Online Instruction Sites

[lpetrich]

Brilliant | Learn to think
 Brilliant (website)

It works by giving you quizzes that you take. It gives explanations of why the answers are what they are. Only a few of them are available to non-paying customers. For instance, "Beautiful Geometry" has free quizzes on polyomino tiling, infinite areas, and guards in the gallery, and paid ones go into more detail about tilings, folding puzzles (origami), guards in galleries (how many interior points does it take to make an entire polygon viewable from them), etc.

The courses cover:

• Math: logic and deduction, algebra, mathematical thinking, geometry, statistics and probability, contest math, road to calculus, advanced mathematics
• Science: scientific thinking, classical physics, quantum mechanics, applied science
• Computer Science: foundational computer science, applied computer science

The pricing for the premium courses is rather steep: $150/year. But it is ad-free.

I remember working through the math ones in an earlier version before the site's designers changed its format and ruined my progress.

 

[lpetrich]

Khan Academy | Free Online Courses, Lessons & Practice
 Khan Academy

It has a more classroom-like educational approach, but with online videos showing text and drawings on an electronic blackboard, with an instructor describing them.

It seems mostly K-12 with some advanced-placement/college-level courses, and it covers math, science, computing, arts & humanities, economics, reading & language arts, and life skills.

-

Socratica

Has lecture videos on abstract algebra, astronomy, biology, calculus, chemistry, number theory, Python (programming language), SQL (database access), study tips

Looking at Socratica's YouTube videos, I find some additional subjects covered, like geometry, geography, and English grammar.

The instructors:

• ​Liliana​ ​de​ ​Castro - abstract algebra, astronomy, study tips, biographies
• Ulka Simone Mohanty - Python, SQL, geometry constructions
• Kimberly Hatch Harrison - chemistry, biology
• Michael Harrison - calculus, number theory
• Kat McDowell - music-related math
• Michael Kelly - geography
• Louise McCartney - geometry definitions, clothing types, opera, chemical-element types
• Omi - medicine
• Gera Hermann - chemical elements
• Jamie Muffett - Shakespeare's sonnets (a kind of poem)

USM has a sort of computer-generated-avatar act in her Python videos, and I find that rather cute.

Most of the videos are rather elementary, but I did get a good picture of what a SQL join is -- it's using one database table to find members of another database table, and then emitting the combined results.

 

[lpetrich]

About Socratica - listing the four current team members:

• Kimberly Hatch Harrison -- Founder & Scientist
• Michael Harrison -- Founder & Mathematician
• Liliana De Castro -- Host & Lifelong Learner
• Ulka Mohanty -- Host & Programmer

Wikipedia has  Liliana Castro

Liliana Rezende de Castro (born 29 June 1979) is an Ecuadorian-born Brazilian actress. She was born in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, due to her father's job as a diplomat. Her family also lived in Italy and Venezuela, before relocating to Brazil. She began acting at ten years old, and graduated in theatre. Her first professional acting role came in 1999 in the play As Fúrias. Currently she is also a teaching assistant at socratica, a non-profit teaching organisation. She's fluent in English, Portuguese, Spanish and Italian[citation needed].

Liliana De Castro - IMDb lists the TV shows that she has appeared in.

Her abstract-algebra videos are credited

Teaching​ ​Assistant:​ ​​ ​Liliana​ ​de​ ​Castro
Written​ ​&​ ​Directed​ ​by​ ​Michael​ ​Harrison
Produced​ ​by​ ​Kimberly​ ​Hatch​ ​Harrison

When I consider how scary many people find mathematics to be, I find it remarkable that she has taken on the challenge of explaining abstract algebra.

 

[lpetrich]

Ulka Simone Mohanty – Actor, Dancer & Choreographer - her home page
Ulka Simone Mohanty - IMDb

Ulka Simone Mohanty (@ulkaM) / Twitter - "Actor-voiceover actor| dancer-choreographer| chef-food stylist| enjoyer of lattes| Python teacher-bot @socratica | comp sci-er & consummate geek"

@ulkam • Instagram photos and videos - "Actor-voice actor | dancer-choreographer | chef-food stylist | enjoyer of lattes | comp sci-er & consummate geek| #pixarsoul"

10 Things you didn't know about Ulka Simone Mohanty
1. She does voice-overs
2. She is a dancer and choreographer
3. She is a certified yogini -- (female) yoga instructor, practices yoga daily
4. She is an audiobook narrator
5. She is a computer programming instructor -- "She has a degree in computer science and linguistics which makes her well suited for the job"
6. She is multi-lingual -- fluent English, French, Oriya (Odia), basic Spanish, Hindi, Bangla
7. She is a chef
8. She is a member of WBB -- Women Beyond Borders - "To honor and document women’s voices and visions. To encourage dialogue and collaboration. To inspire creative expression."
9. She is trained in martial arts
10. She is a member of SAG-AFTRA -- actors' union

Yogi Interview Series : Ulka Mohanty – Starwater Yoga

Have the Starwater Yoga mats enhanced your practice in any discernible way?

Actually, yes! The mats are so incredibly beautifully designed and crafted, I'm actually more excited and motivated to practice yoga, because the mats are so thoughtful and complex. I find it adds another level of meditation during my yoga practice. I can gaze at different sections of my mat and I always notice something new in the artwork as I go through my asanas.