Your education doesn’t have to stop once you leave school. We’ve put together a curriculum of some of the best free online classes available on the web this fall for the latest term of Lifehacker U, our regularly-updating guide to improving your life with free, online college-level classes. Let’s get started.




Orientation: What Is Lifehacker U?

Whether you’re headed to college for the first time or you’re back in classes after a relaxing summer vacation, or long out of school and interested in learning something new, now’s the time to turn it on and amp up your skills with some interesting and informative classes and seminars. Anyone with a little time and a passion for self-growth can audit, read, and “enroll” in these courses for their own personal benefit. Schools like Yale University, MIT, Stanford, the University of California at Berkeley, and many more are all offering free online classes that you can audit and participate in from the comfort of your office chair, couch, or computing chair-of-choice.


If you’ll remember from our Fall 2015 semester, some of these classes are available year-round, but many of them are only available during the a specific term or semester, and because we’re all about helping you improve your life at Lifehacker, we put together a list of courses available this summer that will inspire you, challenge you, open the door to something new, and give you the tools to improve your life. Grab your pen and paper and make sure your battery is charged—class is in session!

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Computer Science and Technology



Finance and Economics

University of Michigan- Principles of Valuation: The Time Value of Money - Professor Gautam Kaul - This course is actually the first in a series about finance, but it teaches a very important lesson—time is money, and that time can be quantified. When you’re saving money by doing something that takes time, you should consider the value of that time as a factor of the money you’re saving. This is actually a very important principle in finance, especially personal finance, and one that’s often overlooked. This course tries to drive that point home in terms of personal choices, and helps you understand how the time value of money plays a role in your own finances.

- This course is actually the first in a series about finance, but it teaches a very important lesson—time is money, and that time can be quantified. When you’re saving money by doing something that takes time, you should consider the value of that time as a factor of the money you’re saving. This is actually a very important principle in finance, especially personal finance, and one that’s often overlooked. This course tries to drive that point home in terms of personal choices, and helps you understand how the time value of money plays a role in your own finances. University of Leeds - The Importance of Money in Business - Professors Peter Moizer and Alice Shepherd - We all know that money is important in business, but this course gives you examples and lessons learned by professionals running their own businesses and working in large companies to explain how important cash flow is to companies both starting up and well-established. You’ll learn all about how companies manage and organize money, gain the financial skills required to demonstrate basic corporate finance understanding to employers, appreciate the impact of cash flow on a business, and most importantly, be able to translate that into your own finances.

- We all know that money is important in business, but this course gives you examples and lessons learned by professionals running their own businesses and working in large companies to explain how important cash flow is to companies both starting up and well-established. You’ll learn all about how companies manage and organize money, gain the financial skills required to demonstrate basic corporate finance understanding to employers, appreciate the impact of cash flow on a business, and most importantly, be able to translate that into your own finances. University of California Irvine - Finance for Non-Financial Professionals - Professor David Standen, MBA - Regardless of your role at work, you may have decisions to make that have a financial impact. Alternatively, maybe you’re just not involved with the money at your job but you’d like to understand how it all moves better than you do. This course can help you understand the basics of finance—specifically finance for organizations and businesses—without getting into all of the detail and nitty-gritty that’s necessary for those people who work with it every day. By the end of the course though, you will sympathize with them better, and understand what their jobs entail.

- Regardless of your role at work, you may have decisions to make that have a financial impact. Alternatively, maybe you’re just not involved with the money at your job but you’d like to understand how it all moves better than you do. This course can help you understand the basics of finance—specifically finance for organizations and businesses—without getting into all of the detail and nitty-gritty that’s necessary for those people who work with it every day. By the end of the course though, you will sympathize with them better, and understand what their jobs entail. SOAS University of London - Understanding Public Financial Management: How Is Your Money Spent? - Professor Alberto Asquer - How do governments make use of tax dollars collected from the public? Everyone has an opinion on how they should be used, but how many people know how they’re actually used, beyond the departments and services they go to, in general? This course may have a bit of a UK/EU thrust to it, but by the end you’ll understand the mechanisms of taxation and monetary collection through natural resources and other resources by public agencies and organizations, how those financial resources are divvied up between competing agencies and organizations, how the public sector reports those financial decisions to the public, and of course, where all the money actually ends up.



Science and Medicine



Mathematics

Loughborough University - Numeracy Skills for Employability and the Workplace - Professors Janette Matthews and Tony Croft - While many math courses focus on teaching specific skills, like algebra or calculus, this course is a bit more general, focused on helping you brush up on the basic mathematics skills you’ll need for the workplace. Perhaps most importantly, the course will help you build your math confidence, and dispel the notion that you “just can’t do math.” You’ll walk through exercises that will improve your math skills from top to bottom, including understanding numerical data, interpreting statistics, and the elements of finance.

- While many math courses focus on teaching specific skills, like algebra or calculus, this course is a bit more general, focused on helping you brush up on the basic mathematics skills you’ll need for the workplace. Perhaps most importantly, the course will help you build your math confidence, and dispel the notion that you “just can’t do math.” You’ll walk through exercises that will improve your math skills from top to bottom, including understanding numerical data, interpreting statistics, and the elements of finance. Saskatchewan Polytechnic - Applied Trade Mathematics - Professor Dalton Mervoid - In the same vein as the workplace math course, this course is even a little more entry-level, helping you brush up on (or master) your skills in basic mathematics. If you feel like you’d love to pick up math but want a more adult-focused course for beginners, this is the class for you. You’ll cover topics like arithmetic, fractions, decimals, percentages, and more, all in an easy-to-follow and informative format.

- In the same vein as the workplace math course, this course is even a little more entry-level, helping you brush up on (or master) your skills in basic mathematics. If you feel like you’d love to pick up math but want a more adult-focused course for beginners, this is the class for you. You’ll cover topics like arithmetic, fractions, decimals, percentages, and more, all in an easy-to-follow and informative format. Kyoto University - Fun with Prime Numbers: The Mysterious World of Mathematics - Professor Tetsushi Ito - If the course title didn’t give it away, this course is all about prime numbers, and how incredible they are. Think about it—they’re unlike any other number, and truly unique, and not common at all. In this course you’ll study the laws of prime numbers, problems and frontiers of mathematical research around prime numbers, and even recent progress made in the field, which mathematicians have been eagerly studying for years.

If the course title didn’t give it away, this course is all about prime numbers, and how incredible they are. Think about it—they’re unlike any other number, and truly unique, and not common at all. In this course you’ll study the laws of prime numbers, problems and frontiers of mathematical research around prime numbers, and even recent progress made in the field, which mathematicians have been eagerly studying for years. Princeton University - Algorithms, Part I - Professors Kevin Wayne and Robert Sedgewick - Part computer science, part data science, and all math, algorithms are necessary understanding if you want to familiarize yourself with how mathematical and automated systems operate, learn, and act. You may need some computer science background for this one (specifically Java), but by the end you’ll understand the relationship between math and computer science extremely well.



Social Sciences, Classics, and Humanities

Delft University of Technology - Framing: How Politicians Debate - Professors Hans de Bruijn and Jet Pagnier - In this season of endless political debates and controversy in the media about what one politician is saying, especially about another, it helps to get a better understanding of why politicians use the language and speaking techniques that they so often resort to—namely, it’s all about “framing,” or stating the question or issue in a way that gives them a favorable opportunity to respond or state beliefs or positions that make them look good. It may sound simple, but it’s more difficult—and prevalent—than you might think, and this course will help take the wool from your eyes.



- In this season of endless political debates and controversy in the media about what one politician is saying, especially about another, it helps to get a better understanding of why politicians use the language and speaking techniques that they so often resort to—namely, it’s all about “framing,” or stating the question or issue in a way that gives them a favorable opportunity to respond or state beliefs or positions that make them look good. It may sound simple, but it’s more difficult—and prevalent—than you might think, and this course will help take the wool from your eyes. Kyoto University - Culture of Services: New Perspective on Customer Relations - Professors Yutaka Yamauchi and Nao Sato - The customer is “always right,” right? Of course not—but how did society get to a place where the people who perform customer service were looked down upon? In other cultures and countries, service personnel have different standards of behavior, and in many histories service personnel used to be roles and positions to look up to, apprentice for, and achieve with honors. This course will explore those topics, as well as the history and development of good customer service and relation systems today, and how customer service research is performed.

- The customer is “always right,” right? Of course not—but how did society get to a place where the people who perform customer service were looked down upon? In other cultures and countries, service personnel have different standards of behavior, and in many histories service personnel used to be roles and positions to look up to, apprentice for, and achieve with honors. This course will explore those topics, as well as the history and development of good customer service and relation systems today, and how customer service research is performed. Stanford University - American Prophet: The Inner Life and Global Vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr - Professor Dr. Clayborne Carson - A course about the inner life and thoughts of Dr King, American Prophet focuses on the man that Dr. King was, completely, and the vision that he had for a better future. The course will examine high and low points in his life, what he was really thinking and feeling during some of those most famous moments in civil rights history, how he even became a civil rights leader in the first place, and how confident he really was that his methods would work. You’ll study historical documents and personal experiences of people who lived through those moments with him, and by the end of the course you’ll have a better appreciation for the person Dr. King was, not just the civil rights icon and pioneer he was as well.



- A course about the inner life and thoughts of Dr King, American Prophet focuses on the man that Dr. King was, completely, and the vision that he had for a better future. The course will examine high and low points in his life, what he was really thinking and feeling during some of those most famous moments in civil rights history, how he even became a civil rights leader in the first place, and how confident he really was that his methods would work. You’ll study historical documents and personal experiences of people who lived through those moments with him, and by the end of the course you’ll have a better appreciation for the person Dr. King was, not just the civil rights icon and pioneer he was as well. University of Virginia - Tibetan Buddhist Meditation and the Modern World: Lesser Vehicle - Professor David Francis Germano and Kurtis R Schaeffer - Meditation can play a hugely beneficial role in our lives, but where did the practice come from, and when researchers and neuroscientists study it, who are they studying? This course examines the many types of meditation out there, their philosophical underpinnings and methodologies, and tries to tease out the common western oversimplification of “buddhist meditation” that we see all too often in media.



Meditation can play a hugely beneficial role in our lives, but where did the practice come from, and when researchers and neuroscientists study it, who are they studying? This course examines the many types of meditation out there, their philosophical underpinnings and methodologies, and tries to tease out the common western oversimplification of “buddhist meditation” that we see all too often in media. University of Pennsylvania - Ancient Philosphy: Plato and His Predecessors - Professor Susan Sauvé Meyer - This course is a primer to philosophy, as in, the real basics. What is philosphy? How did this method of analyzing the way we think and rationalize come to pass? Who were some of the pioneers of this method of rationalization, and how did they see the world? What can we learn from them? Yup, you guessed it - this course will tackle all of those questions in detail, and guide you through some of the works of Plato and Aristotle, but their predecessors like Parmenides of Elea, Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximines, and more.



- This course is a primer to philosophy, as in, the real basics. What is philosphy? How did this method of analyzing the way we think and rationalize come to pass? Who were some of the pioneers of this method of rationalization, and how did they see the world? What can we learn from them? Yup, you guessed it - this course will tackle all of those questions in detail, and guide you through some of the works of Plato and Aristotle, but their predecessors like Parmenides of Elea, Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximines, and more. Stanford University - International Women’s Health and Human Rights - Professors Anne Firth Murray and Kevin Hsu - This course will give you an overview of women’s health and human rights issues around the globe, from access to medical and reproductive care, discrimination, poverty, human trafficking and more. The course will touch on economic, social, and political factors in third-world and first-world nations alike, and the issues all of those countries struggle to—or must struggle to—solve, from HIV/Aids, many nations’ preference for sons, violence against women, aging, and education. The course will also hinge heavily on lived experiences and discussions.

- This course will give you an overview of women’s health and human rights issues around the globe, from access to medical and reproductive care, discrimination, poverty, human trafficking and more. The course will touch on economic, social, and political factors in third-world and first-world nations alike, and the issues all of those countries struggle to—or must struggle to—solve, from HIV/Aids, many nations’ preference for sons, violence against women, aging, and education. The course will also hinge heavily on lived experiences and discussions. The University of Hong Kong - Making Sense of the News - Professors Masato Kajimoto and Anne Kruger - Today’s 24/7 news cycle makes it difficult to follow the news, follow stories all the way through, and of course, distinguish news from opinion and editorializing. This course will help you get the skills required to tell one from the other, know what you’re looking at and how to interpret it accordingly, and apply your critical thinking skills to everything you read. You’ll also learn how to put what you read into context, and how to avoid relying too heavily on any one perspective or outlet for all of your information about a given story or trend.

- Today’s 24/7 news cycle makes it difficult to follow the news, follow stories all the way through, and of course, distinguish news from opinion and editorializing. This course will help you get the skills required to tell one from the other, know what you’re looking at and how to interpret it accordingly, and apply your critical thinking skills to everything you read. You’ll also learn how to put what you read into context, and how to avoid relying too heavily on any one perspective or outlet for all of your information about a given story or trend. University of Pennsylvania - Greek and Roman Mythology - Professor Peter Struck - Fewer belief systems have been as widely studied and used as literary devices as greek and roman mythologies, and it doesn’t hurt that the roman mythologies were based on the greek ones. This course will introduce you to both, their similiarities and differences, and help you see the world—and the cosmos—through the eyes of the people living in that time. You’ll understand and read some of those great stories and myths, and get a better understanding of why they’re stuck with us for so long over the years.

- Fewer belief systems have been as widely studied and used as literary devices as greek and roman mythologies, and it doesn’t hurt that the roman mythologies were based on the greek ones. This course will introduce you to both, their similiarities and differences, and help you see the world—and the cosmos—through the eyes of the people living in that time. You’ll understand and read some of those great stories and myths, and get a better understanding of why they’re stuck with us for so long over the years. South China University of Technology - Chinese Language and Culture - Professor Liu Cheng-China is a country that dominates news headlines when it comes to international politics and foreign affairs, but how much do you actually know about the nation, and its history? Chinese culture and history is rich and deep and ancient, and this course will help you explore that history, its mind-boggling depth, and more. You’ll study the cultural significance of China’s various regions, ethnicities, and peoples, gain a familiarity with the Chinese language—both written and spoken, and even explore authentic Chinese cuisines. By the end of the course, you’ll even be able to understand the basics of Chinese characters, and have an appreciation for things like Chinese opera, architecture, and food.



Law

University of Pennsylvania - An Introduction to American Law - Professors Anita Allen, Shyam Balganesh, Stephen Morse, Edward Rock, Theodore Ruger, Tess Wilkinson-Ryan, and Tobias Barrington Wolff - How well do you understand the law in the United States? This course will give you a crash course in various types of American law, including constitutional law, criminal law, civil procedure, contract law, and more. You’ll start with tort law, move on to contract and property law, and move up from there in a whirlwind that will culminate with you having a better understanding of the legal system, and probably enough knowledge to better understand your rights.

How well do you understand the law in the United States? This course will give you a crash course in various types of American law, including constitutional law, criminal law, civil procedure, contract law, and more. You’ll start with tort law, move on to contract and property law, and move up from there in a whirlwind that will culminate with you having a better understanding of the legal system, and probably enough knowledge to better understand your rights. Stanford University - Surveillance Law - Professor Jonathan Mayer - This popular course is back for another term! Study how intelligence agencies and law enforcement collect your data, analyze it to determine whether you’re a threat, store it, and how—if ever—it’s used against you. You’ll also learn how the law can protect you from surveillance, and the basics of foreign surveillance as well. No previous legal background is necessary, either—you can come in with nothing and walk out with a great understanding of data security and internet surveillance— which you probably know is a very pressing issue.



- This popular course is back for another term! Study how intelligence agencies and law enforcement collect your data, analyze it to determine whether you’re a threat, store it, and how—if ever—it’s used against you. You’ll also learn how the law can protect you from surveillance, and the basics of foreign surveillance as well. No previous legal background is necessary, either—you can come in with nothing and walk out with a great understanding of data security and internet surveillance— which you probably know is a very pressing issue. Harvard University - Contract Law: From Trust to Promise to Contract - Professor Charles Fried - Understanding contracts is so important, but it’s also incredibly complicated. You don’t need to be a lawyer or hire one to dive into those pages of agreements you’re signing your life away over, you just need a little understanding of what some of those terms mean and how these agreements came to be—not to mention who they’re designed to protect. This course will help with that, starting with the basics of contract law, how these agreements became legally binding, and rounding out with some tips to help you better understand the legality of written agreements (and their limitations!)



Understanding contracts is so important, but it’s also incredibly complicated. You don’t need to be a lawyer or hire one to dive into those pages of agreements you’re signing your life away over, you just need a little understanding of what some of those terms mean and how these agreements came to be—not to mention who they’re designed to protect. This course will help with that, starting with the basics of contract law, how these agreements became legally binding, and rounding out with some tips to help you better understand the legality of written agreements (and their limitations!) Université Catholique de Louvain - International Human Rights - Professor Olivier de Schutter - What are “human rights,” and what do countries and ambassadors mean when they accuse other nations of human rights abuses? This course will help you understand the concept of international human rights, what make up those “rights,” and how loaded those terms can be, especially when used in international wars of words. At the same time, human rights are intensely important to protect, and you’ll understand that as well by the end of the class—not to mention how difficult it really is to draft a basic international understanding and system of law that respects them all across any and all borders.

- What are “human rights,” and what do countries and ambassadors mean when they accuse other nations of human rights abuses? This course will help you understand the concept of international human rights, what make up those “rights,” and how loaded those terms can be, especially when used in international wars of words. At the same time, human rights are intensely important to protect, and you’ll understand that as well by the end of the class—not to mention how difficult it really is to draft a basic international understanding and system of law that respects them all across any and all borders. University of Pennsylvania- Intellectual Property Law and Policy - Part 1: IP and Patent Laws - Professor R. Polk Wagner- This course will walk you through how “intellectual property” works. It’s the first part in a multi-part discussion on IP and patent laws, but you’ll study how companies trademark and copyright designs, information, and products so others can’t just copy them and go to market, why so many companies defend their intellectual property so fiercely, and whether or not it’s possible to even get some of the patents we hear companies apply for all the time—and if they do, how they managed to do it.



Cross-Disciplinary Courses and Seminars

Indian School of Business - A Life of Happiness and Fulfillment - Professor Dr. Rajagopal Raghunathan - This course will tackle one of life’s biggest questions: How does one live a happy life? You’ll study approaches from everyone from The Buddha to Aristotle and everyone geographically and temporally in between to see if there are any similarities in their approaches, and tips and takeaways you can use in your everyday life. Similarly, beyond the spiritual and philosophical, you’ll study the data-driven search for happier people, with commentary from people like Dan Ariely, Ed Diener, and others, all of whom have studied and written a great deal on behavioral psychology, decision-making, and of course, how to be happier. By the end of the class you may even be happier yourself, but you’ll definitely have an understanding of what both science and philosophy say you’ll need to be happy.

- This course will tackle one of life’s biggest questions: How does one live a happy life? You’ll study approaches from everyone from The Buddha to Aristotle and everyone geographically and temporally in between to see if there are any similarities in their approaches, and tips and takeaways you can use in your everyday life. Similarly, beyond the spiritual and philosophical, you’ll study the data-driven search for happier people, with commentary from people like Dan Ariely, Ed Diener, and others, all of whom have studied and written a great deal on behavioral psychology, decision-making, and of course, how to be happier. By the end of the class you may even be happier yourself, but you’ll definitely have an understanding of what both science and philosophy say you’ll need to be happy. The Open University - Smart Cities - Professors Lorraine Hudson and Gerd Kortuem - Even our cities are getting “smart.” Cameras, sensors, and other connected technologies are on every street corner, and automated, intelligent systems make decisions about everything from when to change the lights from green to red to collecting air quality data for different neighborhoods. What does the future hold for our cities that are always watching and sensing everything going on in them? Who’ll use that information, for what? This course aims to tackle some of those difficult topics, both from the concerned to the excited, and you’ll hear from people innovating in these fields to the people processing the data themselves.



- Even our cities are getting “smart.” Cameras, sensors, and other connected technologies are on every street corner, and automated, intelligent systems make decisions about everything from when to change the lights from green to red to collecting air quality data for different neighborhoods. What does the future hold for our cities that are always watching and sensing everything going on in them? Who’ll use that information, for what? This course aims to tackle some of those difficult topics, both from the concerned to the excited, and you’ll hear from people innovating in these fields to the people processing the data themselves. Stanford University - Adventures in Writing - This writing class is taught through a series of graphic novel-style lessons aimed to help get the creative juices flowing, help you write and write more often, and hone your writing skills, both creative and technical. You’ll learn basics like how to identify active and passive voice, how to identify your purpose, audience, and context, and how to make compelling arguments in your writing. There’s a huge team of writers and researchers behind this class, and it’s a must-take for anyone writing either for fun or as a profession.

This writing class is taught through a series of graphic novel-style lessons aimed to help get the creative juices flowing, help you write and write more often, and hone your writing skills, both creative and technical. You’ll learn basics like how to identify active and passive voice, how to identify your purpose, audience, and context, and how to make compelling arguments in your writing. There’s a huge team of writers and researchers behind this class, and it’s a must-take for anyone writing either for fun or as a profession. Duke University - Dog Emotion and Cognition - Professor Brian Hare - Dogs have a variety of ways to tell us how they’re feeling and what they want, but this course goes deeper than that. You’ll explore dog psychology—which no joke, is actively being researched, with great results. You’ll perhaps better understand the evolutionary roots of your furry friend’s behaviors, learn to tell what they’re thinking and feeling, especially about us, and ideally, develop a better relationship with your dog.



- Dogs have a variety of ways to tell us how they’re feeling and what they want, but this course goes deeper than that. You’ll explore dog psychology—which no joke, is actively being researched, with great results. You’ll perhaps better understand the evolutionary roots of your furry friend’s behaviors, learn to tell what they’re thinking and feeling, especially about us, and ideally, develop a better relationship with your dog. National Film and Television School (UK) - Explore Animation - Professors Pete Fraser and Jon Wardle - From the world of 2D cel animations to stop motion to 3D CG, this course will walk you through the history of animation, show you how it’s done, give you a better appreciation for the effort and work that goes into putting animated features together, and give you a good background if you’re interested in exploring animation on your own. You’ll learn from experienced animators who’ll present their own work, talk to you about the works that inspire you (and inspired them), and help you get started with your own animation projects.

- From the world of 2D cel animations to stop motion to 3D CG, this course will walk you through the history of animation, show you how it’s done, give you a better appreciation for the effort and work that goes into putting animated features together, and give you a good background if you’re interested in exploring animation on your own. You’ll learn from experienced animators who’ll present their own work, talk to you about the works that inspire you (and inspired them), and help you get started with your own animation projects. King’s College London - The Internet of Things - Professor Mischa Dohler - The “internet of things” is a phrase that’s been tossed around a lot, but what, beyond the basics, does it mean? This course will teach you, and show you what the future of always-connected, internet-capable everything means for your everyday life, from the awesome to the ridiculous. The course is aimed at people who are interested in the technology and getting into smart devices, so if that’s you, you’ll learn a lot—and you’ll learn from someone already working in the industry.

- The “internet of things” is a phrase that’s been tossed around a lot, but what, beyond the basics, does it mean? This course will teach you, and show you what the future of always-connected, internet-capable everything means for your everyday life, from the awesome to the ridiculous. The course is aimed at people who are interested in the technology and getting into smart devices, so if that’s you, you’ll learn a lot—and you’ll learn from someone already working in the industry. University of Leicester- Behind the Scenes at the 21st Century Museum - Professors Suzanne MacLeod, Jocelyn Dodd, Richard Sandell, and Shiela Watson - Museums today are completely different than they used to be. Long gone are tons of boring displays and purely self-guided exercises and exploration, although exploration is still encouraged. Modern museums combine the new with the old, the relevant with the ancient, and walk you through their exhibits and lessons with modern technology. This course will take you behind the scenes of modern museums to see how they impact the world, how curators struggle to engage visitors, and encourage emotional and thoughtful reactions from the people who come to learn.

- Museums today are completely different than they used to be. Long gone are tons of boring displays and purely self-guided exercises and exploration, although exploration is still encouraged. Modern museums combine the new with the old, the relevant with the ancient, and walk you through their exhibits and lessons with modern technology. This course will take you behind the scenes of modern museums to see how they impact the world, how curators struggle to engage visitors, and encourage emotional and thoughtful reactions from the people who come to learn. Hamilton - Jazz: The Music, The Stories, The Players - Professor Monk Rowe - If you’re looking for a better appreciation of jazz, this course will help you get your bearings. You’ll study what makes this uniquely American form of music so popular, and so influential elsewhere in the world, why people love it so much and its roots, and some of its most popular and prolific musicians. Whether you play an instrument or you’re a casual listener, there’s something for you here.

- If you’re looking for a better appreciation of jazz, this course will help you get your bearings. You’ll study what makes this uniquely American form of music so popular, and so influential elsewhere in the world, why people love it so much and its roots, and some of its most popular and prolific musicians. Whether you play an instrument or you’re a casual listener, there’s something for you here. The University of Edinburgh - Sit Less, Get Active - Professors Danijela Gašević, MD, PhD, Graham Baker, PhD, Andrew Murray MBChB, FFSEM, FRCP(glas), MRCGP, PgC MSK USS, and Chris Oliver BSc, MB. BS, MD, FRCS (Eng, Ed, Tr & Orth), FRCP (Ed), DMI RCSEd, FFSTEd, Cert Med Ed. - It’s no secret that sedentary lifestyles are killing us, but this course may be the kick in the pants you need to make being active part of your regular lifestyle and not just something you force yourself to do. Aimed at both everyday people and health professionals, the class is packed with exercises, activities, and more as you and everyone else in the course takes a journey to stop sitting so much and get some regular activity, even if it’s a little. You’ll also have the benefit of some highly qualified health professionals to talk to and learn from as you develop your own activity plans and put them into motion.




Extra Credit: How To Find Your Own Online Classes

The curriculum at Lifehacker U is rich and deep, but it may not reflect all of your areas of interests or expertise. If you’re looking for more or more varied course material, here are some resources to help you find great, university-level online classes that you can take from the comfort of your desk, at any time of day.



The beautiful thing about taking classes online is that you can pick and choose the classes you want to attend, skip lectures and come back to them later (in some cases - some classes require your regular attendance and participation!), and do examinations and quizzes on your own time. You can load up with as many classes as you choose, or take a light course load and come back to some of the classes you meant to take at another time that’s more convenient for you.


With Lifehacker U, you’re free to take as many or as few of these classes as you like, and we’ll update this course guide every term with a fresh list of courses on new and interesting topics, some of which are only available during that academic term.

If you have online course resources or your university offers classes that are available for free online that you know would be a great fit for Lifehacker U, don’t keep them to yourself! Send them in to us at tips+lifehackeru@lifehacker.com so we can include them in the next semester!


Title photo remixed from an original by f11photo ( Shutterstock ).