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College Gets Podcasted

Apple serves up free education with iTunes U

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 24, 2007 2:30 PM CST
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(Newser) – Want to attend Yale for free? Thanks to Apple, you sort of can. Many colleges, including Yale, Stanford and MIT, now offer free lecture downloads through iTunes U. You won’t get a diploma, but thousands of non-traditional learners don’t mind, the LA Times reports. “They thirst for understanding and knowledge,” said one podcasted prof. “Something revolutionary is happening.”

Apple hosts and promotes the lectures to engender goodwill with colleges, who buy lots of Apple computers, and as a way to increase demand for iPods. For colleges, the downloads are a noble means of spreading knowledge – and maybe of promoting their wares. An added benefit? Students who cut class now have no excuse not to get caught up.

Professor Dave Scholle listens to his Apple iPod as he manages his iTunes music collection before his class at Long Beach Community College in Long Beach, Calif., Wednesday, May 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Professor Dave Scholle listens to his Apple iPod as he manages his iTunes music collection before his class at Long Beach Community College in Long Beach, Calif., Wednesday, May 2, 2007. (AP Photo/Damian...   (Associated Press)
A student holds up an iPod in this file photo. Apple now offers free lectures from many colleges on iTunes. (AP Photo/Troy Maben)
A student holds up an iPod in this file photo. Apple now offers free lectures from many colleges on iTunes. (AP Photo/Troy Maben)   (Associated Press)
With over 100,000 free podcasts available at the iTunes Store, iPod owners are learning more about art, culture and history from podcasts offered by museums across the US, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Art Institute of Chicago, Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Art...
With over 100,000 free podcasts available at the iTunes Store, iPod owners are learning more about art, culture and history from podcasts offered by museums across the US, including the Museum of Modern...   (Associated Press)
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Is iTunes U for you?
Washington Post

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Michigan Live

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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 
Stanford • Yale University • MIT • iTunes • higher education • iPod • UC Berkeley • podcast • iTunes Store

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