There are literally hundreds of free courses online
Back in August, we told you about a free course on artificial intelligence being offered by Stanford University, and co-taught by two world-renowned AI experts. The class officially started today, so if you managed to register for it on time, then good on you.
But if you didn’t manage to register for the course in time, fear not. There are literally hundreds of free courses online — offered by some of the most prestigious universities in the world — that don’t require registration. We’ve picked out 10 that we think you’ll find particularly interesting, and included course descriptions and links to where you can watch or download them free of charge.
10. Darwin’s Legacy
Institution: Stanford
Taught By: Team taught; guest lecturers include leading scholars in fields ranging from anthropology, to religion, to literature, to biology.
Available Via: YouTube | iTunes U Video
Course Description: “Light will be thrown…” With these modest words, Charles Darwin launched a sweeping new theory of life in his epic book, On the Origin of Species (1859). The theory opened eyes and minds around the world to a radical new understanding of the flora and fauna of the planet. Here, Darwin showed for the first time that no supernatural processes are necessary to explain the profusion of living beings on earth, that all organisms past and present are related in a historical branching pattern of descent, and that human beings fall into place quite naturally in the web of all life. Now, 150 years later and 200 years after Darwins birth, we celebrate the amazingly productive vision and reach of his theory. In this Fall Quarter course, we will meet weekly with leading Darwin scholars from around the country to learn about Darwins far-reaching legacy in fields as diverse as anthropology, religion, medicine, psychology, philosophy, literature, and biology. With such a broad reach across the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities, no wonder the theory of evolution by natural selection has been called the single best idea, ever.
9. Astrobiology and Space Exploration
Institution: Stanford
Taught By: Lynn Rotschild & guest lecturers the likes of SETI Senior Astronomer Seth Shostak
Available Via: YouTube | iTunes U Video
Course Description:Astrobiology asks: Where do we come from? Are we alone? Where are we going? This course gives an overview of the excitement of astrobiology and space exploration, from the origin of our own biofriendly universe to questions of the future of mankind both on Earth and beyond.
8. Descriptive Introduction to Physics
Institution: UC Berkeley
Taught By: Steven Edward Boggs
Available Via: iTunes U Video
Course Description: The most interesting and important topics in physics, stressing conceptual understanding rather than math, with applications to current events. Topics covered may vary and may include energy and conservation, radioactivity, nuclear physics, the Theory of Relativity, lasers, explosions, earthquakes, superconductors, and quantum physics.
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