Kahn Academy

As a student on a systems biology programme I am forever being subjected to data and theory of subjects I don’t quite understand. As a biologist on a systems biology program this mostly means maths I don’t understand. Fortunately it’s 2010 and as well as online poker the internet provides a tremendous tool to educate yourself in just about any subject. Back when I was doing my B.Sc I was limited to shuffling through journals, often to find the article I was searching for had been ripped out pilfered by some very non-socialist student type. Things have changed a bit. MIT provide all of their lecture content online with video footage and downloadable course material enabling anybody with an internet connection and some free time to cover all of the material in an undergrad course of their choosing. The maths centre provides a range of maths tutorials covering basic algebra up to calculus which was indispensable during my first year training, and the University of Manchester provides the helm maths resource with downloadable material.

I recently stumbled over a slashdot story reporting on the Kahn Academy. I hadn’t found this before today and it would have been a great help when I was starting down the maths road. Salman Khan founded the Khan Academy with the goal of using technology to educate the world. Sal received his MBA from Harvard Business School. He also holds a Masters in electrical engineering and computer science, a BS in electrical engineering and computer science, and a BS in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Not happy with the way he was taught at school Kahn bought himself a $200 camera, $80 tablet, some free software and youtube and began his mission to educate the world. All the material is published under the creative commons license meaning that it’s freely available for anybody to use. There are many hundreds of short video tutorials covering topics covering maths, chemistry, physics, biology, finance, statistics, and history. Kahn expertly takes the viewer through well structured material which is well presented, well delivered, and easy to follow. There are even follow-up tests available online with his “mental bootcamp”. I am currently working my way through the calculus section after brushing up on my algebra and I hope to get the time to explore the rest of the material.

The website is an amazing resource for anybody with an internet connection and the will to educate themselves, and in our corporate run capitalist society I really hope Salman Kahn achieves his mission to educate the world. If he can educate me, he can educate anybody!!