The Great Courses

The human brain is one of the most complex entities in the universe. With 86 billion neurons communicating through an intricate symphony of synaptic connections and neurochemicals,….

Was King Arthur a real person? What about Robin Hood? Is the Holy Grail a cup, or something else altogether? Did Europeans really burn millions of people at the stake for witchcraft? These are just a few of the questions you will explore with the help of medieval scholar Dorsey Armstrong....

The westward expansion of the United States has a far bigger and more complex history than Hollywood westerns and high school textbooks would have us believe.

Even after deciphering its hieroglyphs, and marveling at its scarabs, mummies, obelisks, and sphinxes, Egyptian civilization remains one of history's most mysterious....

While the lectures cover an enormous range of key thinkers and ideas, they always focus on the most important ideas....

In 10 riveting episodes, paleoanthropologist Elen Feuerriegel takes you on an unrivaled tour of the human fossil record in search of the biological and behavioral underpinnings of our very “humanness”....

Here, you will meet the fascinating, ancient polytheistic peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond, their many gods and goddesses, and their public and private worship practices, as you come to appreciate the foundational role religion played in their lives....

How the Earth Works takes you on an astonishing journey through time and space. In 48 lectures, you will look at what went into making our planet - from the big bang, to the formation of the solar system, to the subsequent evolution of Earth....

In a field known for startling ideas, the Many-Worlds Interpretation (MWI) of quantum mechanics may take the prize. It holds that parallel to our own world are a large number of other universes, almost identical to ours but with small variations....

Words. We use them all the time, every day, mostly without giving them much thought at all. We take for granted that they’re here at our disposal whenever we need them. But if you’ve ever wished you could communicate more effectively, words are the place to start....

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a collection of techniques for managing moods and modifying behaviors. Build a robust self-improvement toolkit with this expert guidance....

In the nine lectures of Slow Down: How Doing Nothing Makes Us Better Humans, Constance Kassor, of Lawrence University in Wisconsin, shows you how to do what so many of us desperately need: Take a step back, reassess your priorities, and take some time for yourself.

In the six lectures of A Short History of Role-Playing Games, gaming consultant and avid gamer Jamin Warren will take you on a whirlwind tour of role-playing games, tracing a fascinating story of community-building, technical innovation, and, occasionally, cultural backlash.

The stuff of conspiracy theories makes for great, entertaining stories in movies, books, and television. And there is no shortage of subjects: from who really killed JFK to the truth behind 9/11...

These lectures consistently deliver a fresh level of understanding about medieval England, its rulers and subjects, and their significance....

While American history spans not much more than two centuries, it is filled with a wealth of leaders, wars, movements, inventions, and ideas....

n the 24 lectures of Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia, taught by Professor Eren Tasar, you will embark on a wide-ranging journey into the majestic landscapes, steppe and desert cultures, resplendent cities, and epic conquests that characterized this mysterious part of the world.

You’d think for a book as widely known, studied, and distributed as the Bible, the question of authorship would have been sorted out by now. But the question is more complex (and fascinating) than it seems....

In this 12-lecture course that corrects the record on a transformative period in world history, professor and prolific Viking Age scholar Jennifer Paxton unpack the scope and scale of Viking exploits in Europe.

Building a Better Vocabulary offers an intriguing look at the nuts and bolts of English, teaches you the etymology and morphology, and delves into the cognitive science....