I started taking courses at Berkeley last night—sort of. From the comfort of my own home (and comfy couch), I listened to Professor Nathan Sayre’s “Natural Resources and Population” course lectures on my iPod. I can take the course at my own pace, following along with the online course syllabus and listening in whenever I want. The only foreseeable drawback is that Professor Sayre will not call on me when my brain is teeming with questions.

Berkeley isn’t the only university opening its classrooms to eager dilettantes. Stanford University, Texas A&M;, Duke University, Penn State, and many more universities and colleges are offering free, downloadable podcasts of myriad elective and core courses.