Coursera Experience - October 2014

Several courses ended in September (Social Psychology and The Camera Never Lies). I still have some items in the ‘to read’ pile/list from the Social Psychology course. More importantly - I find myself looking at media - particularly visual media - very differently; both courses increased my awareness of overt and subtle changes that happen with our exposure to real and virtual experiences. Are we ever fully conscious of all the ways we are being changed? 

Beauty, Form & Function is just about finished. I watched all the videos about enjoyed most learning about symmetry in tiles and crystals…and the bonus video about how nano-manufacturing is done.

The first weeks of Modern & Contemporary American Poetry have introduced me to the thorough reading of poems. The videos are panel discussions of each line in selected poems. My initial reaction to modern poems (too intentionally lacking context to the point of being evasive and not readily understandable….always a puzzle) has not budged but I am gaining a better understanding of the poems included in the discussion.

There are 4 courses starting in October….it’s going to be a busy month for me with these and the peak in fall volunteer naturalist activities and some travel.

I like the variety of topics in these new courses: education, health (childbirth), resources (water), science/philosophy. The global perspective should be well reflected because of the topics themselves and the institutions offering the courses. This will be my first course from the National Geographic Society. The previous courses I took from the other organizations were all excellent. 

Ten Days of Little Celebrations - September 2014

Noticing something worth celebration each dayis an easy thing for me to do. The habit of writing it down reminds me to be grateful for these and a myriad of other things in my life. This month has been full of ‘little celebrations’ - as had been the usual for the past few months. Here are my top 10 for September 2014.

Lingering summer foods. I savored the yellow tomatoes and watermelon this month - knowing that the will not be fresh from local fields very soon.

Great Falls of the Potomac. There is something about re-visiting sights and sounds close to home. It has been several years since I’d walked around the place. I’m already planning another outing once the leaves begin to turn.

Belmont is another place close to home. I had been there a few times but not enough. It is a place to savor.

BioBlitz at Belmont. I was volunteer naturalist for 3 of 4 days of the BioBlitz. It was exhilarating and exhausting!  There was a lot to celebrate but most memorable was the joy the 5th and 7th graders had in discovering and insect or plant or bird that they hadn’t noticed before.

Mating Insects. It’s that time of year it seems. As part of the BioBlitz we saw ladybugs and wheelbugs….getting ready for overwintering of their kind. It’s a celebration of the continuity of nature.

Symmetry - furniture - motion. Last month I celebrated symmetry and tiles - something I was learning about in a Coursera course. This month - now toward the end of the course - there was a section on symmetry in furniture. The designed talked about his work and showed examples when the motion of the furniture is real and others when it is a visual deception. I was intrigued and delighted!

Emily Dickinson. Dickinson was one of the first poets to be discussed in the Modern & Contemporary American Poetry course I am taking via Coursera. I find myself celebrating the memory of my changing perception of the poet between my high school days and now.

Mint…and more mint. I’m celebrating my mint crop this year….and will savor it all winter long as hot mint tea.

A rainy day. Sometimes a rainy day is just what I need; there was only one rainy day in September and I celebrated staying indoors and at home. It’s good for recovering ones balance - ready for whatever comes next.

Leggings. I found some denim leggings at the thrift store that appeared new….and they fit me perfectly. A bargain worth celebrating!

Coursera Experience - September 2014

September is going to be a lull in terms of Coursera courses. For most of the weeks I will only have one or two courses. That is probably a good thing since I am attending classroom-based volunteer naturalist training during the month as well.  There is no shortage of learning opportunities!

The Globalization and Social Psychology courses are ended…although there is still some reading to do. Both of them were among the more thought provoking classes I’ve taken.

The Camera Never Lies is providing another insight into history and historians. I’ve appreciated the lectures which have included interviews with history grad students. I have considerable reading and video to view for this course as well.

The Symmetry course has been enlightening on several levels. I particularly enjoyed the references to tiling. The segment of the course that focuses on crystals is just starting and I expect it will be as challenging as the Systems Biology or Volcano courses earlier this year.

I am looking forward to the American Poetry course starting soon and am anticipating that I’ll be celebrating how different it is than courses I have been taking recently.

October is going to be overwhelming. There are 4 courses I added to my list….and now that I am looking at the list again, I still want to take all of them!

3 Free eBooks - August 2014

It’s time again for the monthly post about eBooks that are freely available on the Internet. The three below are my favorites for August 2014.

Shelley, George Ernest; Keulemans, John Gerrard (lithographer/llustrator). A monograph of the Nectariniidae, or, Family of sun-birds. London: Published by the author. 1876. Available from the Internet Archive here. The illustrations are the best of this book and there are other books that have the same lithographer also available on the Internet Archive that are worth a look too (although I think the sun-birds book is the best).

Dam, Jan Daniël van; Tichelaar, Pieter Jan; Schaap, Ella; Lins, P. Andrew. Dutch Tiles in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art.1984. Available from the Internet Archive here. I started looking for books that had tile patterns after the Coursera course I am taking on Symmetry used them as part of the introduction to the vocabulary used to discuss symmetry. What do you think of the grapes and pomegranates tiles? Notice that the tiles are rotated to create the pattern (the stems always point to the center).

an hui sheng chu si hai zong zhi hui bu. xiao mie wen ying de ye sheng zhi wu. 1958. Available from the Internet here. This is a Chinese botany book. I always enjoy botanical prints and these were no exception. It was also good to realize that books from around the world are making their way into the archive.

Enjoy these and many other books that are freely available on the internet.

Coursera Experience - August 2014

Quite a few courses ended in July:

• Diversity of Exoplanets (University of Geneva)
• Preventing Chronic Pain (University of Minnesota)
• Paradoxes of War (Princeton University)
• An Introduction to Global Health (University of Copenhagen)

I enjoyed all of them but there were times I thought I had started more than  I could possible finish. It is incredibly difficult to forego a course on a interesting topic; I need to develop more will power!

As I start August, only two courses are in session and I am enjoying the reduction. It is challenging to keep up with the classes while I am traveling….but I have succeeded in listening to the lectures. I’ll have to catch up with the discussion forums and assignments later. The two courses are:

Globalization and You (University of Washington). I just finished the module on Money last week. The history of monetary policy and outcomes was very well done. It may be the best module of the course!

Social Psychology (Wesleyan University). Every week there is something that surprises me....and quite a lot that is very applicable to everyday life. The forums are lively in this one ---- worth the time to peruse and participate.

I have one course that will be starting up in August after I am back home!

Beauty, Form, and Function: An Exploration of Symmetry (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore). I am looking forward to this course for several reasons: it is a very different topic area from other courses I’ve taken, it is offered by a different university that other courses, and I anticipate that this topic will benefit from the cultural diversity what will be part of the MOOC students.