Podcasts | Online Class Podcasts
Podcasts
For some people, text-based resources aren’t the best way to learn. Sometimes, being able to see or hear the material makes it easier to remember and understand. This goes for academic material as well as the things you like to learn in your free time. For this reason, many website have dedicated themselves to providing books on tape and podcasts that people can download and listen to, for free, to help retain information. Here are just a few of these resources.
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Audiobooks
- Aesop
- Asimov, Isaac
- Austen, Jane
- Emma (also available as eBook)
- Lady Susan
- Love and Friendship
- Mansfield Park (also available as eBook)
- Northanger Abbey
- Persuasion (also available as eBook)
- Pride and Prejudice (also available as eBook)
- Sense and Sensibility (also available as eBook)
- Babel, Isaac
- Baldwin, James
- Ballard, J.G.
- Balzac, Honore de
- Baum, Frank L.
- The Wizard of Oz (also available as eBook)
- Borges, Jorge Luis
- Brodkey, Harold
- Bronte, Anne
- Bronte, Charlotte
- Bronte, Emily
- Carroll, Lewis
- Alice in Wonderland (also available as eBook, and alternative reading by Cory Doctorow)
- The Game of Logic
- Carver, Raymond
- Cervantes Saavedra, Miguel de
- Don Quixote (also available as eBook)
- Chaucer, Geoffrey
- Canterbury Tales (also available as eBook)
- Cheever, John
- Chekhov, Anton
- Chesterton, G.K.
- Chopin, Kate
- The Awakening (also available as eBook)
- Selected Stories
- Christian Andersen, Hans
- Conan Doyle, Sir Arthur
- Conrad, Joseph
- Cooper, James Fenimore
- Cortazar, Julio
- Crane, Stephen
- The Red Badge of Courage (also available as eBook)
- Dante Alighieri
- Defoe, Daniel
- Robinson Crusoe (also available as eBook)
- DeLillo’s, Don
- Diaz, Junot
- Dick, Philip K.
- Dickens, Charles
- A Christmas Carol (also available as eBook)
- A Tale of Two Cities (also available as eBook)
- Bleak House (also available as eBook)
- David Copperfield (also available as eBook)
- Great Expectations (also available as eBook)
- Hard Times (also available as eBook)
- Oliver Twist (also available as eBook)
- Dodge, Mary Mapes
- Dostoyevsky, Fyodor
- Crime and Punishment (also available as eBook)
- Notes from the Underground
- Dreiser, Theodore
- Sister Carrie
- The Lost Phoebe (also available as eBook)
- Dumas, Alexandre
- The Comte de Monte Cristo (also available as eBook)
- The Three Musketeers (also available as eBook)
- Eliot, George
- Silas Marner (also available as eBook)
- Middlemarch (also available as eBook)
- Fitzgerald, F. Scott
- Flappers and Philosophers (also available as eBook)
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (also available as eBook)
- Tales of the Jazz Age (also available as eBook)
- The Great Gatsby (also available as eBook)
- This Side of Paradise (also available as eBook)
- Flaubert, Gustave
- Forster, E.M.
- Geng, Veronica
- Gogol, Nikolai
- Dead Souls (also available as eBook)
- The Overcoat and Other Short Stories
- Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- House of the Seven Gables (also available as eBook)
- Rappaccini’s Daughter
- The Scarlet Letter (also available as eBook)
- Hayden, Julie
- Hemingway, Ernest
- Homer
- The Iliad (also available as eBook)
- The Odyssey (also available as eBook)
- Hugo, Victor
- Les Miserables OR Orson Welles Radio drama (also available as eBook)
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame (also available as eBook)
- Huxley, Aldous
- Irving, Washington
- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (also available as eBook)
- James, Henry
- Daisy Miller
- The Turn of the Screw (also available as eBook)
- Johnson, Denis
- Joyce, James
- A Painful Case
- A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (also available as eBook)
- Araby
- Chamber Music
- The Dead
- Ulysses (also available as eBook)
- Kafka, Franz
- Kincaid, Jamaica
- Lawrence, D.H.
- Lewis, Sinclair
- Babbit (also available as eBook)
- Main Street
- London, Jack
- Call of the Wild (also available as eBook)
- To Build a Fire
- Lu Xun
- Malamud, Bernard
- Melville, Herman
- Miller, Arthur
- Milton, John
- Paradise Lost (also available as eBook)
- Paradise Regained
- Montgomery, Lucy Maud
- Nabokov, Vladmir
- O’Connor, Frank
- Orwell, George
- Poe, Edgar Allan
- The Complete Stories (also available as eBook)
- The Cask of Amontillado
- The Raven (also available as eBook)
- The Pit and the Pendulum
- The Tell Tale Heart
- Porter, Eleanor
- Ruskin, John
- Sedaris, David
- Shakespeare, William
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream (also available as eBook)
- Hamlet (also available as eBook)
- Julius Caesar
- King Lear
- Romeo and Juliet (also available as eBook)
- The Merchant of Venice (also available as eBook)
- The Sonnets
- The Tragedy of MacBeth (also available as eBook)
- Shelley, Mary
- Frankenstein OR Radio broadcast version (also available as eBook)
- Sinclair, Upton
- The Jungle (also available as eBook)
- Singer, Isaac Bashevis
- Stevenson, Robert Louis
- The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (also available as eBook)
- Treasure Island (also available as eBook)
- Stoker, Bram
- Stowe, Harriet Beecher
- Swift, Jonathan
- Tolstoy, Leo
- Trollope, Anthony
- Twain, Mark
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (also available as eBook)
- Unknown
- Updike, John
- Verne, Jules
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (also available as eBook)
- Around the World in 80 Days (also available as eBook)
- Mysterious Island
- The Master of the World
- Voltaire
- Vonnegut, Kurt
- Wells, HG
- The Invisible Man (also available as eBook)
- Magic Shop
- Time Machine (also available as eBook)
- The Red Room
- War of the Worlds (also available as eBook)
- Welty, Eudora
- Where Is the Voice Coming From? (read by Joyce Carol Oates)
- Wharton, Edith
- Wilde, Oscar
- The Happy Prince
- The Importance of Being Earnest (also available as eBook)
- The Picture of Dorian Gray (also available as eBook)
- Wolff, Tobias
- Wyss, Johann David
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Science
Science:
- 60 Second Psych – Weekly one-minute reviews of the week in psychology.
- 60 Second Science – A concise podcast offering the latest scientific developments.
- All in the Mind – A neuroscience podcast from Australia, which explores issues related to brain chemistry, including substance addiction.
- Astronomy Cast – A weekly podcast dedicated to astronomy.
- Best of National Geographic Magazine – The premier magazine’s podcast service.
- CBC Quirks & Quarks – A podcast with a broad spectrum, from the large-scale quirks of the universe to the miniscule quarks that govern it.
- Discovery Channel Space Podcast – Podcasts dedicated to NASA and spreading knowledge about space in general.
- Discovery Channel Video Podcasts – A large archive of podcasts from the discovery channel.
- Earth & Sky Clear Voices – An interview series, featuring scientists from all over the world.
- Einstein and the Mind of God – An audio exploration of Einstein’s world and beliefs. Contains two parts: Einstein’s God and Einstein’s Ethics.
- Exploring Environmental History – A podcast that covers the issues of environmentalism throughout time, including reports of conferences and interviews with working historians/scientists.
- Groks Science Radio Show and Podcast – A news podcast from Dr. Charles Lee and Dr. Frank Ling, exploring the latest developments in science and technology, and how they affect us.
- Guardian Unlimited: Science – The Guardian’s science podcast.
- Hmmm…. Krulwich on Science – NPR’s Robert Krulwich makes scientific concepts accessible for just about anyone.
- Jet Streaming – A weekly podcast dedicated to providing way too much information about the weather.
- NASAcast – A podcast from NASA, invented to help broadening public understanding of space exploration and invention.
- National Geographic’s Wild Chronicles – This podcast keeps much of the signature Nat Geo feel, with critter cams and footage of rare and exotic places.
- Nature Podcast – Interviews with scientists working on the cutting edge of scientific research.
- New Scientist Podcast – All the latest in the world of science.
- NOVA – Vodcasts: short videos from the scientific universe.
- NOVA e-mc2 – 10 top physicists do their best to describe Einstein’s famous equation.
- NOVA Science Now – Anecdotes and interviews with leading scientists doing groundbreaking research in their fields.
- RadioLab – WNYC’s hour-long science TV show, with each episode focusing on a single issue.
- Science and Society – A broad podcast covering all aspects of modern science, featuring interviews with great thinkers.
- Science Friday Podcast – A science podcast from NPR’s Ira Flatow.
- Science Friday Video – The video version of the above podcast with Ira Flatow.
- Science Magazine Podcast – Science Magazine’s audiocasts.
- Science Talk: The Podcast of Scientific American – Steve Mirsky interviews leading minds in various scientific fields, staying on the cusp of technological advancement.
- Science Times – A podcast companion to the new York Time’s science section, featuring information on all aspects of technological advancement, including medicine and environmental science.
- Slacker Astronomy – Easily digestible information about astronomy and space in general.
- The Engines of Our Ingenuity – A podcast exploring the history of technological development, including its failures as well as its achievements.
- The Missing Link Podcast – The history of technology, medicine and science, as explained by Professor Elizabeth Musselman.
- The Naked Scientists – Dr. Chris Smith’s interactive podcast, covering topics in science, medicine and technology in general.
- The Science Show – An Australian radio show that’s been running long enough to deserve a listen.
- The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe – A fringe science/paranormal podcast from Dr. Steven Novella from Yale University School of Medicine.
- This Week in Science – A funny podcast presenting the week in science news, covering all imaginable topics, including the impending robot hostile takeover.
- This Week in Virology – Two Columbia University professors answer all the important questions about how viruses work.
- USGS Corecast – A podcast focusing on natural hazards, including weather issues, wildlife diseases and climate change.
- Evolution 101 – Evolution podcasts from Dr. Zachary Moore.
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University and College
- American University – Washington College of Law – A collection of podcasts on legal issues.
- Boston College – Lectures from a number of different departments at the college.
- Bowdoin College – Lectures from the university, many of which are internally focused rather than strictly academic.
- Buffalo State College – Lecture podcasts from the university, as well as event information and coverage.
- Cambridge University – A broad collection of podcasts, with particular depth in the sciences.
- Carnegie Mellon – Podcasts on a variety of subjects, from science to design.
- College de France– A wide selection of podcasts, all in French.
- Columbia University – Columbia Business School – Video casts from Columbia on a range of business-related topics.
- Dartmouth College – Tuck School of Business – Interviews with the business leaders of today, deigned to inspire and inform business students.
- Drexel University – A large selection of iPod media from the college of arts and sciences.
- Duke University– An archive of podcasts from Duke University.
- Fuqua School of Business – Business podcasts.
- Ecole normale superieure (Duffusion des saviors) – A number of podcasts in French.
- Emory University – A podcast from university lectures.
- Georgetown University Forum – Weekly podcast highlighting Georgetown faculty and their work.
- Harvard University
- Harvard @ Home
- Harvard Business Review: HBR IdeaCast
- The Berkman Center for Internet & Society: MediaBerkman
- Georgia College & State University – A virtual learning environment that covers a number of different topics.
- Haverford College Classic/Ancient texts – Lecture podcasts on several important historical texts.
- Insead Leadercast – A business podcast from a leading European university.
- Johns Hopkins – A large collection of various podcasts from people in the medical field.
- Lehigh University – Youtube channel for the University’s podcast, including a broad range of subjects.
- Lewis & Clarke Law School Podcast – A podcast of lectures from the university.
- London School of Economics – A broad collection of podcasts on the topic of economics.
- McGill – Lecture podcasts from the Canadian university.
- MIT
- MIT General Collection – Podcast versions of lectures at the university.
- Sloan School of Management – Business-related lectures in podcast form.
- Northwestern University – A newish podcast featuring lectures from the university.
- Notre Dame
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies – Lecture podcasts reflecting on the state of the world.
- Comp Sci Courses
- Ohio State: Introduction to Solar System Astronomy
- Oxford University – A general podcast collection from the prestigious university.
- Princeton University – Lectures from well-known professors and lecturers.
- Stanford University
- General Collection – Lectures from university professors and prestigious guests.
- Stanford Law School: Center for Internet and Society – Podcasts on technology and its use and advancement in modern society.
- Stanford Law School: Program in Law, Science & Technology – Podcasts covering the new and interesting legal issues that have arisen with the advent of the Internet and other revolutionary technologies.
- Swarthmore College – Faculty lectures, podcasted for the benefit of students and other interested individuals.
- Universite Paris IV – Sorbonne – Podcasts in French on a number of topics:
- University of California Berkeley – AN extensive podcast archive with lectures from tons of different fields of study, including entire course listings.
- University of California Davis: Quantum Mechanics – An entire course in podcast form.
- UCLA
- Burkle Center Podcasts – A political science podcast featuring lectures on global security and economic affairs.
- Bruincast– Podcast versions of current UCLA courses. Some are password locked, but keep looking and you’ll find the public ones.
- UCSF – Podcasts on interesting topics and news in the field of medicine.
- University of Arizona – Lecture podcasts from the university.
- University of Bath – Public lecture podcasts on the humanities, the sciences and engineering.
- University of British Columbia – Lots of digital material for students and other people who want to learn about any number of topics.
- University of Chicago
- Law Faculty Talks – Legal issue explored through a series of podcasts.
- The Arabic Circle – Weekly lectures in Arabic intended to help students practice comprehension.
- Center for International Studies – The Chiasmos: a source for international news.
- University of Connecticut – A number of informative podcasts on the topic of psychology.
- University of Glasgow: Kant’s Epistemology – An 11-part series on the beliefs of Immanuel Kant.
- University of Maine – Lecture podcasts from the university.
- University of Melbourne – Research and personal podcasts from the Australian university.
- University of Pennsylvania
- General Collection – A variety of topics explained in podcast form.
- Wharton School of Business – A number of podcasts on business topics.
- University of New South Wales – Health-related podcast lectures from the Australian University.
- University of Nottingham – General news and faculty interview podcasts.
- University of Oregon – Documentaries and lectures available online.
- University of Southern California University lectures presented in podcast form.
- University of Sydney – The Australian university’s lectures, made available online as podcasts.
- University of Virginia – News, events and lectures in podcast form.
- University of Warwick – University faculty discuss the topics closest to their hearts.
- University of Wisconsin-Madison:
- Biochemistry – A complete biochemistry course in podcast form.
- University of Washington – An online archive for the university’s television station.
- Vanderbilt University – A number of lectures on varied topics.
- Weber University – Lectures from university faculty and guest speakers.
- Wellseley College – Lecture podcasts on a number of different topics.
- Yale University – Stand-alone lectures from one of the best schools in the US.
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Ideas and Issues
- Alan Watts Podcast – Popular Asian philosophy translator Alan Watts archives his talks and lectures in podcast form.
- Big Ideas – A Canadian lecture series on a range of topics, including art, science, humanities, politics and culture.
- Bill Moyers Journal – PBS journalist Bill Boyers explores important political issues facing democracy.
- Brian Lehrer Show – WNYC personality Brian Lehrer broadcasts his interviews with many famous thinkers.
- CBC: The Best of Ideas – A podcast covering everything from art to engineering, from a Canadian television station.
- Common Sense with Dan Carlin – An independent political podcast, exploring solutions from a non-bi-partisan position.
- Commonwealth Club Radio Program – A well-established radio program dating back to 1924, featuring prominent speakers from many different fields.
- Council on Foreign Relations (Video and Audio) – Hear what some of the leaders in politics have to say on current issues in the global world.
- Deutsche Welle: Inspired Minds – Profiles of several great minds across the world.
- Entitled Opinions (About Life and Literature) – Stanford professor Robert Harrison shares his opinions on a number of literary topics.
- FORA.tv Daily FORAcast (Audio and Video) – Podcasts and videos on a range of topics, from entertainment to religion to science news.
- Forum with Michael Krasny – The San Francisco radio broadcaster interviews great names and cultural figures.
- In Our Time – BBC has great minds get together to discuss issues facing our culture.
- Leonard Lopate Show – WNYC interviews with great speakers.
- Morning Stories – WGBH radio in Boston offers stories from ordinary people that will leave you wanting more.
- My History Can Beat Up Your Politics – Putting current issues into historical context—often with surprising results.
- New York Public Library – A vast collection if digital media available to the public.
- NPR: Intelligence Squared – Strictly controlled debates on a number of important topics.
- NPR: Fresh Air – Terry Gross’s favored show, available freely online.
- NPR: Koppel on the News – A more sophisticated Nightline, from one of the most respected stations in radio.
- NPR Shuffle – A great tool for browsing NPR and all the great shows it has to offer.
- NPR Talk of the Nation Opinion Page – The latest news in American politics from one of the leading voices in political commentary.
- Partially Examined Life – A philosophy podcast from recovering philosophers.
- PBS Podcasts – Online archive of PBS material.
- Philosophy Bites – A philosophical British podcast touching on all the biggest questions.
- Philosophers’ Cafe – Simon Fraser University presents philosophical discussions for the layman.
- Public Radio Podcast Catalog – A resource for finding podcast versions of over 900 public radio programs.
- ResearchChannel – This University of Washington project gathers and displays information from many universities.
- SALT – Seminars About Long Term Thinking – An interview podcast designed to promote slower/better thinking rather than faster/cheaper.
- Start the Week – BBC profiles famous guests prominent in the fiels of art, film, history, politics and culture.
- TED Talks Video – Video lectures from an annual conference that collects some of the world’s greatest thinkers.
- The Chronicle of Higher Education – Interviews with professors and people interested in the field of education.
- The Economist – Audio content from the respected magazine.
- The New York Review of Books – Bi-weekly literature podcast.
- The New York Times Podcasts (Main) – A resource for finding daily and weekly podcasts in the US.
- The New York Times: Times Talks – Conversations with journalists and editors of note.
- The New Yorker: Comment – A reading of each installment of the weekly “comment” article.
- This American Life – Ira Glass hosting this collection of first-person stories and interviews.
- To the Best of Our Knowledge – Interviews with international entrepreneurial minds.
- Yesterday is Gone – Charles Binder offers his personal thoughts on a variety of topics, ranging from art to politics.
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Books and Writing
- Amazon Book Clips – Allows you to keep taps on bestselling authors.
- Barnes & Noble: Meet the Writers – Interviews with bestselling authors.
- Garrison Keillor’s The Writer’s Almanac – Daily poems and trivia to get you inspired.
- Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing – Writing tips anyone could understand.
- NPR Books – Interviews with authors and book reviews from NPR.
- NPR Story of the Day – A different short fictional work presented every day.
- Poetry Foundation – Poet interviews, poem readings and tips for poets every day.
- Random House Podcast – Excerpts from books recently released.
- Shakespeare-upon-iPod – A discussion series on the famous bard.
- Simon Says Weekly podcast promoting the latest releases from Simon & Schuster.
- The New York Times Book Review – The editor of the NYT discusses the newest releases reviewed in the newspaper.
- The New Yorker: Fiction – Re-visiting stories from the NYT archives on a monthly basis.
- The Poetic Voice – Poetry discussions from Houghton Mifflin.
- The Washington Post Book Review – Online collection of the newspaper’s book reviews.
- The Writer’s Block – Weekly fiction, theater and poetry readings from writers and performers.
- Times Online Book Podcasts – Daily book excerpts and reviews.
- Word for Word – A podcast reviewing and critiquing speeches.
- World Book Club – Famous authors discuss their most well-known works in this monthly series.
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Film
- BBC: Mark Kermode’s Film Reviews – A UK podcast reviewing new releases in UK cinema.
- NPR Movies – NPR’s movie reviews and criticisms.
- Sundance Film Festival Podcasts – Interviews and movie reviews from the prestigious festival.
- The Treatment – Elvis Mitchell offers critiques for recent releases and performances.
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Museums
- Metropolitan Museum of Art – A variety of podcasts, including readings performed by well known actors.
- MoMa – Modern art as described by those closest to it.
- MoMa Think Modern Lectures – Thinkers and critics discuss the museum and its works.
- National Museums Liverpool – The Liverpool museum , related in the words of its curators and other art celebrities.
- Philadelphia Museum of Art – Several different podcasts, all related to the museum.
- SFMOMA – A resource for finding museum podcasts.
- The National Gallery Podcast – The National Art Gallery in London, as seen through podcasts.
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Misc.
- Global Voices – An international project designed to collect all the best online blogs, podcasts and vlogs from all over the world, especially outside of Europe and America.
- Listening to Words – A resource that finds and collects lectures from around the web.
- Logically Critical -A podcast that challenges you to challenge its own information.
- Maria Lectrix – Six new audiobooks a week, from a variety of genres, with a focus on Catholic principles.
- NPR – The respected radio station posts and archives most of its broadcasts, which are available online here.
- Open Source n- International Public Radio’s Christopher Lydon discusses all the hot topics.
- Neo-Latin Colloquia – A resource for latin speakers, from the UK Institute for Latin Studies.
- Point of Inquiry – The Center for Inquiry’s regular podcast, featuring interviews with Nobel prize-winning scientists, notorious intellectuals, social critics and entertainers alike.
- Shakespeare by Another Name – MP3 file podcasts discussing themes, characters and stories in the famous bard’s plays.
- Sound of Young America – An interview program available for free on the web.