Online courses directory (19947)

In Medieval Europe the Book of Hours, so called because its core component consists of the Hours of the Virgin, became the prayer book of choice for worshippers prosperous enough to commission or purchase such a book.

Although its contents were of monastic origin, literate lay readers were the most likely to use books of hours, as served not only as a prayer book, but also as a way of keeping track of the calendar, often doubling as a family chronicle.

Books of hours provide insight into broad patterns of piety marking the High and later Middle Ages, and through their choice of texts, images and added materials, inform us about the interior life and aspirations of everyone from kings and queens and lords and ladies to monks and nuns and, ordinary members of the patrician class, merchants and others.

In this course, we will explore how books of hours provide the closest thing we have to a comprehensive and continuous record of the development of painting across most of western Europe from the later thirteenth through the early sixteenth century.

“The Book of Hours” is one module of a series of courses called “The Book: Histories Across Time and Space.” You may take this course on its own, or with the other courses of the series.

HarvardX requires individuals who enroll in its courses on edX to abide by the terms of the edX honor code. HarvardX will take appropriate corrective action in response to violations of the edX honor code, which may include dismissal from the HarvardX course; revocation of any certificates received for the HarvardX course; or other remedies as circumstances warrant. No refunds will be issued in the case of corrective action for such violations. Enrollees who are taking HarvardX courses as part of another program will also be governed by the academic policies of those programs.

HarvardX pursues the science of learning. By registering as an online learner in an HX course, you will also participate in research about learning. Read our research statement to learn more.

Harvard University and HarvardX are committed to maintaining a safe and healthy educational and work environment in which no member of the community is excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination or harassment in our program. All members of the HarvardX community are expected to abide by Harvard policies on nondiscrimination, including sexual harassment, and the edX Terms of Service. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact harvardx@harvard.edu and/or report your experience through the edX contact form.

Phenomena as diverse as the motion of the planets, the spread of a disease, and the oscillations of a suspension bridge are governed by differential equations.MATH226x is an introduction to the mathematical theory of ordinary differential equations. This course follows a modern dynamical systems approach to the subject. In particular, equations are analyzed using qualitative, numerical, and if possible, symbolic techniques.

MATH226 is essentially the edX equivalent of MA226, a one-semester course in ordinary differential equations taken by more than 500 students per year at Boston University. It is divided into three parts. MATH226.1 is the first of these three parts.

In MATH226.1, we will discuss biological and physical models that can be expressed as differential equations with one or two dependent variables. We will discuss geometric/qualitative and numerical techniques that apply to all differential equations. When possible, we will study some of the standard symbolic solution techniques such as separation of variables and the use of integrating factors. We will also study the theory of existence and uniqueness of solutions, the phase line and bifurcations for first-order autonomous systems, and the phase plane for two-dimensional autonomous systems. The techniques that we develop will be used to analyze models throughout the course.

For additional information on obtaining credit through the ACE Alternative Credit Project, please visit here.

How can we strengthen libraries and librarians in the advancement of knowledge, creativity, and literacy in the 21st century? Though libraries have been loved for over 3,600 years, their relevance in the digital age is being questioned, and their economic and social impacts are poorly understood. What is really essential about libraries and librarians, today and tomorrow? How can library members and all who support the mission of 21st-century librarianship raise the profile and support of these timeless values and services, and ensure universal access to the universe of ideas in all our communities? This course is based on what works. We’ll take an inspired, strategic, evidence-based approach to advocacy for the future of strong communities – cities, villages, universities and colleges, research and development centres, businesses, and not-for-profits.

We will cover:

• Values and transformative impacts of libraries and librarianship
• Research on current perceptions of libraries and librarians
• Role of relationships in advocacy
• Principles of influence and their impact on advocacy
• Strategic thinking and planning in advocacy
• Effective communication: messages, messengers, and timing

Guest speakers share their ideas, recommendations and successes. These leading advocates include, among others: 

• Barbara Band, Emmbrook School, Berkshire
• Cathy De Rosa, OCLC
• Ken Haycock, University of Southern California
• Joe Janes, University of Washington
• Nancy Kranich, Rutgers University
• Victoria Owen, University of Toronto
• John Szabo, Los Angeles Public Library

Previous participants have said that this course – “showed me the value of building relationships,” and “made me approach our library’s advocacy much differently”, and “helped me see advocacy in a new light."

Advocacy is growing in urgency and importance on the agenda of all library associations.  In this highly competitive environment, associations help their members and their communities to build advocacy capacity.  This course meets that strategic need. It is offered in partnership with the Canadian Library Association and the American Library Association.

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For the full description, please see the syllabus at:
http://courses.edx.org/c4x/University_of_TorontoX/LA101x_2/asset/LA101X__2015__Syllabus.docx

Everyone involved in higher education has questions. Students want to know how they’re doing and which classes they should take. Faculty members want to understand their students’ backgrounds and to learn whether their teaching techniques are effective. Staff members want to be sure the advice they provide is appropriate and find out whether college requirements accomplish their goals. Administrators want to explore how all of their students and faculty are doing and to anticipate emerging changes. The public wants to know what happens in college and why.

Everyone has questions. We have the chance to help them find answers.

Practical Learning Analytics has a specific goal: to help us collectively ponder learning analytics in a concrete way. To keep it practical, we will focus on using traditional student record data, the kinds of data every campus already has. To make it interesting, we will address questions raised by an array of different stakeholders, including campus leaders, faculty, staff, and especially students. To provide analytic teeth, each analysis we discuss will be supported by both realistic data and sample code.

¿Ha escuchado muchas cosas sobre el genoma humano, pero desea entender los aspectos básicos que lo describen o lo explican? ¡Este es un curso para usted! Reconozca de forma amigable las generalidades del genoma humano, y sobre todo el impacto de su estudio.

Este curso es una introducción a la estructura y función del genoma humano, a partir de un contexto histórico y conceptual. Se revisará la aplicación actual del genoma humano, y algunas experiencias a partir de entrevista a expertos. Usted aprenderá ejemplos de estudio del genoma, e identificará la descripción multidisciplinar de su investigación y aplicación.

No requiere grandes conocimientos en biología molecular, podrá apoyarse en el material complementario del MOOC como el glosario de términos o los foros de discusión para comprender los conceptos.

This literature course will explore Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s 1818 horror classic, Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus. This novel is remarkable for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that Shelley wrote the novel when she was only 18 years old.

Frankenstein is a representation of both the Gothic and Romantic movements, and is often considered to be one of the earliest novels of science fiction as well. This story has had a huge influence on literature and popular culture, and has generated many adaptations in the forms of movies and plays.  The first film adaptation, in fact, appeared in 1910.

Participants in this course will read, discuss, and write about the text and its influence. As in most book clubs, the focus will be on lively discussion. Course materials will include background information for understanding the text, as well as vocabulary and language support. Assessment will include quizzes and short writing assignments.
 
This is the third part of the BerkeleyX Book Club offerings.

WHAT IS “HOW STUFF MOVES”?
Mechanics is the study of how things move. It was the first quantitative science to achieve wide power to predict behavior, including things never before directly observed. Newton, Leibniz, and others invented calculus to describe motion and we will find both differential and integral calculus extremely useful throughout this course.

This is the first in a 3-part series of courses that parallels the second-semester mechanics course taught at Harvey Mudd College. Part 1 explores the concepts of momentum, force, and energy, and how these properties define the motion of objects at everyday speeds. Part 2 examines angular motion, and Part 3 examines wave motion.  This course is an invitation to develop your problem-solving skills and to learn how to apply mathematics to all sorts of problems of the physical world. Learning the rules that govern how stuff moves in the world around us is exciting; using those rules to predict correctly something that you haven’t observed means that you really understand something. It‘s a great feeling.

WHAT SHOULD I KNOW BEFORE WE START?
You need not have taken physics before, but we assume that you have studied mathematics, up to and including a first course in calculus. You may be taking a calculus course concurrently with this course; that should be a good strategy. We will introduce important calculus ideas and methods as the need arises and provide examples.

There is a Mathematics Diagnostic Test that you can take at the beginning of this course to ensure that your mathematics background will set you up for success in this course.

Human rights are developed through the constant dialogue between international human rights bodies and domestic courts, in a search that crosses geographical, cultural and legal boundaries. The result is a unique human rights grammar, which this course shall discuss and question, examining the sources of human rights, the rights of individuals, the duties of States, and the mechanisms of protection.

We shall rely extensively on comparative material from different jurisdictions, to study a wide range of topics including, religious freedom in multicultural societies, human rights in employment relationships, economic and social rights in development, or human rights in the context of the fight against terrorism.

La finance est omniprésente et les décisions financières nous concernent tous. Tout individu est un jour ou l’autre amené à épargner ou emprunter. La sélection des projets d’investissements et leur financement sont des questions cruciales pour les entrepreneurs ou managers. D’une manière plus large, les décisions prises par le monde politique en matières financières influencent directement ou indirectement le quotidien des citoyens. Les récentes crises financières ont pu nous montrer à quel point il peut être primordial de comprendre les fondamentaux de la finance. Sans un minimum d’éducation financière, il est difficile d’appréhender le fonctionnement du monde dans lequel nous évoluons. Ce cours introductif vous propose un cadre conceptuel et des outils pour vous aider à prendre des décisions financières judicieuses, avec un focus particulier sur les opérations financières courantes.   
 
Au terme de ce cours, vous serez capable de :

• Décrire les principes fondamentaux du raisonnement financier : absence d’opportunités d’arbitrage dans un marché concurrentiel, intégration de la dimension temporelle et du risque dans la décision financière ;
• Calculer des valeurs actuelles ou futures, de flux ou de séquence de flux ;
• Appliquer les techniques de l’évaluation actuarielle aux opérations financières courantes (de type épargne ou emprunt) et aux principaux actifs financiers (actions et obligations) ;
• Utiliser les différents outils de sélection d’investissement pour des projets en entreprise ;
• Analyser la problématique de la décision d’investissement, en tenant compte du lien entre rendement attendu et risque ;
• Déterminer le taux de rendement qu’une entreprise doit utiliser lorsqu’elle doit prendre une décision d’investissement et utiliser ce taux pour calculer la valeur générée par un projet ;
• Suivre des cours de finance plus avancés (finance d’entreprise, gestion de portefeuille, marchés financiers, finance internationale, produits dérivés, etc.).

This course introduces the origin and key concepts of sustainability and how to apply those to sustainable development practice.

Sustainable development will be explored through theories and case studies from a range of Disciplines. You also will learn about planetary boundaries, urbanisation and growing inequality, to show how integral sustainable development is to our everyday existence.

This course will attempt to provide key content knowledge to bridge the science and the practice of the application and enhancement of sustainable development. The course draws on contemporary examples from both The University of Queensland (UQ) and the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) to address the world’s most urgent challenges, with emphasis on the linkages between science and policy.

Reading enriches our life and writing enables us to express our thoughts. Being skillful in reading and writing allows you to better acquire and communicate information.

This course focuses on 8 themes:

• learning 
• university 
• culture 
• city 
• education 
• behavior theory 
• communication 
• meaning of life 

For each theme, there are two texts, key words analysis, reading skills, guest interviews, composition tutorials, writing workshops, and literature tutors.

Join us and understand the beauty of language.

作为一门语言非常重要的两个方面，阅读可以让我们获取丰富的知识，写作可以让我们表达内心的思想。掌握正确的阅读技巧和写作技巧，能够让我们更好地获取信息和表达信息。本课程由中外教师及清华学生带领大家在真实的生活场景中畅游英语世界。

本课程从学习、大学、文化、城市、教育、行为论、人际交流和人生的意义等八个主题展开，每个主题由主题课文（两篇）、重点词句讲解、阅读技巧讲解、嘉宾访谈、作文批改和写作技巧讲解、英语学习方法介绍、文学赏析等模块构成。主题课文模块围绕精心挑选的主题展开，带你体验丰富多彩的文化，拓宽视野，同时配有相应的重点词句讲解，让你的英语知识库更庞大；阅读技巧模块以师生互动的形式展开，由老师和英语专业研究生带大家从学习者的角度一起探讨英语阅读的秘诀所在；嘉宾访谈模块邀请了三位嘉宾老师，分别在学习、文化等方面进行了介绍和分享；写作部分包括作文批改和写作技巧讲解，选取与主题相关的四六级作文考题，并各配以两篇学生真实写作案例，通过批改作文的形式讲解写作技巧；英语学习方法模块以访谈形式展开，由留学生助教为大家分享英语学习经验；文学赏析模块精选了八篇文学名著，让学习者在师生互动中遨游文学的海洋。

和我们一起感受语言的魅力，让我们一起实现一次英语读写的飞跃！

Las estructuras están implicadas en nuestras vidas: las plantas, los animales, casi todo lo que fabrica el ser humano, incluso nuestro propio cuerpo, deben soportar una serie de fuerzas sin romperse, y por lo tanto prácticamente cualquier elemento de nuestro entorno es una estructura de una clase u otra.

No cabe duda de que entender cómo se comportan las estructuras es fundamental para entender el mundo que nos rodea, para comprender la naturaleza y para juzgar mejor los progresos que ha hecho la humanidad a lo largo de la historia. Sin embargo, los ingenieros hemos fallado una y otra vez cuando hemos intentado explicar esta materia de forma que los no entendidos puedan entender su importancia.

Este curso pretende saltar esa brecha existente entre los expertos en cálculo de estructuras y los profanos utilizando un lenguaje asequible, empleando ejemplos históricos y proponiendo ensayos sencillos que pueden hacerse en casa. El curso abordará no sólo el problema de por qué los edificios y los puentes se caen sino también otras muchas cuestiones. ¿Por qué las ventanas de los aviones son redondas? ¿Por qué los gusanos tienen esa forma? ¿Por qué los murciélagos pueden volar dentro de un rosal sin rasgarse las alas? ¿Cómo funcionan las arterias? ¿Por qué las catedrales góticas pueden ser tan esbeltas? ¿Por qué hay construcciones romanas que siguen en pie 2000 años después? ¿Qué podemos aprender sobre los constructores de las diferentes estructuras que nos han legado nuestros antepasados?

Muchos contenidos de este curso pueden ser útiles para médicos, biólogos, artistas, historiadores y arqueólogos.

Preparing for the AP Biology exam requires a deep understanding of many different topics in biology as well as an understanding of the format of the AP exam and the types of questions it asks.  This course is Part 3 of our AP Biology series designed to prepare you for the AP Biology exam. 

In Part 3, you will explore the idea that the process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life. You will examine how changes in the genetic makeup of a population happen over time and how these changes drive evolution and create diversity.

As you work through this course, you will find lecture videos taught by expert AP Biology teachers, practice multiple choice questions and free response questions that are similar to what you will encounter on the AP exam and tutorial videos that show you step-by-step how to solve problems.  By the end of the course, you will be prepared to take on the AP exam!

This course is authorized as an Advanced Placement® (AP®) course by the AP Course Audit. The AP Course Audit was created by the College Board to give schools and students the confidence that all AP courses meet or exceed the same clearly articulated curricular expectations of colleges and universities.

By taking an AP course and scoring successfully on the related AP Exam, students can:

• Stand Out in College Admissions
• Earn College Credits
• Skip Introductory Classes
• Build College Skills

Advanced Placement® and AP® are trademarks registered and/or owned by the College Board, which was not involved in the production of, and does not endorse, these offerings.

Louis Armstrong. Charlie Parker. John Coltrane. You’ve heard their names, but do you know what makes them great? In Jazz Appreciation, you will learn what these artists and many others contributed to America’s great original art form, revered the world over for its innovation and creativity. Jazz emerged during a time of tremendous change and upheaval in American society; this course will also discuss how its evolution both reflected and contributed to those changes.

Much more than a lecture series, Jazz Appreciation weaves in musical performances and examples that will deepen your understanding of the musical process and develop your ability to identify and analyze different jazz eras and great jazz soloists. It also incorporates cutting-edge adaptive learning technology that will allow you to practice your new knowledge and skills, at your own pace, until you reach mastery.

Join this course to enhance your enjoyment of jazz by developing an informed understanding and deep appreciation of the art.

Please note: This course includes a wealth of music. In sensitivity to artists’ rights, course videos including music are available for a limited time only. Materials are released weekly on Saturday mornings, and videos are removed nine days later, on Sunday nights. Please plan to keep pace with the course in order to get the most out of it. 

Globally, 1 in 11 jobs are in the hospitality industry, with predictions for continued job growth. Hospitality careers are often stereotyped as low-wage and entry-level with little opportunity for advancement, but with constant innovation, opportunities for talented individuals are vast, and growing. 

Are you wondering if a career in hotel management, restaurant management, hotel asset management, or services marketing would benefit you?  Are you currently working in the industry and seeking promotional opportunities?  Enroll now and let Cornell guide your exploration of this exciting industry.

FAQ

Who is the intended audience for this course?

The audience for this MOOC is anyone in the industry seeking to advance, as well as individuals who are interested but who don’t know much about the industry. It’s also appropriate for use as an employee-development tool within hospitality industry companies

Are there formal prerequisites?

No. Some proficiency with Excel will be helpful.

Is there a textbook for this course?

No. A list of supplemental resources, will be provided.

What are the topics covered in this course?

• An Introduction to the Hospitality Industry
• Strategic Hospitality Management and Innovation
• Owners, Operators, and Investors: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Investing in the World of Hospitality
• Marketing the Hospitality Experience
• Human Resources Management in Hospitality

Everyone does accounting of some kind, such as browsing bank statements, preparing a budget for building a house, or counting the cost of a birthday party. Individuals who want to be accountants, managers or entrepreneurs should be able work with financial reports.

This accounting course will give you an overview of business organizations and describes the role accounting plays in managing them. You’ll learn about the effect of common business transactions on financial statements, how to apply the double-entry system for processing transactions and the principles of measuring performance and the related mechanics. At the end of this course, you will know how to prepare financial statements.

This course focuses on the social, political, economic and institutional environment of countries. This environmental context molds the country’s objectives, defines the country’s strategy, programs and policies for achieving objectives, and significantly impacts companies.

The context is affected by historical events, and by the country’s leadership. Many stakeholders shape the environment and the institutions, or “rules of the game”, that affect business. Labor, students, farmers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the military play a crucial role, making the analysis of country environments complex and fascinating.

We will study Japan in some depth, and catch brief glimpses of South Korea, Singapore, Chile, Turkey, India, South Africa and the former Soviet Union, to appreciate the forces that influence diverse country environments, and companies’ strategies.

The course will review aspects of global institutions, such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), which set global rules that profoundly affect business strategy and human welfare. It will also explore opportunities and challenges at the bottom of the pyramid, the last frontier for value creation by companies and NGOs.

The course topics include modern atomic theory, periodic table and trends, stoichiometry, bonding, molecular structure, kinetics, thermodynamics, equilibrium, acids and bases, gases, liquids and solids, electrochemistry and solubility. This material conveyed using video lectures, practice questions and review exams may be used for self-study by students and teachers. This is a self-paced, asynchronous course. It is meant to be a useful resource without much staff support or involvement. The quizzes and assignments will be auto-graded. While students are welcome to interact with fellow students on the discussion boards, there are no opportunities to interact with the course instructor or staff directly.

Le politique nous concerne tous : chaque jour, des décisions publiques sont adoptées qui impactent notre quotidien. Dans quel contexte ces décisions sont-elles adoptées ? Au 21ème siècle, de nombreux paradoxes brouillent la vision que nous pouvons en avoir. Qu’est-ce que le pouvoir dans la société actuelle ? Quels acteurs en détiennent ? L’État demeure-t-il un acteur politique majeur s’il est concurrencé par des organisations internationales et régionales ? Comment la démocratie prônée par la communauté internationale se différencie-t-elle des régimes autoritaires voire totalitaires ? Quelle est la place des idéologies dans le monde actuel ? Le cours vise à comprendre et à expliquer des phénomènes politiques à partir d’une posture d’analyse critique.

Politics impact all of us: everyday political decisions impact many areas of our lives. In which context are these decisions made? In the 21st century, many paradoxes blur our vision of these decisions. What is power in a multi-level society? Does the state remain the main political actor, if it is in competition with international and regional organizations? Can democracy – pushed forward by the international community – coexist with authoritarian, or even totalitarian, regimes? What is the role of ideologies in contemporary politics? The course aims at understanding and explaining political phenomena from a critical standpoint. 

很多看起来似乎很伟大的想法和科技在碰到一个简单、不可避免的问题时都会突然卡壳。这个问题就是：“谁是你的客户？”

MIT校友们创办的25600家公司产生的总收入是2万亿美元，提供了330万个工作岗位。如果MIT是一个国家，那么它将是世界上第十一大经济体。

在你的创业旅途中，你会发现：创业中最重要的资源是客户。赶快加入MIT《创业101》课程，成为这个社区的一员吧！

这就是创业，我们每一堂课都会对MIT创业者的实际案例进行专门的深入研讨，这些案例来源具有多样性，包括移动应用领域、3D打印技术、功率电子、国际化开拓和手表制造等。

通过这些MIT创业者的创业案例，你会学习怎样从创意/技术到对谁会成为你的客户、为何他们愿意购买你的产品有必要的理解，特别是学习如何：1)识别未来的/潜在的客户；2)访谈未来的/潜在的客户；3)最后，为你的企业选择正确的客户。

课程作业将会是面向真实的实践，通过一系列具体、实用、有效的步骤来指导你、帮助你实现创意。同时，你还会在学习过程中获得乐趣！注册后将有更多的惊喜等着你。