Thursday, July 16, 2009

Open Yale Course feeds - Game Theory and Greek Classics

In the past I have reviewed three Open Yale Courses and have needed to emphasize that these courses were not podcast. This has changed. Two of them - and who knows before long, also the third - have been added to iTunes U and consequently been put in a feed. This I found out thanks to Dara of DIY Scholar.

Game Theory with Professor Ben Polak is a most accessible and even entertaining at times course into game theory. The principle aim is to teach game theory to economists, but each and every social science interested listener will greatly benefit from these course. Even though the subject is mathematical, Polak pulls off a course that is comprehensible also for the mathematically challenged. (feed)

Introduction to Ancient Greek History with Professor Donald Kagan is your ultimate entry into the history of the Greek Classical world. I would wish to be taught any subject by Kagan. He is capable of telling the narrative and disclose the historiographic problems, theories and reconstructions at the same time. (feed)

Hopefully the outstanding Introduction to the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) with Professor Christine Hayes will also soon be added to iTunes.

More Open Yale:
The Hebrew Bible - Open Yale,
Introduction to ancient Greek history,
Game Theory.

The way of the plants - Ersatz TV

A new issue of Ersatz TV is available. The three main subjects are Schufa, Pflanzenstrom, Kurzweil. That is, one item about the credit authority, which, it turns out, has been around since the 1920's. One item about research that is aimed at cheaply generating electricity in the same way plants generate their energy: photosynthesis. And an item about Ray Kurzweil that is summarized as: Kurzweil is the opposite of Langweil. Ni Hao bei Erstaz TV.

A real surprise is by the end a new feature: commercial. Not just any commercial, but one by the conservative Bavarian political party CSU, such an unexpected find in Ersatz. The style of the commercial is entirely old TV and its persistent and uniform use of the blue color scheme of CSU completely out of style with internet TV. Their idea is 'we are all the same' where in the world of internet and new media, we are all different. It is almost a parody in itself.



More Ersatz TV:
The experts love Ersatz TV,
Deja-vu on Ersatz-TV,
The science of Ersatz TV,
Erzatz TV - German Vodcast.