of this entire book can be summed up in a sentence: No school can teach you the way you learn best, so how much you learn and how well you do is up to you."

By this, he is not advocating that high school and college students drop school and embark on self-education. He details strategies for actually learning in school, not just showing up and filling a seat.

That's a bit off the point of this post, because what I want to say is that What Smart Students Know is filled with learning tips that lifelong learners can immediately put into practice. You will be so glad that you found this book. One extremely helpful stategy that this book details is the way to tackle each type of subject differently, for instance you don't approach geology the same way you do literature or history. You will learn how to ask expert questions. Ever grappled with trying to put into words what you have just spent hours, days or weeks learning? Robinson will show you how you can rearrange and put information into your own words so you can "own it." You'll have to discover for yourself just how great this book is.

A nod is given to independent scholars under the heading: Who Should Read This Book? "... It's for adults who want to take up a new subject and teach themselves."

It really is a jewel. Who doesn't want to find ways to learn faster, easier and better? After all, there is not enough time during our whole lives to learn all we want to learn. Every time I go back over this book, I learn something I missed in all the other readings. I never get tired of it. And I do wish for What Smart Students Know II. Hope it becomes an old friend in your learning toolbox.

Ron Schott's GSCI 100 - Intro Geology

Here's another "not to be missed" course if you are a lifelong learner interested in geology. I think you like Ron Schott's point of view. Dr. Schott is Assistant Professor of Geology at Fort Hays State University.

His course, GSCI 100 - Intro Geology, makes available a syllabus and lecture schedule. The schedule is the jumping off point to access:

1. A detailed outline for each class, with links to websites, books available at Amazon and many of his own photos that illustrate the topic at hand.
2. Homework
3. Study guides for exams so that you can understand what he expects you to learn even though you don't have access to the exams themselves.
4. Podcasts, actually two for each class session because he teaches two sections.

He offers a goldmine of material through 45 lectures and all associated materials. I hope you appreciate Ron's willingness to share this course. Kudos to him for a superb learning resource.

The Independent Scholar's Handbook

Are you a big fan of Ron Gross? His Peak Learning is still my all-time favorite book on lifelong learning. I think the first edition is best, maybe it's the feel of the paper. The revised edition is printed on a much rougher textured paper. There seems to be no accounting for what draws us to certain books.

Did you know that you can now download a pdf of The Independent Scholar's Handbook? It's available on the website for the Canadian Academy of Independent Scholars, based at Simon Fraser University Continuing Studies, Vancouver, B.C. Go to the download page for the Digital re-issue of The Independent Scholar's Handbook.

On this page you'll also find the foreword to the digital edition. Among other things, he says, "They share my hope that the information in these pages may give fresh heart, hope, and help to all who pursue knowledge and understanding in whatever field."

And success to all lifelong learners everywhere!

Internet's Next Big Thing

Last week Associated Content put out what it called "the ultimate call for content" to celebrate Internet Week New York. They wanted articles related to the Internet and what will be the one really big thing on the Internet during the coming year.

My contribution is The Internet is a Place for Education ( two sentences are left off of the introduction. It should read, "Education is flourishing on the Internet, claiming its rightful place along side news, commerce, social networking, and recreation. So, what’s next?")

I decided to participate because I believe that the very best use of the Internet is for education. Since more and more learning resources are being made available online, I think that education is going to be the next big thing on the Internet. Of course the piece of that next big thing that most interests me in independent learning. It is truly and exciting time to be a lifelong learner.

Astrobiology Course at Berkeley

Something else from Berkeley. Integrative Biology 167, Fall 2004, Astrobiology: The Scientific Search for Life in the Universe. No podcasts as far as I can tell, but this is a course website with the syllabus, lecture pdf's, readings and some excellent links (a few of the links are broken, but for the most part they are active and lead to lots of information.)

Sometimes older course lectures are a bit, well old, but I think you'll find these lecture slides extremely helpful if you're looking for astrobiology study resources.

Also, check out the book companion website, Life in the Universe by Bennett, Shostak, Jakosky.

UC Berkeley Course Podcasts

Want to study at Berkeley? Think that it's out of reach? Well, think again. Go here to see just how many courses you "take" using either audio or video podcast. Some courses are also available on iTunes U or YouTube.

From the Spring 2008 list, you can choose courses ranging from Introduction to Archaeology to Globalization to Introduction to Practical Reasoning and Critical Analysis of Argument. How's that for a range of subjects?

My personal favorite is Geog 130 Natural Resources and Population. Professor Sayre is a great! And you really must check out the Fall 2007 course, EPS 170 Crossroads of Earth Resources and Society. George Brimhall is the coolest Prof. This course has a website with lecture pdf's available, plus lots of other interesting course information.

Please note that some of the older courses are going to be archived and will not be available on this site, but I'm not sure what the time frame is.

Have fun! Just be aware that you're going to face a problem here. It's extremely difficult to decide what course to tackle first. This is as good as it gets, if you are not looking to get credit for courses.