If you’re looking to learn more about new media and it’s potential in fields like education, global communication and artistic endeavors, then check out these 100 free lectures. You’ll find insight and information from scientists, historians, engineers and more who are working in or around this field that can help you learn about the past, present and future of new media studies in the world.

Communication

In these lectures you’ll learn more about the relationship between new media like blogs, web communications and even text messages and the way we communicate on personal and global scales.

1. Improving Survey Research: Anchoring Vignettes: When working in media, new or old, it’s important to find out what is effective and what people want. This lecture will address how to better conduct surveys and verify information. [Harvard@Home]
2. Anytime, Anywhere: The Recent Revolution in Wireless Communications: Check out this lecture to learn a bit more about the explosive growth in the wireless industry and the implications it has for society in this lecture from Vincent Poor. [Princeton]
3. David Perry on Video Games: Here you can learn about the next generation of video games and gamers and the immersing experiences these games may offer– sometimes being more appealing than real life interaction. [TED]
4. Jan Chipchase on Our Mobile Phones: This Nokia researcher shares his findings on how cell phones are used around the world in this lecture. [TED]
5. The Web’s Secret Stories: Is there something that we’re searching for out there in the great expanse of the internet? This lecture explores the real life stories of those on the web. [TED]
6. Mena Trott on Blogs: As the founder of Moveable Type and one of the leader pioneers in the growth of blogging, Mena Trott knows plenty about blogs. Listen to her lecture about the rise of blogs as a means of communication for businesses and the little personal alike. [TED]
7. Susan Blackmore on Memes and "Temes": Many people are familiar with internet memes but this lecture focuses on temes, technology focused memes. Learn more about how these are changing communication and online interaction. [TED]
8. Steven Johnson on the Web as a City: In this lecture you’ll get a perspective on the Web that views it as a virtual city of sorts. [TED]
9. Howard Rheingold on Collaboration: Howard Rheingold explains in this lecture how collaborative media like Wikipedia play into the natural human desire to work in groups. [TED]
10. Reporting Crisis via Texting: Texting has taken over cellular communication and today comprises a large chunk of the information that passes over these networks. This lecture from Erik Hersman explains a new application of texting in conjunction with Google Maps that allowed Kenyans to report acts of violence via their phones. [TED]
11. Philip Rosedale on Second Life: What does it mean to have an alter ego in a virtual universe? Learn more about Second Life and its implications in this lecture from founder Rosedale. [TED]

Technology and the Web

Here you can learn more about the new technologies that are shaping new media studies and world of tomorrow.

12. Hyper-Encryption by Virtual Satellite: Michael Rabin Sr. Professor of Computer Science at Harvard, offers his suggestion to improve the security of networks in this lecture. [Harvard@Home]
13. Science on the Edge: Research Faculty Symposium: Learn about the research Harvard faculty are doing, from improving bio-diversity to building better artificial intelligence. [Harvard@Home]
14. The Future of the Web: Billed as the "real inventor of the World Wide Web", Sir Tim Berners-Lee delivers this lecture on where the internet is headed in the 21st century. [Princeton]
15. Broadbanding America: What, Why, and How: Robert W. Lucky of Telecordia explains the process of spreading broadband across the nation and why it’s important. [Princeton]
16. Bipedal bugs, galloping ghosts and gripping geckos: BioInspiration for Rapid Running Robots: Dr. Robert J. Full gives this lecture, addressing some of the most interesting recent developments in robotics. [Princeton]
17. Hod Lipson builds "Self-Aware" Robots: It may sound like something from the future but the robots built by this Cornell professor are taking some major steps towards artificial intelligence.
18. A Computer That Works Like the Brain: You may not think of your brain as a particularly efficient supercomputer but the processes that take place in our bodies could potentially take computers to the next level as this lecture discusses. [TED]
19. What Is Open Access Anyhow?: Those who are unsure just what it means for material to be open access can learn more from Richard E. Luce, former Research Library Director at Los Alamos National Laboratory. [UC Berkeley]
20. Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Special Topics - Web 2.0: In this lecture you’ll hear from Douglas Engelbart who helped develop many of the computer technologies we take for granted today like the mouse, display editing, windows, cross-file editing, idea and outline processing, hypermedia, and groupware. [UC Berkeley]
21. Breaking the Disposable Technology Paradigm: Opportunities for Sustainable Interaction Design for Mobile Phones: Today’s technology is often out-of-date only months after it’s purchased. This lecture explains ways to design new technologies that are more sustainable. [VideoLectures.net]
22. Information Retrieval and Language Technology: What is the best way to store, retrieve and present information? In this lecture from Thorsten Joachims you’ll learn more about textual information and associated technological tasks. [VideoLectures.net]

Education

New media has a potentially large role to play in the future of education. In these lectures you can learn more about educational reform, technology in the classroom and new discoveries about the way we learn.

23. Human Systems Explorer: This Harvard lecture is given by Dr. Michael Parker and other Harvard medical school professors. It explains the new interactive software used to teach pathophysiology developed by the school. [Harvard@Home]
24. The College Experience: A Blueprint for Success: Could new media applications help improve the college experience? Hear Professor Light’s take on academic advising, teaching, collaborative learning and much more. [Harvard@Home]
25. Mirages of Equality: Progress of Women in Science at MIT, 1971-2009: The playing field in education may not be as equal as it seems. Learn where some inequities might exist and how you can improve them from this lecture. [Princeton]
26. Does College Really Matter? The History of Undergraduate Education, Why It’s in Trouble, and What to Do About It: Learn about some new ways that you can reinvigorate education and reevaluate the higher education system. [Princeton]
27. Structural Plasticity in the Adult Brain: Watch this lecture by psychology professor Elizabeth Gould. You’ll learn about how the adult brain can still adapt and change due to new experiences and learning. [Princeton]
28. Dave Eggers’ Wish: Once Upon a School: With many people calling for educational reform, the success Eggers has had with his writing workshops is notable. Listen to this lecture on his school and his hopes for continued educational programs all over the nation. [TED]
29. New Media and Learning Innovations: Learn more about the role that new media is playing in the educational system in this lecture by Rainer J. Steindler of the International Center for New Media. [Videolectures.com]
30. EMITEL - an e-Encyclopedia for Medical Imaging Technology: Here you can learn more about an application that allows users to quickly and easily access medical information and learn new skills online. [VideoLectures.net]
31. Media, Education and Technology: Bonnie Bracey gives this lecture on the intersection of these three major fields and the advantages they can offer one another. [VideoLectures.net]
32. Educational Uses of Technology: Find out new ways that technology is being used in the field of education and the potential for further use in this lecture from Steven Lerman. [VideoLectures.net]
33. Sugata Mitra Shows How Kids Teach Themselves: In the Hole in the Wall project, students learn to use a PC on their own and taught other students. This lecture examines what other things kids could learn on their own. [TED]

Globalization

New technology has made it increasingly easy to connect the world, culturally and economically. Check out these lectures to learn more about the ways the world is changing and how technology plays a role.

34. International Relations: New Approaches in a Complex World: Changes in technology and communication have changed international relationships. This talk will explore some of the major issues that have come up and ways that nations can deal with them. [Harvard@Home]
35. Global Health: A Panel Discussion: Learn about the role of government, the pharmaceutical industry, educational and medical institutions in the worldwide AIDS epidemic. [Harvard@Home]
36. Globalization and Changes in Life Courses in Modern Societies: How big of an impact does globalization really have? Learn about this and more in this lecture from Hans Peter Blossfeld. [VideoLectures.net]
37. How Ideas Trump Crises: Alex Tabarrok explains why he thinks globalization is a good thing in this lecture. [TED]
38. Eve Ensler on Security: today, people around the world are consumed with finding ways to make everything more secure from their homes to their online lives. Ms. Ensler explains how this kind of behavior may actually make our world less secure. [TED]

Visual and Performing Arts

Get some new ideas on how to be creative from these inspiring lectures on everything from sculpture to dance.

39. The City of Sardis: Approaches in Graphic Recording: How do visual representations reflect the past? Explore this issue and more by looking at ancient and modern representations of the Roman city. [Harvard@Home]
40. Einstein, Franklin, and the Role of Creativity in Today’s World: Learn about these definitive figures in history from this lecture given by Walter Isaacson and the way they’ve shaped how we view creativity. [Princeton]
41. A Conversation with Paul Taylor, with Maura Keefe, dance historian: Paul Taylor and Maura Keefe give you a look into what goes on in dance companies today and in the past in this lecture. [Princeton]
42. Place, Art, and Self: Given by former professor of human geography Yi-Fu Tuan, this lecture explores the relationship between location, identity and artistic expression. [Princeton]
43. Through a Looking Glass: The Art of the Science of Renaissance Painting: Think the modern era is the only time when science and art have converged? This lecture may make you think again. [Princeton]
44. Arthur Ganson Builds Moving Sculpture: In today’s world, sculpture doesn’t have to be a static, eternal entity. Listen to this lecture about the work of Arthur Ganson that’s interactive and embraces both art and technology. [TED]
45. David Griffin on How Photography Connects Us: Photography is a medium that can be use to connect a world and share common experiences. Director of Photography at National Geographic David Griffin explains how photos are used to tell our stories. [TED]
46. Ways of Seeing: Ron Forbes, founder of retailer Design Within Reach explains the ways in which he finds design inspiration in the sights of everyday life in this lecture. [TED]
47. Endangered Cultures: In this lecture you’ll get to see photos of people around the world whose cultures are fading away. Wade Davis aims to capture these people, their lives and their culture in film and photography as you’ll learn here. [TED]
48. James Nachtwey’s Searing Photos of War: This speaker not only wants to continue taking great photos but come up with new ways to use news photography in a digital era. [TED]
49. Tidying Up Art: In this video you’ll see Ursus Wehrli’s unusual approach to art, reducing masterpieces to their components of color and design. [TED]

Television, Video and Film

Learn about how others are using new media technologies to sell products, share a story or change the world.

50. A Conversation With Mira Nair: Director of acclaimed film Monsoon Wedding Mira Nair talks about her experiences in this ever-changing industry in this video. [Harvard@Home]
51. Do Movies have a Future?: David Denby from the The New Yorker discusses the way entertainment is changing and the role movies will play in the coming decades. [Princeton]
52. Martin Scorsese Discusses Film-Making: Get an inside look at filmmaking from renowned director Martin Scorsese in this 1999 lecture. [Princeton]
53. Jakob Trollback Rethinks the Music Video: This lecture explores an alternative type of music video, one more about the music than the vision of a filmmaker. [TED]
54. Building Better Animations: Torsten Reil explains how studying real human biology may improve our ability to create believable animated characters. [TED]
55. A Global Day of Film: In response to increasing globalization, lecturer Jehane Noujaim hopes to connect people around the world through film. [TED]
56. Fighting Injustice with Video: Musician Peter Gabriel talks about his work with the group WITNESS and how it stands up for human rights as well as the work of citizen journalists around the world. [TED]
57. Jeff Skoll Makes Movies That Matter: Media truly can make a difference in the world as the producer of An Inconvenient Truth and former president of eBay Jeff Skoll discusses in this lecture. [TED]
58. Ed Ulbrich Shows How Benjamin Button Got His Face: In this video you can learn about how some the latest technology in movie magic works and how it transformed the 40-something face of Brad Pitt into one twice that age. [TED]
59. Nigeria’s booming Nollywood: The movie industry is booming in places around the world. Here you’ll get the story of the 3rd largest film industry in the world– one that few people are aware of. [TED]
60. TV and the Web: Learn why the web is more than "better TV" in this lecture from Silicon Valley exec Peter Hirshberg. [TED]

Computer Science and Programming

Learn more about the processes going on behind the software and programs that drive new media explorations in these lectures.

61. A Worldview through the Computational Lens - Part I: Algorithm: A common language for nature, man, and computer: Avi Wigderson, at the School of Mathematics and the Institute for Advanced Study gives this three part lecture on computers and technology. The first part focuses on algorithms, found in many aspects of life both man-made and natural. [Princeton]
62. A Worldview through the Computational Lens - Part II: Time, space, and the cosmology of computational problems: Learn about the deeper philosophical ideas behind computer technology in this lecture. [Princeton]
63. A Worldview through the Computational Lens - Part III: Cryptography: Secrets, lies, knowledge, and trust: This third and final lecture in the series examines cryptography and how it impacts society from the individual to the government. [Princeton]
64. Perspectives on High Performance Computer Architecture: History and Challenges: Learn more about some of the difficulties that surround building today’s high performance computers. [Princeton]
65. Touring Microsoft Earth: Learn more about this incredibly complex collection of data that has the potential to reinvent how we advertise, play games and go through our day-to-day lives. [TED]
66. Advanced Topics in Programming Languages Series: Python Design Patterns: Those who’d like to learn more about programming with Python can do so with the help of this lecture. [VideoLectures.net]
67. Faith, Evolution, and Programming Languages: While these may not at first seem to be related topics, you’ll learn how the adoption of programming languages mimic both faith and evolution. [VideoLectures.net]
68. Neil Gershenfeld on Fab Labs: In this lecture, this MIT researcher talks about his idea for Fab Labs, allowing users to create things they need from digital and analog tools. [TED]
69. At the Birth of the Computer: Learn about the history of today’s computers all the way back to the 17th century from this lecture. [TED]
70. Demonstration of Photosynth: This new software can give you some ideas in your own programming, changing how we see and use digital images. [TED]

Design

Good design and usability are essential elements to new programs and even more traditional print media. Here you can learn about ways in which others are exploring and innovating in this field.

71. Amazon.com: Customer Experience Matters: This lecture from Amazon.com founder Jeffery Bezos explains why good customer service and design are essential elements to success in online business. [Princeton]
72. Jacek Utko Designs to Save Newspapers: Can good design save flagging industries like newspapers. It seems so, as you’ll learn from Polish designer Jacek Utko in this lecture. [TED]
73. Don Norman on 3 Ways Good Design Makes You Happy: Design critic Don Norman talks about the major emotional cues a well-designed product will have to fully succeed. [TED]
74. Al Seckel Says Our Brains Are Miswired: This lecture suggests that not only do our brains make it easy to fall for illusions but that we might actually enjoy being fooled. [TED]
75. Brenda Laurel on Games for Girls: Ever wonder why the biggest games out there are geared towards males and ignore half the potential audience? Learn what kind of games would better appeal to girls from this lecture. [TED]
76. David Kelley at Human-Centered Design: Learn about some of the latest product designs that have focused on the user’s experience of using it rather than solely on the object itself. [TED]
77. John Maeda On his Journey in Design: Check out this lecture to check out this design maverick’s take on the intersection between technology and design. [TED]
78. Paola Antonelli Treats Design as Art: Paola Antonelli, design curator at New York’s Museum of Modern Art is helping bring design into the realm of high art. [TED]
79. Philippe Starck Thinks Deep on Design: This lecture addresses a central issue of why design is important. [TED]
80. Milton Glaser on Using Design to Make Ideas New: Just because something is old doesn’t mean you can’t make it new again. Learn how to rethink the past by listening to this great lecture on painting and poster design. [TED]
81. Listening to Twitter Users: In this lecture, Evan Williams explains how many of the developments in Twitter and new applications came from users– an important consideration when working in new media. [TED]

Media Theory, History and Contemporary Issues

Get a handle on the past and present ideas on media through these insightful lectures.

82. Fifty Years in Media: Changes in Journalism: Members from the Harvard journalism class of ‘55 discuss the changes that have happened in the media industry with technological innovation and conglomeration. [Harvard@Home]
83. Virtual Continuity: This lecture addresses where libraries and the storage of information will be in the next millennium. [Harvard@Home]
84. Barricelli’s Universe: Digital Computing in Princeton, 1945-1958: Learn about the history of computing at Princeton and the research of Nils Barricelli that led to early theories on evolutionary computation.
85. YouTube, Blogs, Texting, the Web: How Are New Media Changing Politics?: Henry Brady, Bruce Cain and Geoffrey Nunberg give this lecture on the effect of new media on how elections are won and the role they’ve come to play in interactions between citizens and their leaders. [UC Berkeley]
86. Soils, Sustainability, and the Media: This lecture explores the role the media can play in connecting scientists with society and promoting sustainable living. [UC Berkeley]
87. Elizabeth Gilbert on Nurturing Creativity: What is expected of artists and creative individuals? What do we define as creative genius? This lecture will explore these ideas and the personal genius that lives in all of us. [TED]

English and Writing

Take the time to watch these lectures and you’ll learn more about the role of literature and text in modern society as well as some vital information about language itself.

88. The Playworld and the Empire: The Twenty-first Century and the American Playwright: Paula Vogel, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, gives this lecture on the role of the playwright in the modern world. [Princeton]
89. Words and Rules: The Ingredients of Language: Learn what makes a language with this lecture from MIT Professor of Psychology Steven Pinker. [Princeton]
90. Brewster Kahle Builds a Free Digital Library: How will you get your information in the coming decades? This lecture addresses the future of libraries and the free digital library at the Internet Archive. [TED]
91. Investing in Free Press: Whether its in papers, magazines, radio, TV, or blogs, the freedom of information is an essential and inalienable right in many democratic societies around the world. In this, you’ll learn about Sasa Vucinic’s new program designed to help support these free press organizations around the world. [TED]
92. Language and Thought: What really goes into what we say? Listen to this lecture from Steven Pinker about language and how it expresses what goes on in our minds. [TED]
93. Lakshmi Pratury on Letter-Writing: What is the difference between traditional letter writing and today’s new media forms of communication? What kind of legacy do they leave behind? You’ll learn more about writing in letters, blogs and more in this lecture. [TED]

Law

Check out these lectures that address the issues that new media creates for the legal system as well as other intersections between creative pursuits and the law.

94. How Obscenity Became the Litmus Test for the First Amendment: First Amendment rights are extremely important to those working in a creative field. This lecture will explore the history of the right to free expression and some of the things that stretched it to its limits. [Princeton]
95. Importing Legal Ideas: Mary Ann Glendon from Harvard Law School explores the possibility of bringing in foreign legal practices into American justice. [Princeton]
96. Rip, Mix, Burn, Sue: Technology, Politics, and the Fight to Control Digital Media: Most are familiar with high-profile legal cases that have brought issues of copyright and digital protection to the fore. This lecture will deal with this and the myriad of complications digital media brings to legal field. [Princeton]
97. The Creative Commons: Do you know what Creative Commons means? This lecture from Lawrence Lessig at the Stanford Law School examines this increasingly prevalent legal term on the net. [Princeton]
98. The Library of Human Imagination: Fascinated by intellectual property, this entrepreneur has reshaped many online businesses including the travel site Priceline. This lecture will explore his immense library from the earliest written language to space race artifacts. [TED]
99. Digital Technology and Legal Challenges to Copyright: New media poses a number of new legal problems that the law has not yet caught up with. This lecture examines just a few ways that digital technology is creating issues for copyright. [VideoLectures.net]
100. Copyright Laws and Today’s Digital World: James Boyle gives this lecture on the complications that arise with copyright and digital technology. [VideoLectures.net]