Online courses directory (1728)

Opioids are part of a drug class that includes the illegal drug heroin as well as powerful pain relievers, such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, codeine, morphine, fentanyl, and many others. In 2015 more than 33,000 people died from overdoses involving opioids. Every day in the United States more than 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for not using prescription opioids as directed. Drug overdose is now the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., and opioid addiction is driving this epidemic.

This course challenges preconceptions about addiction and about who can become addicted to opioids. Our main goals are to reduce the stigma that exists around addiction, help prevent overdose deaths and encourage people to learn about the multiple pathways to treatment. You will learn about these topics from a variety of medical experts and hear from people who have experienced addiction themselves, or who have lost a family member to an overdose.

This course is available for Continuing Education credit. Enroll in the course to learn more about options for earning credit. Currently credits are available for:

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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.

Polymer-based electronic devices are emerging in next-generation applications that range from advanced display designs to real-time biomedical monitoring. After ~30 years since the first report of a complete organic electronic device (i.e., the organic light-emitting diode), the polymer electronics community has reached a point where the fundamental knowledge of these unique semiconductors has allowed their utilization in key flexible and stretchable electronic applications that have been, or soon will be, commercialized.

In this course, you will gain an understanding of the basic principles and physics of these materials -- which operate in a manner that is distinctly different than traditional (e.g., silicon-based) semiconductors -- and quickly come up to speed in a paradigm-altering field.

In particular, this course will focus on the nanoscale phenomena regarding the physics of semiconducting polymers. This includes how molecular architecture impacts nanoscale structure (e.g., crystalline texture), optical properties, and electronic properties. You will learn to design new materials, consider structure/processing windows, and develop fundamental concepts regarding the physics of charged species in polymer electronics through participation in this course.

Whether you’re considering a global health learning experience such as a clinical rotation, a research project, or volunteer work, or are preparing to work abroad, this is the course for you!

This 3-part timeline-based course, designed by a team of global health experts, will help you prepare for successful global health learning experiences and projects. The course provides guidance for undergraduate and graduate students, medical trainees, and volunteers. In each part, you will have the opportunity to learn through interactive scenarios and discussion forums.

In Part 1 (The Big Picture), you will learn how to determine whether a global health learning experience is right for you, and if so, what, where, when, and how?

In Part 2 (Preparation and on the Ground), you will learn how to prepare for your global health learning experience and gain vital information about being there on-the-ground. You’ll learn how to arrange logistics, improve your security and cultural awareness and obtain guidance to limit health hazards. You’ll have the opportunity to create an appropriately inclusive yet “light” packing list. You will learn how to identify and manage common situations you may encounter on the ground, including personal and property safety risks, professional, ethical, and cultural issues, and the appropriate use of various modes of communication, including social media.

In Part 3 (Reflection), you will learn about “reverse culture shock” upon returning from a global health experience. You will learn how to identify strategies for effectively “reintegrating” into your home and work life and how to effectively manage potential health issues upon return. In addition, you’ll learn how to effectively advocate for other individuals at your institution to identify clinical opportunities, educational opportunities and funding structures for future global health experiences.

This course begins with an understanding of the various ways a project can originate and then dives deep into the concept of feasibility studies. You’ll review a few financing models and then look at the participants in a project finance deal and understand their motivations.

You’ll learn about lenders, who are one of the most important participants in any deal, and get familiarized with their areas of concerns.

This course is part of the New York Institute of Finance’s popular Project Finance and the Public Private Partnership Professional Certificate program.

This course systematically explores the effectiveness of the law and justice system from a psychological perspective. By experiencing a fictional case first hand, you will learn about the psychology of law and some of the misconceptions commonly held about criminal justice. 

Welcome to The Quantum World!

This course is an introduction to quantum chemistry: the application of quantum theory to atoms, molecules, and materials. You’ll learn about wavefunctions, probability, special notations, and approximations that make quantum mechanics easier to apply. You’ll also learn how to use Python to program quantum-mechanical models of atoms and molecules.

HarvardX has partnered with DataCamp to create assignments in Python that allow students to program directly in a browser-based interface. You will not need to download any special software, but an up-to-date browser is recommended.

This course has serious prerequisites. You will need to be comfortable with college-level chemistry and calculus. Some prior programming experience is also encouraged.

The Quantum World is ideal for:

• Chemistry majors who want extra material alongside an on-campus course
• Chemistry majors at an institution that does not offer quantum chemistry
• Physics or CompSci majors who want to branch out to chemistry
• Graduate students refreshing on quantum mechanics before their qualifying exams
• Professional chemists who want to brush up on their skills

Join the Smithsonian, and comic book industry legend Stan Lee, in this self-paced course to explore the history of the comic book and the rise of superheroes.

The ancient gods of Egyptian, Greek and Roman myths still exist, but today, they have superpowers, human foibles and secret identities. They come from comic books and graphic novels, and have taken over pop culture on the stage, screen, video games, and animation.

From Superman® and Spider-Man®, to The Avengers® and The Hulk® and beyond, who are these heroes? And, how have they evolved from folklore and myth, across all cultures and religions?

Learn from Smithsonian and industry experts including:

• Stan Lee, who was one of the creators of the modern superhero template. His early comics featuring Spider-Man, Iron Man®, The Hulk, Thor®, and The Avengers led Marvel to success. He continues to reinvent himself to create modern global superheroes and appear in cameos in superhero films and TV, such as Avengers: Age of Ultron.
• Michael Uslan, executive producer of top grossing, award winning movies, including The Dark Knight series, Lego® Movie, the animated Batman films and Batman® VS Superman.

In this self-paced course, we explore the following questions:

• Why did superheroes first arise in 1938 and experience what we refer to as their “Golden Age” during World War II?
• Why did the superhero genre ebb and flow in popularity over the decades?
• How have comic books, published weekly since the mid-1930’s, mirrored a changing American society, reflecting our mores, slang, fads, biases and prejudices?
• Why was the comic book industry nearly shut down in the McCarthy Era of the 1950’s?
• How did our superheroes become super-villains in the eyes of the government, clergy, educators, and parents of the mid-20th Century?
• When and how did comic books become acceptable again, and eventually become valid teaching tools in universities and schools?
• When and how did comic book artwork become accepted as a true American art form as indigenous to this country as jazz?
• Finally, when and how did comic books become “cool” and the basis for blockbuster movies, hit TV series, top-selling video games, and acclaimed animation, while also impacting fashion and style- and even the moral and ethical codes of children- around the globe?

The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is excited to offer the opportunity to go into the collection and see why superheroes are a dominant cultural force in today’s world.

As you learn about how cultural myths, world events, and personal experiences shaped the first superheroes, you will apply these frameworks to create your own superhero– or you can choose to do a deeper analysis on existing comic book heroes. This original project is required for certification and anything created by you as part of this self-paced course is the intellectual property of you and you alone.

At last, fans, students and seekers of knowledge have the opportunity to enroll in the ultimate comic book course.

The Road to Selective College Admissions is designed for students in 10^th and 11^th grade who are looking to navigate the college application process. Students will become well versed in the language of college admissions and participate in exercises aiming to broaden their access to available resources. At the end of this course, students will understand how to research schools as they build a list of colleges of interest. We will provide tools to help students plan their high school summers, and begin considering financing a college education. Students will learn how to build a support network and given tips on how to be successful in college once they matriculate. Most importantly, students will be led through the application itself, focusing on standardized testing, essays, and extracurricular activities.

The college counselors at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School bring a wealth of experience to the college admission process. Roland Allen has worked in independent schools for fifteen years (The Branson School, Sidwell Friends School, and St. Margaret’s). He has worked in selective college admissions at Stanford University, MIT, and Colby College. He currently is a reader for Presidential Scholars and serves on the Princeton Review’s Advisory Board. He earned his BA from Loyola University, New Orleans and his MS from the University of Scranton. Amy Warren has guided students through the college admission process in both Orange County, California and New York City. Her background also includes experience in admissions at Teachers College, Columbia University. She received her BA from Williams College and her MA and MEd from Teachers College, Columbia University.

What exactly are genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and why do scientists develop them? Studying the science of GMOs helps us understand biotechnology’s potential role in addressing challenges in agriculture.

In this introductory Food and Nutrition course, you will learn the basics of genetic engineering, explore the political debate around the GMO and review the arguments for and against their use.

We will study the politics surrounding the GMO and its impact at both an individual level and to society as a whole; including the problems, perceptions, benefits, and risks associated with GMOs. Important to understanding the complexities around this topic we will not only be looking at the science behind how the GMO works, but also to the limitations of this science. We will also discuss the importance of information literacy as a tool for effectively identifying and evaluating issues.

Our goal is that this MOOC will impact people's understanding of science, what it can and can't do, and how information is transmitted. The intent is not to influence how people feel about GMOs, but to give them the critical thinking and scientific literacy tools necessary to make informed decisions — and to understand the broader impacts of those decisions.

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.

Concerned about how the digital age is impacting your well-being? Looking for ways to find balance? This course takes the ancient practice of yoga and translates it into modern day science with practical applications.

You will learn how to practice yoga on the mat as well as in your everyday life using aspects of yoga that are immediately applicable to you. Having taught yoga to thousands of people just like you, we have reduced the practice down to the nectar of what really works.

Your team of instructors brings a dynamic blend of science and practice to the course. Stacy and Dave Dockins own four yoga studios in Texas and have trained hundreds of instructors to teach yoga as a life-transforming practice rooted in mindfulness. Dr. Catherine Spann and Dr. George Siemens are researching what it means to be human in a digital age at the University of Texas at Arlington’s LINK Research Lab. With years of experience in online education and psychological research, they bring expertise in learning and well-being in the digital age.

This course is for anyone interested in learning the science and practice of yoga. No previous yoga experience is needed! We welcome those who are interested in learning the basics of yoga postures as well as experienced yoga practitioners or instructors looking to deepen their practice.

By signing up for this course, you will have the opportunity to meet and discuss yoga and meditation with people from across the world. Encourage friends, family, and colleagues to sign up with you!

We will explore the psychology of our everyday thinking: why people believe weird things, how we form and change our opinions, why our expectations skew our judgments, and how we can make better decisions. We’ll discuss and debate topics such as placebos, the paranormal, medicine, miracles, and more.

You will use the scientific method to evaluate claims, make sense of evidence, and understand why we so often make irrational choices. You will begin to rely on slow, effortful, deliberative, analytic, and logical thinking rather than fast, automatic, instinctive, emotional, and stereotypical thinking.

We will provide tools for how to think independently, how to be skeptical, and how to value data over personal experience. We will examine the mental shortcuts that people use and misuse, and apply this knowledge to help make better decisions, and improve critical thinking.

"A free eight-week Science of Happiness course that will offer practical, research-backed tips on living a happy and meaningful life."  - The Huffington Post

We all want to be happy, and there are countless ideas about what happiness is and how we can get some. But not many of those ideas are based on science. That’s where this course comes in.

“The Science of Happiness” is the first MOOC to teach the ground-breaking science of positive psychology, which explores the roots of a happy and meaningful life. Students will engage with some of the most provocative and practical lessons from this science, discovering how cutting-edge research can be applied to their own lives. Created by UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center, the course will zero in on a fundamental finding from positive psychology: that happiness is inextricably linked to having strong social connections and contributing to something bigger than yourself—the greater good. Students will learn about the cross-disciplinary research supporting this view, spanning the fields of psychology, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and beyond.

What’s more, “The Science of Happiness” offers students practical strategies for tapping into and nurturing their own happiness, including trying several research-backed activities that foster social and emotional well-being, and exploring how their own happiness changes along the way.

The course’s co-instructors, Dacher Keltner and Emiliana Simon-Thomas, are not only leading authorities on positive psychology but also gifted teachers skilled at making science fun and personal. They’ll be joined by world-renowned experts discussing themes like empathy, mindfulness, and gratitude—experts including Barbara Fredrickson, Paul Ekman, Sonja Lyubomirsky, and Jon Kabat-Zinn. Health professionals who register can earn continuing education units for their participation.

Consider signing up for this course with a friend or group - tweet about your registration, share it on Facebook, and use the buddy system to stay on track. Join the conversation on The Greater Good Science Center Facebook page, or in the BerkeleyX: GG101x The Science of Happiness Facebook group.

This education course will show you, through current research, how we learn — the way our brain makes, stores, and retrieves memories.

You will examine common misconceptions and misunderstandings about learning that can prevent students from learning at their fullest capacity. Along the way you will explore the practical implications of cognitive science for classroom teaching in terms of choosing effective instructional strategies, developing useful assessments, motivating student effort, and designing learner-centered curricular units.

This course is aimed to enhance the practice of K-12 teachers.

Everyone has an opinion on parenting – where babies should sleep, what they should eat, and whether parents should spank, scold, or praise. What’s more, the media often offers support for whichever opinions appear most popular at any given time. This leaves those of us who like to base our decisions on firm, provable facts feeling dizzy.

“The Science of Parenting” addresses this confusion by moving beyond the chatter and opinion surrounding parenting, and by looking directly at the science. Parenting itself is far from a science. Nevertheless, scientists have conducted thousands of studies that can help parents – or future parents – make sensible, informed decisions.

One goal of this course will be to provide a survey of important scientific findings spanning a range of topics that are central to the lives of parents: 

• diet;
• sleep;
• discipline;
• learning;
• screen time;
• impulse control;
• vaccination.

We’ll also explore ongoing mysteries, like what causes autism, and why so many children are allergic to peanuts.

Perhaps more important, this course will not only dig into existing science, but will also explore the underlying nature of parenting science itself. Often, scientists measure correlations: they ask how different parenting practices are related to different behaviors in children. But the claims they make from correlational data are often much, much stronger. For example, from correlational data, scientists often claim that parents cause the behaviors of their kids. This course will show how this type of error – common in the scientific literature – can explain a significant amount of the confusion present in the media and general public. We will discuss how to avoid the same error when evaluating science, and how to use the sum of available evidence to inform decision making.

The course’s instructor, David Barner, is a leading authority on cognitive development. He is joined by leading experts on behavior genetics, vaccination, autism, lying, and spanking, as well as by real live parents who try to use science to inform their decisions. This class is suitable not only for parents, future parents, and grandparents, but also for professionals interested in health care, social work, and early childhood education who want to increase their knowledge and analysis skills.

Drawing on new scientific advances, this religion course examines foundational questions about the nature of religious belief and practice.

The course is based on the idea that religion is a naturalistic phenomenon — meaning it can be studied and better understood using the tools of science. Religious belief and practice emerge naturally from the structure of human psychology, and have an important impact on the structure of societies, the way groups relate to each other, and the ability of human beings to cooperate effectively.

Topics to be covered will include traditional and contemporary theories of religion, with a special emphasis on cultural evolutionary models.
 

Production of this MOOC was partially funded by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada Partnership Grant on ‘The Evolution of Religion and Morality’ (PI: Edward Slingerland), and represents one of this grant’s major knowledge mobilization and research dissemination initiatives.

Whether you are trying to lose weight yourself, or are supporting others, this food and nutrition course will dispel common myths about weight loss and teach you the science behind healthy eating for a healthy weight.

This course is not a diet plan – there are plenty of diet plans out there to choose from. Rather, we will take you through the science behind weight loss and arm you with the knowledge and tools to make the right decisions.

Based on the latest research, you’ll learn to develop a healthy eating plan to achieve a healthy weight. You’ll also discover more about the definition of a healthy weight, the nutritional composition of foods, how to cut calories or kilojoules, proper portion sizes, and how to identify and avoid fad diets.

If you are unable to access Youtube, the introductory video is available via XuetangX.  Connect with the course team and fellow learners on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HKUxArchitecture

This 5-week introductory course is for those who would like to explore and be fascinated by vernacular architecture – the subject and study of everyday buildings, landscapes and sites which are not designed by professional architects but “ordinary” practitioners. It explores vernacular architecture as an expression of local identity, indigenous traditions, and assimilation of different cultures.

This course covers topics such as native building materials, the interaction between people, culture and the vernacular, as well as the vernacular landscape. It has a special emphasis on the built heritage of Asia, which allows students to take a closer look at examples in diverse locales, such as the leather yurts in Mongolia, timber houses in Japan, brick, mud and straw houses in India, reinforced concrete fortified towers and grey brick courtyard houses in Southern China including Macau and Hong Kong.

Designed to promote discussion and dialogue while contributing to the discourse surrounding the concept of the vernacular, this course challenges the perception of tradition and stimulates a deeper analysis of one’s local environment. Indeed, we are keen to hear about how you link your new understanding to vernacular architecture in your neighborhood.

Those who wish to extend their experience and exploration please also join our subsequent 5-week course The Search for Vernacular Architecture of Asia, Part 2 in Summer 2015.

本入门课程为期5周，适合本土建筑爱好者。本土建筑的研究对象是普通日常建筑、景观以及场所。它们并非出自建筑师之手，而是由普通人自己建造。在本课程中，我们将民居建筑视作不同地区的“社区认同”和“本地传统”以及不同文化融合的一种表达方式。

课程内容包括建筑技术和建筑材料、人与文化和传统、 以及本土建筑与景观。本课程以亚洲建筑文化遗产为实例，供学生深入学习，其中包括蒙古地区的蒙古包、日本的木结构房屋、印度的土屋、中国南方澳门与香港一带以钢筋混凝土为建筑材料的塔楼和灰砖庭院。

本课程旨在以讨论和对话的方式研究亚洲的本土建筑，推动本土概念的发展。在此之上，本课程反思了“传统”这个概念，使我们能够更加深入地分析自身所处的环境。我们期待能够听到一些您对本土建筑的新理解。

感兴趣的学生可以参加《探索亚洲地区的民居建筑，第2部分》。

Enhance your software skills and capabilities from a software innovation perspective. Do you have a career in the software industry? Join us for this 8-week course to find out.

The world is becoming increasingly digital and software is everywhere. Every company is affected by software so having the knowledge to succeed in this industry is essential. This course will introduce the skills necessary to create software. We will explain how people from different professions can work together in order to create innovative software. We will also present the most important activities for generating effective software products and services to meet tomorrow’s demands.

This MOOC focuses on Spanish history between the Renaissance and Baroque periods—a time when the Spanish culture set the tone in the Western world.

The monarchy of this Spain created the first global empire of History. The greatest literary works of this period, including La Celestina, Lazarillo de Tormes, were immediately translated in the first European and American printing houses. Spanish fashion was the trendiest at the Courts of Early Modern Europe. Spanish military and political treaties set the standard for political machinations of the era.

In this period—between the 16th and 17th centuries—, Spain’s society achieved excellence in Arts and Literature. Exceptional and talented people such as Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Velázquez, were drawn to Madrid. Literary academies, theatre productions and celebrations flourished in other big cities of the Empire as Seville, Lisbon, Barcelona, Naples, Mexico, and Lima. A synthesis of nations united for the loyalty to the Crown and the Catholic faith. In our tour through the Spain of Don Quixote, we will discuss the relationship between fantastic to real geography. Society was polarized between the privileged—nobility and clergy—and the poor and rogues. Humanism was cultivated in universities. Family, food, housing, games, and celebrations played a part in everyday life.

In times of Don Quixote, the lights of Literature and Art geniuses shined upon the shadows of the Inquisition. Let’s travel to this sublime culture of Spanish Golden Age.