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Maroonclown 5829 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 12:34 PM (EST) "Best course/lesson" Reading through Fishercat's thread about college got me to thinking about the best courses I took. Those courses that may have not been the most useful academically, but have stuck with me throughout the years, whether they be interesting, or opened up new interests that led to another path in life, etc. Some of my favourite courses in University involved the bizarre, like The Gothic Novel course I mentioned in Fisher's thread. We had the privilege of have as guest speaker two of the world's most renowed ghost hunters. They were so creepy but I'll never forget that class (although I completely forget their names). So what courses, lessons, have you taken that were a little off the beaten path? Doesn't have to be collegiate. Could be any course, any class, any lesson.   Top

Subject     Author     Message Date     ID    RE: Best course/lesson weltek 08-02-06 1    RE: Best course/lesson Maroonclown 08-02-06 4        RE: Best course/lesson weltek 08-02-06 5  RE: Best course/lesson adricharlie 08-02-06 2  RE: Best course/lesson susang 08-02-06 3    RE: Best course/lesson Snidget 08-02-06 6        RE: Best course/lesson Maroonclown 08-02-06 8    RE: Best course/lesson mysticwolf 08-02-06 16  RE: Best course/lesson AZ_Leo 08-02-06 7  RE: Best course/lesson geg6 08-02-06 9    RE: Best course/lesson cahaya 08-03-06 18        RE: Best course/lesson geg6 08-03-06 20  RE: Best course/lesson emydi 08-02-06 10    RE: Best course/lesson Maroonclown 08-02-06 11        RE: Best course/lesson emydi 08-02-06 12    RE: Best course/lesson geg6 08-02-06 13  RE: Best course/lesson Molaholic 08-02-06 14  RE: Best course/lesson Maroonclown 08-02-06 15  RE: Best course/lesson mysticwolf 08-02-06 17  RE: Best course/lesson universityofkentuckyrocks 08-03-06 19

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weltek 16936 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 12:50 PM (EST) 1. "RE: Best course/lesson" Two come to mind: History of the Italian Maffia and Wilderness Survival. The Maffia course was just interesting and we got to watch The Godfather trilogy. The teacher was Italian and looked like Danny Divito. Wilderness Survival let me bond with some unlikely classmates, learn to do things I didn't think I could & helped me conquor the fear of sleeping basically uncovered in the outdoors.   Top

Maroonclown 5829 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 01:10 PM (EST) 4. "RE: Best course/lesson" sleeping basically uncovered in the outdoors. Like as in nekkid? Didn't the skeeters get you?   Top

weltek 16936 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 01:16 PM (EST) 5. "RE: Best course/lesson" No, I had clothes on! I just had a small piece of plastic in a v over my head & shoulders.   Top

adricharlie 1340 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Beef Jerky Spokesperson" 08-02-06, 12:54 PM (EST) 2. "RE: Best course/lesson" For me it was actually a class in High School. The last 6 weeks of school we had what they called "Mini-Term" and they offered all sorts of strange classes including stuff like Sailboating, basket weaving and such. One year I thought I was so smart and signed up for the class on Stephen King short stories thinking it would be simple. The class itself wasn't hard but since I have nightmares after seeing a commercial for a scary movie, it definitely wasn't the right class for me. That was a very long 6 weeks let me tell you.   Top

susang 435 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Daytime Soap Guest Star" 08-02-06, 12:55 PM (EST) 3. "RE: Best course/lesson" One of my favorite courses was Cultural Anthropology at my community college. The instructor was inspiring, had a good sense of humor, and was passionate about the discipline. Many instructors who teach the same subject for 20+ years get jaded, and it shows up in their teaching. I was amazed at the number of fields that "crossed over" to CA, e.g., Geography, Linguistics, Sociology, to name a few. The major lesson I learned is that the World is so interconnected (more than one imagines). The instructor ended up getting a Teacher of the Year award. Not surprised!   Top

Snidget 44369 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 01:16 PM (EST) 6. "RE: Best course/lesson" I had an intro to anthropology course that I remember one big lesson from. We were discussing religious practices and some of the students were skeptical about how some of the primitave shamanism type stuff would convince anyone there was magic and why these people had any power. So next class we came in and the lights were down, there was drum music, a few candles. Took the whole class to do an elaborate card trick where just as the bell rang he pulled down the projector screen at the front of the class and there was the card that had been picked about 15 minutes into class. For some reason a lot of things started making sense that day. I also enjoyed my Social Psychology class but that my have been because I was a science geek and it was all about how the experiments were done and what the results meant, which I was good at, but many of the non-science majors in there had trouble with. I also lvoed my Satire class. We both read and wrote a fair amount and I really got a lot out of it (which shows up in some of my summaries, who knew that would be useful for so long). Even in my major some of the electives along the way like the Biological Clocks class and Field Biology that were not strictly what I needed to learn to get a job in the lab stuff were some of the more interesting classes. I think a lot of that was the stuff I learned for the sake of learning rather than the stuff that everyone had to take to get through.   Top

Maroonclown 5829 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 01:28 PM (EST) 8. "RE: Best course/lesson" I think a lot of that was the stuff I learned for the sake of learning rather than the stuff that everyone had to take to get through. Ain't that the truth! I've gone back and read texts that were mandatory in university. Much more interesting when read for pleasure.   Top

mysticwolf 10692 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 03:49 PM (EST) 16. "RE: Best course/lesson" I loved my Cultural Anthropology class, too. My professor had spent a lot of time in the field and her stories were terrific. Pack Alpha Status Accorded by Tribe blogging's scary   Top

AZ_Leo 3526 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Thong Contest Judge" 08-02-06, 01:20 PM (EST) 7. "RE: Best course/lesson" I had a liberal arts education so I had a chance to take a lot of really interesting courses. Just a few: Reading the Iliad in the original greek: taught me how subjective translations of any text can be. History of Witchcraft: taught me about power and religion and how far it can be twisted to maintain control and how easy it can be to use it to create a mob mentality. Horror and Madness (got to watch horror movies then analyze them according to various psychological theories): taught me how easy it can be to read things into something that the original authors never intended (I really don't think the makers of Return of the Mummy were thinking about Jungian principles but it was easy to apply). In ninth grade I went to an all girls school, nondenominational but loosely affiliated with the Episcopal church (we did have chapel every morning, I was in the choir). They taught a combined course on civilization and literature. It was two classes taught in parallel. One fun part was the final project. My partner and I chose to create a full size papier mache replica of an ancient greek statue called a kouros. Not only would we be graded but the projects would be displayed for all students, teacher, and parents to see in the hall between the chapel and the library. We studied all the information, made sure we had all the key measurements (or so we thought), formed the chicken wire into the correct shapes, and were almost finished when we realized we had somehow overlooked a few (OK, 3) details--like most greek statues these are male nudes. To this day I believe that the teachers realized we would sooner or later have to deal with the anatomical realities and were very curious as to how we would "handle" the situation. We just could not bring ourselves to actually mold the parts in question (although it would have given some interesting experience not usually received in parochial schools) nor could we stand the thought of our parents and the priest gazing at our creation in all its glory. After much giggling we came up with a solution: we made it a medieval copy and put a fig leaf in the strategic spot. We got an A (although I believe they said the fig leaf should have been bigger). I would say it was one of my first experiences in creative problem solving. A tribephyl original   Top

geg6 14941 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 02:15 PM (EST) 9. "RE: Best course/lesson" I had three college classes that I absolutely adored every minute of. And that was because of fascinating and charismatic professors. Presidential Rhetoric I & II were easily my favorite classes of all time. Hands down. Best professor and teacher I've ever had. You couldn't take your eyes or ears off of him. Most interesting and entertaining professor taught Political Theory. I had a beer with him once a week and we would have long drunken theoretical discussions. Ah, college! Most long-term use I got out of a class was probably my World Politics class. The text was named "Games Nations Play" and was based on games theory. It still gives me such a great, practical framework for viewing and analyzing what is happening in the world today and for trying to predict outcomes. Of course, none of this pertains to my actual career.   Top

cahaya 19891 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-03-06, 00:07 AM (EST) 18. "RE: Best course/lesson" The text was named "Games Nations Play" and was based on games theory. It still gives me such a great, practical framework for viewing and analyzing what is happening in the world today and for trying to predict outcomes. I'll have to check this out! I spent part of a summer at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis during the summer of my high-school junior year on internship, and I chose game theory as my area of interest. It was a fascinating course and experience, with the first time I'd ever used a supercomputer (back in '73). It can apply to a wide spectrum of political and military (or combined) situations. Later, during my senior year in college, my project was on computer-based artificial intelligence using game theory for political negotiations, based on work by Douglas Hofstadter. "TK-21 Ace of Spades" Award by Tribephyl   Top

geg6 14941 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-03-06, 08:31 AM (EST) 20. "RE: Best course/lesson" And now we are both the biggest geeks here. But at least it's good company. I have applied game theory to many aspects of my life. I kicked butt on the GRE in the logic section by using some game techniques.   Top

emydi 13669 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 02:38 PM (EST) 10. "RE: Best course/lesson" In college...I loved so many...I had sociology as major (with concentration in criminal justice) and history, psychology, and english lit as minors. Prisons and Prisoners...I loved learning about it but I found out I didn't want to work there!! My prof was an asst. Warden at West Penitentiary (now closed) and we went on a tour of prison most people don't see. I loved my "Roaring 20's" (Lit) class...I loved that era and the writing...I think me and the prof were the only ones that read the books. We were the only ones that ever talked in class. My fictional writing class...I had never really done it before and one of my profs in reg eng. lit suggested I take it...I wrote some short stories...but never have done it again though... Self Defense!! I needed a 1 credit class to fulfill all of my credits so in my senior year I took this. Great class...I was voted "most likely not to be raped" based on my walk that I use when I'm alone (esp. at nite) You walk determined and quickly and look em right in the eye. Our Final was going out in Oakland where Pitt is situated in inner city at nite and our prof had friends "attack us." It was so cool. Latin American History Societies...you never ever get this in h.s., very interesting. It's all so white and eurocentric. and i'm a geek...English origins of American Law....we started with the Magna Carta...I took that later in my college career and it helped me to decide to go to law school. In law school...my faves were Con law..had a really cool liberal prof (Jules Lobel geggy have you heard of him?) and Legislation. I also liked my seminar on legal ethics in criminal law. and bc of one of my fave profs. I loved my Sales class (the UCC)   Top

Maroonclown 5829 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 02:43 PM (EST) 11. "RE: Best course/lesson" Our Final was going out in Oakland where Pitt is situated in inner city at nite and our prof had friends "attack us." It was so cool. Never, never, never would I have been able to do this. I can't even go into scary houses that have real people jumping out. I always figure they will have a psychotic break at that particular moment in time and go all apesh!t on me.   Top

emydi 13669 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 02:46 PM (EST) 12. "RE: Best course/lesson" well, we knew something would happen and it really couldn't be physical like a real person getting attacked. it was more like how to avoid them and realize who was who...some of them tried to pull cons etc. asking for money/time..etc...oh and I passed with flying colors   Top

geg6 14941 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 02:50 PM (EST) 13. "RE: Best course/lesson" Yes, I know Jules Lobel. Never had him, but heard of him. I had Nathan Firestone for Constitutional Law. I think he's head of the poli/sci dept. at Point Park U. now.   Top

Molaholic 9015 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 03:34 PM (EST) 14. "RE: Best course/lesson" LAST EDITED ON 08-02-06 AT 03:44 PM (EST) One class I'll never forget was a basic astronomy class I took at a Community College. The instructor made even the most mundane information interesting. His tests were also something different. I remember just before our mid-term, after explaining the test-taking criteria he asked "Are there any questions?" Well, some wag in the back of the room called out "What's the answer to number 27?" Without skipping a beat, he said "C". His tests were also peppered with questions that had, shall we say, non-traditional elements. Such as "Your favorite astronomy instructor is accelerating through space at a rate of 28mps^, how long will it take him to impact the asteroid 230000km away?" eta: Another class that sprang to mind was "Zen and the Art of Archery" at University. Unfortunately, that's about all I remember of it. We never did any archery, either. edtited again to fix stoopid typoz “Either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. The prospect of either situation is simply astonishing.” Carl Sagan   Top

Maroonclown 5829 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 03:38 PM (EST) 15. "RE: Best course/lesson" It's interesting to note that one common thread throughout here has been the teacher. While the subject matter at hand is often unconventional and would be fascinating unto itself, it appears the teacher has made these courses a lifetime memorable experience.   Top

mysticwolf 10692 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Playboy Centerfold" 08-02-06, 04:03 PM (EST) 17. "RE: Best course/lesson" In HS it was my Biology and World History classes. Easily some of the best teachers I ever had during HS. (Unfortunately, the Bio teacher had a nervous breakdown about 5 years later. Barricaded himself in his classroom and started throwing all of the equipment, furniture, supplies, etc. out the window. I hear he was hospitalized for some time, and assume he no longer teaches.) I've had a number of college courses that I've really liked. But, they're not really "odd". And, it's almost always the prof. involved, rather than the content, that makes them so memorable. On the memorable, and odd, side is a certification class on Good Manufacturing Practices I took while employed. I learned how to identify signs of infestation, identify the pest involved, and prevention and pest control measures and techniques. I believe I'm the only person in IT in the company that had the opportunity to attend that class. It was fun and a surprising amount of it has stayed with me. Pack Alpha Status Accorded by Tribe blogging's scary   Top

universityofkentuckyrocks 2575 desperate attention whore postings DAW Level: "Survivor-themed Cruise Spokesperson" 08-03-06, 01:02 AM (EST) 19. "RE: Best course/lesson" So far In High School, it was US History, he graduated from my school 97, so he is very young. But he showed us movies, talked politics, talked current events and told us all about wars in the US, Especially the Civil War, which I am taking Civil War as a class this year and I got him as the teacher, so it should be a fun class. ukrocks got a blog!   Top

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