Coursera

[spotty_dog]

Um...I'm now signed up for 9 courses. Mad with power! Most of them haven't even been scheduled yet, so if they overlap too much I can always back out.

This is way too exciting. I was ready to take a community college course just for the sake of doing SOMETHING with my brain, until I realized it would be something like $350 tuition plus a ~$100 textbook just to take a potentially stultifying and probably not long-term-valuable class. Not to mention the roadblock of getting an application together and submitting it by a deadline. Coursera is the answer to all my prayers, LOL. Professional student here I come!

WGW, it seems like every stats prof I ever had was an incredible bore. I don't envy you graduate-level stats! But if it's standing between you and the degree you've invested so much into...git R done! You are capable and you can do it!

[niener]

WGW, if you ever want to run a problem or concept by someone else feel free to PM me! It's been a few years so I'm pretty rusty (see comment above re: decline in analytical skills ), but I went to grad school for biostatistics and I assume at least some of that info is stuffed up in the ole' brain somewhere...

[SoonerTexan]

Oooo this looks very cool. I don't know when I would find the time though. If I can find some that are work related, maybe I can squeeze it in and give myself something extra to put on performance docs

Think Again and The Camera Never Lies look really neat. One of my fav subjects in college ever was a class that looked at historical evidence and covered this topic.

[Meenah]

Oh crap, this is DANGEROUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[GreyhoundsRUs]

Oh crap, this is DANGEROUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously. I was going to sign up for the Greek and Roman Mythology class, but I'd already be a week behind, and I don't feel like killing myself to pick up the books (the ones for the course are available for free download, but I've found that I need something I can annotate and highlight for a course like that. Plus, I just don't have the mental capacity for discussion right now.

I'm doing the Human Physiology course that starts mid-January...off to see if DH has the phys coloring book...

[spotty_dog]

I jumped into the Logic course a week behind. They're not really on track, the first week's homework is due this coming Friday and the second week's lectures haven't even been released. It's mostly review (I just wanted a firmer underpinning for proof theory which has always been my bugaboo, plus I want my kids to learn logic by high school) so I am already caught up.

I'm signed up for Ancient Greeks in March if you want to try again with that topic -- I mean, it's not mythology but rather history, but still the same general timeframe. And I was going to try to flesh it out with extra literature and philosophy and poetry from the same era as the course goes along.

I'm a little scared that though the Electrical Engineering course isn't yet scheduled, the sign-up email says "fall 2012". It's a 14 week course that's supposed to be "the hardest course [a second-year engineering student at Rice has] ever taken"...if it does start over the holiday season while I'm already doing Logic (ends in November) I might have to skip this round even though I am crazy excited about it.

[GreyhoundsRUs]

I'll look at the dates in comparison to my phys class - but the history class sounds great! I'll look up the name of a great book I read when I get home re: the events that lead up to the Battle of Thermopylae.

[ladymoreta]

Oh man, I don't think I needed to know this existed... It would be nice to exercise my brain muscles again!

[GreyhoundsRUs]

I'll look at the dates in comparison to my phys class - but the history class sounds great! I'll look up the name of a great book I read when I get home re: the events that lead up to the Battle of Thermopylae.

http://www.amazon.com/Thermopylae-Ba.../dp/0306813602

Here it is I signed up for the Ancient Greek class - it seems to not be very time intensive, so I can do it concurrently with my physio class.

[weeniegeniewife]

WGW, if you ever want to run a problem or concept by someone else feel free to PM me! It's been a few years so I'm pretty rusty (see comment above re: decline in analytical skills ), but I went to grad school for biostatistics and I assume at least some of that info is stuffed up in the ole' brain somewhere...

Thanks, S....and for everyone else who offered. So far I'm understanding all of the problems, they just take 2-3 hours each and my professor is an all or nothing grader. So, since I have to do all calcs by hand (can't use SPSS or Excel because I have to show I understand the mechanics), if one number is off from rounding, the whole problem gets marked wrong. It's frustrating and complete bullshit. Anyway, sorry for the hijack.

This Coursera looks really interesting! Maybe someday when I am done with this degree. I love, love, love learning, and could be a professional student the rest of my life. Sigh.

[MrsK]

I swear you all read my mind sometimes! I was just looking into this about a week ago and feeling all kinds of wonderwoman I'm-gonna-do-it-ALL manic and then decided who am I kidding? After chasing my toddlers around all day, cleaning the house, running errands, volunteering for the school/temple/medical alliance or whatever else I got myself into, and helping DrK with the great job search, I hardly have enough energy to zone out in front of the Antiques Roadshow. *sigh* guess I'll just let my brain turn to mush.

[spotty_dog]

MrsK -- Nothing ventured, nothing gained! I don't mean to be a Coursera cheerleader here but the concept has me so enthralled. Remember, the bottom line is ZERO tuition. Enrolling takes two clicks and in most classes you will be one of TENS of THOUSANDS (there are over 50K in my Logic class!) of whom only 10% will finish. Nobody knows or cares if you figure out that it's not for you after a few lessons. It really clicked for me when my friend said, "I highly recommend these, either casually or doing all the work." And I was like...you can do it CASUALLY?!

You might find, as I did last night, that watching lectures for 30 minutes is a fine accompaniment to folding clothes, or that the anticipation of doing homework makes scrubbing the bathroom and tidying the kitchen go more efficiently. Oh, and I finished the folding before the lectures were over so I did paperwork for my non-profit treasurer stuff while I listened too. Multi-tasking FTW!

[SoonerTexan]

that the anticipation of doing homework makes scrubbing the bathroom and tidying the kitchen go more efficiently.

Clearly I haven't been out of college long enough for this to be the case. I still have PTSD from high school and college papers and homework. I can honestly say my life is much more enjoyable without an assignment constantly hanging over my head. In fact, at this point, I have no interest in grad school even if it was free (and actually, I could get an MBA free through work) for that reason alone. So maybe I'll go to mush with MrsK...

[Chrisada]

There are a few courses where you have to write a paper and peer review them. I said hell no to those and unenrolled. Most of them seem to just have a few quizzes. With my higher education, I have written enough papers for a lifetime. Ain't happening.

[spotty_dog]

Hm, I think part of the issue is that I was a major slacker in college. I didn't really think much about upcoming papers until the night before, then I just crunched 'em out. Similarly I just did enough on math and science homework problems to squeak by a passing grade. But this time around I'm like "Test my retention WHOO!" and it's all just fun because it's not for credit or anything, just learning.

Also, did I mention I'm a massive nerd?