Carlos Eire, Yale University: "A Brusque History of Eternity - Lecture 1: The Birth of Eternity" –
Until fairly recently eternity was no mere abstraction or metaphor in the Christian tradition, but rather the ultimate destination for humankind, a metaphysical conceit with practical implications as inescapable as legal obligations, or taxes, or death. Eternity was an ineffable mystery, to be sure, but of no less value in human interaction than money itself, or crowns and thrones. In our own day, however, eternity seems a purely abstract concept best left in the hands of astrophysicists, a frig
Carlos Eire, Yale University: "A Brusque History of Eternity - Lecture 2: Protestantism and the Refo
Until fairly recently eternity was no mere abstraction or metaphor in the Christian tradition, but rather the ultimate destination for humankind, a metaphysical conceit with practical implications as inescapable as legal obligations, or taxes, or death. Eternity was an ineffable mystery, to be sure, but of no less value in human interaction than money itself, or crowns and thrones. In our own day, however, eternity seems a purely abstract concept best left in the hands of astrophysicists, a frig
Carlos Eire, Yale University: "A Brusque History of Eternity - Lecture 3: From Eternity to Five-Year
Until fairly recently eternity was no mere abstraction or metaphor in the Christian tradition, but rather the ultimate destination for humankind, a metaphysical conceit with practical implications as inescapable as legal obligations, or taxes, or death. Eternity was an ineffable mystery, to be sure, but of no less value in human interaction than money itself, or crowns and thrones. In our own day, however, eternity seems a purely abstract concept best left in the hands of astrophysicists, a frig
18 - Imperfect information: information sets and sub-game perfection
We consider games that have both simultaneous and sequential components, combining ideas from before and after the midterm. We represent what a player does not know within a game using an information set: a collection of nodes among which the player cannot distinguish. This lets us define games of imperfect information; and also lets us formally define subgames. We then extend our definition of a strategy to imperfect information games, and use this to construct the normal form (the payoff matri
16 - Backward induction: reputation and duels
In the first half of the lecture, we consider the chain-store paradox. We discuss how to build the idea of reputation into game theory; in particular, in setting like this where a threat or promise would otherwise not be credible. The key idea is that players may not be completely certain about other players' payoffs or even their rationality. In the second half of the lecture, we stage a duel, a game of pre-emption. The key strategic question in such games is when; in this case, when to fire. W
11 - Evolutionary stability: cooperation, mutation, and equilibrium
We discuss evolution and game theory, and introduce the concept of evolutionary stability. We ask what kinds of strategies are evolutionarily stable, and how this idea from biology relates to concepts from economics like domination and Nash equilibrium. The informal argument relating these ideas toward at the end of his lecture contains a notation error [U(Ŝ,S') should be U(S',Ŝ)]. A more formal argument is provided in the supplemental notes.
03 - Iterative deletion and the median-voter theorem
We apply the main idea from last time, iterative deletion of dominated strategies, to analyze an election where candidates can choose their policy positions. We then consider how good is this classic model as a description of the real political process, and how we might build on it to improve it. Toward the end of the class, we introduce a new idea to get us beyond iterative deletion. We think about our beliefs about what the other player is going to do, and then ask what is the best strategy fo
06 - Arguments for the existence of the soul, Part IV; Plato, Part I
The lecture begins with a continued discussion of the Cartesian argument and its weaknesses. The lecture then turns to Plato's metaphysical views in the context of his work, Phaedo. The key point in the discussion is the idea that in addition to the ordinary empirical world that we are familiar with, we posit the existence of a second realm in which the Platonic forms exist. These forms are the abstract properties that we attribute to physical objects, such as beauty, justice, goodness and so on
23 - Paradise XXX, XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII
Professor Mazzotta lectures on the final cantos of Paradiso (30-33). The pilgrim's journey through the physical world comes to an end with his ascent into the Empyrean, a heaven of pure light beyond time and space. Beatrice welcomes Dante into the Heavenly Jerusalem, where the elect are assembled in a celestial rose. By describing the Empyrean as both a garden and a city, Dante recalls the poles of his own pilgrimage while dissolving the classical divide between urbs and rus, between civic li
20 - Paradise XVIII, XIX, XXI, XXII
In this lecture, Professor Mazzotta examines Paradiso 18-19 and 21-22. In Paradiso 18, Dante enters the heaven of Jupiter, where the souls of righteous rulers assume the form of an eagle, the emblem of the Roman Empire. The Eagle's outcry against the wickedness of Christian kings leads Dante to probe the boundaries of divine justice by looking beyond the confines of Christian Europe. By contrasting the political with the moral boundaries that distinguish one culture from another, Dante opens
05 - Inferno IX, X, XI
In this lecture, Professor Mazzotta discusses Inferno 9-11. An impasse at the entrance to the City of Dis marks Virgil’s first failure in his role as guide (Inferno 9). The invocation of Medusa by the harpies that descend while they wait for divine aid elicits Dante’s first address to the reader. The question of literary mediation, posed in the previous lecture in the context of Inferno 5, is explored further, and the distinction Dante draws between the “allegory of poets” and the “
01 - Introduction
Professor Mazzotta introduces students to the general scheme and scope of the Divine Comedy and to the life of its author. Various genres to which the poem belongs (romance, epic, vision) are indicated, and special attention is given to its place within the encyclopedic tradition. The poem is then situated historically through an overview of Dante's early poetic and political careers and the circumstances that led to his exile. Professor Mazzotta concludes by discussing the central role Dante
Introduction to Statistical Thought
The book is intended as an upper level undergraduate or introductory graduate textbook in statistical thinking with a likelihood emphasis for students with a good knowledge of calculus and the ability to think abstractly. By "statistical thinking" is meant a focus on ideas that statisticians care about ...
Integrating Mathematics, Science and Language
This bilingual curriculum and resources guide and is designed to help elementary school teachers organize instruction to increase achievement of Hispanic primary-grade children whose first language is not English. The guide offers a curriculum plan, instructional strategies and activities, suggested teacher and student materials, and assessment procedures. Because language development is a fundamental co-requisite for learning mathematics and science concepts, processes and skills, the lessons i
In depth explanation of the Immune System- Animated
Compares the body to a house or fort in need of military protection. Describes the immune system as soldiers protecting the fort. Shows process and steps and process the body/immune system goes through to protect from the cold virus. Shows the communication between the body and cells to combat illness and may destroy some cells that carry an illness. References how cells can remember a virus to combat it if the body comes into contact with it again.
Ten Commandments Of The Native American Indian
A basic presentation of these Commandments. Good for any study of the Native Americans by students.
17.552 Political Economy of Chinese Reform (MIT)
This course focuses on China's transition from plan to market. What has the trajectory of institutional change in China been, and how has growth been achieved? Is that growth sustainable? Subject examines specific aspects of reform (enterprise, fiscal, financial, social welfare), and the systemic consequences of interaction between various reform measures. Additional topics include the interaction between political and economic change, the transformation of state-society relations, and the gener
21F.035 Topics in Culture and Globalization (MIT)
The concept of globalization fosters the understanding of the interconnectedness of cultures and societies geographically wide apart; America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Subject scans existing debates over globalization around the world. This course explores how globalization impacts everyday life in the First and Third World; how globalization leads to a common cosmopolitan culture; the emergence of a global youth culture; and religious, social, and political movements that challenge globalizati
17.57J Soviet Politics and Society, 1917-1991 (MIT)
At its greatest extent the former Soviet Union encompassed a geographical area that covered one-sixth of the Earth's landmass. It spanned 11 time zones and contained over 100 distinct nationalities, 22 of which numbered over one million in population. In the 74 years from the October Revolution in 1917 to the fall of Communism in 1991, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, its leaders and its people, had to face a number of difficult challenges: the overthrow of the Tsarist autocracy, the est
17.508 The Rise and Fall of Democracy/ Regime Change (MIT)
Coups, civil wars, revolutions, and peaceful transitions are the "real stuff" of political science. They show us why politics matters, and they highlight the consequences of political choices in times of institutional crisis. This course will help you understand why democracies emerge and why they die, from ancient times to the recent wave of democratization in Southern Europe, Eastern Europe, and the developing world.
Few things are more dramatic than the collapse of a political system, whether
