The Learn Tracker
...life-long learning: structured, organized, searchable...

My name is Edward Tanguay.
I have a Bachelors degree in Philosophy, a Masters in Education, and am currently working as a web developer in Berlin, Germany.

I watch over 200 college-level MOOC lectures per year in subjects such as history , psychology, science, religion, art, philosophy, and IT development in English, German, French, Spanish and Italian, and record my notes here.
Hundreds of free, self-paced university courses available:
my recommendations here
Peruse my collection of 275
influential people of the past.
View My Class Notes via:
Receive My Class Notes via E-Mail:

VIEW ARCHIVE

Contact Me via E-Mail:
edward [at] tanguay.info

Learning Activity by Month:

The primary goal of this Learn Tracker project is to build a web site which serves as one place to record the notes of everything that I am learning from MOOC classes, to foreign languages, to useful code examples and technical how-to notes, so that I not only have an overview of what I have learned, but can search and recall these notes at any time.

The secondary goal of this Learn Tracker project is to work together with companies, universities, and MOOC providers to build software that allows employees, students, and learners to record what they are learning in an efficient way so that it serves not only as (1) a record of what they have learned, but also (2) a place for them to review and search what they have learned.

Since January 2013, I have watched and recorded notes on over 300 MOOC lectures from over 30 different courses in both English and French, and have watched and recorded notes and flashcards on over 50 foreign language videos in Italian, French and Spanish. (I am curently still adding notes I took from 2013 and plan to be caught up by the end of January 2014.

April 2015 Learn Certificate
Watched and took notes on 25 college lectures:
Learned 8 vocabulary words:
...loading...
Learned about 3 people:
...loading...
Corrected 13 misspelling:
Pelopolysian, upheavel, interlocuters, viscoscity, Herodatus, impeity, allegience, busses, Napolean, refered, rebeled, vengence, advisor
Recorded 153 Flashcards from MOOC lectures:
  • broke off from Linda Ronstadt to form Eagles
                        
  • lead singer of Creedence Clearwater Revival
                        
  • person instrumental in bringing together rock and country, died young
                        
  • Cleisthenes was from what clan?
                        
  • free-standing ancient Greek sculptures which first appear in the Archaic period in Greece and represent nude male youths
                        
  • pr. Mycenae
                        
  • pr. Thermopylae
                        
  • ruler who tried to become tyrannt three times, 527 BC
                        
  • the king of Lydia from 560 to 547 BC until his defeat by the Persians, renowned for his wealth
                        
  • what did Anaximander consider the basic element?
                        
  • who killed Hipparchus
                        
  • who was the father of Athenian democracy
                        
  • who were Peisistratos' sons who ruled after him
                        
  • who were the 7 Sages of of Greece?
                        
  • /meanwhile (FRENCH)
                        
  • And thereby (FRENCH)
                        
  • At the end of (FRENCH)
                        
  • Here was have borrowed a quote (FRENCH)
                        
  • I find here (FRENCH)
                        
  • I regret to tell you that we must now leave (FRENCH)
                        
  • In the broadest sense (FRENCH)
                        
  • It is hard to imagine today (FRENCH)
                        
  • The prior choice of targeting (FRENCH)
                        
  • The provisions of this consitution (FRENCH)
                        
  • This analytical approach (FRENCH)
                        
  • We started with a discussion (FRENCH)
                        
  • We want to see what defines (FRENCH)
                        
  • While watching these 5 videos (FRENCH)
                        
  • a charter outlining the first commitment (FRENCH)
                        
  • a project of general interest (FRENCH)
                        
  • a tool which I will refer to very often (FRENCH)
                        
  • among the most basic (FRENCH)
                        
  • an end in itself (FRENCH)
                        
  • an executive (FRENCH)
                        
  • close to that which characterized (FRENCH)
                        
  • derive directly (FRENCH)
                        
  • did not prevent major abuses (FRENCH)
                        
  • encompassing (FRENCH)
                        
  • first of all (FRENCH)
                        
  • has led to the introduction (FRENCH)
                        
  • have aquired (FRENCH)
                        
  • have sometimes been questioned by some authors (FRENCH)
                        
  • implementation (FRENCH)
                        
  • in order to define (FRENCH)
                        
  • in terms of legal status (FRENCH)
                        
  • in the context of the course (FRENCH)
                        
  • in the end (FRENCH)
                        
  • is taken as (FRENCH)
                        
  • it's interesting to note (FRENCH)
                        
  • let us now turn to the question (FRENCH)
                        
  • merged (FRENCH)
                        
  • not necessary in the strict sense to start a business (FRENCH)
                        
  • regardless of any other international committment (FRENCH)
                        
  • remake (FRENCH)
                        
  • solemnly (FRENCH)
                        
  • some time earlier (FRENCH)
                        
  • somewhat solemn (FRENCH)
                        
  • that aims (FRENCH)
                        
  • that is time-dependent (FRENCH)
                        
  • the behaviors and business (FRENCH)
                        
  • the difference (FRENCH)
                        
  • the establishment (FRENCH)
                        
  • the genesis (FRENCH)
                        
  • the most common (FRENCH)
                        
  • the most common (FRENCH)
                        
  • the prohibition of torture (FRENCH)
                        
  • the small increase in time (FRENCH)
                        
  • the storming of the Bastille (FRENCH)
                        
  • the time it took to (FRENCH)
                        
  • these outburts of ethusiasm (FRENCH)
                        
  • through the implementation of a specific project (FRENCH)
                        
  • to insure compliance (FRENCH)
                        
  • to muliply its impact and last (FRENCH)
                        
  • torn by inequality (FRENCH)
                        
  • toward a better consideration of the public interest (FRENCH)
                        
  • two courses of action (FRENCH)
                        
  • umbilical cord (FRENCH)
                        
  • uses a dual approach (FRENCH)
                        
  • was full of daring initiative (FRENCH)
                        
  • we have to roll up our sleeves (FRENCH)
                        
  • we tend to consider (FRENCH)
                        
  • we will refine our measurement (FRENCH)
                        
  • which can be expressed as f (FRENCH)
                        
  • which is expressed as the limit (FRENCH)
                        
  • which is not supported effectively (FRENCH)
                        
  • which is quite original (FRENCH)
                        
  • which tends to be viable (FRENCH)
                        
  • will focus on (FRENCH)
                        
  • will rely (FRENCH)
                        
  • with respect to time (FRENCH)
                        
  • you identify this way of writing (FRENCH)
                        
  • you will have the opportunity (FRENCH)
                        
  • Art was used (SPANISH)
                        
  • At the top right of this picture (SPANISH)
                        
  • Extending her arms forward (SPANISH)
                        
  • Halfway up (SPANISH)
                        
  • He can be identified by his expression (SPANISH)
                        
  • Look at the (SPANISH)
                        
  • Look at the round shield hanging from the belt of the soldier (SPANISH)
                        
  • Look at the spear that wounded Jesus' side (SPANISH)
                        
  • Maybe you are thinking that (SPANISH)
                        
  • Representing their environment (SPANISH)
                        
  • The attention to detail (SPANISH)
                        
  • The careful visual exploration (SPANISH)
                        
  • The frame is original (SPANISH)
                        
  • The person who commissioned it was supposed to use it to pray (SPANISH)
                        
  • The stereotypical image (SPANISH)
                        
  • The way San Juan frowns (SPANISH)
                        
  • Try to do it (SPANISH)
                        
  • We saw a detail of this painting (SPANISH)
                        
  • a nose (SPANISH)
                        
  • a skeleton which represents (SPANISH)
                        
  • above (SPANISH)
                        
  • and if he had seen us (SPANISH)
                        
  • are breathtaking (SPANISH)
                        
  • betrays (SPANISH)
                        
  • even when (SPANISH)
                        
  • found in Italian painting at the time (SPANISH)
                        
  • funnel (SPANISH)
                        
  • half reptile, half insect (SPANISH)
                        
  • he must have been inspired by the (SPANISH)
                        
  • heavenly scene (SPANISH)
                        
  • incorporate the viewer in the picture via a mirror (SPANISH)
                        
  • is amazing (SPANISH)
                        
  • just below look at the sponge with vinegar (SPANISH)
                        
  • look carefully at everything that (SPANISH)
                        
  • luxury (SPANISH)
                        
  • mocks (SPANISH)
                        
  • on the shield we see something reflected (SPANISH)
                        
  • originating from the Bible (SPANISH)
                        
  • peaks of the Alps (SPANISH)
                        
  • seems to echo the aggressive attitude of the mob (SPANISH)
                        
  • sinners fall (SPANISH)
                        
  • some seem frightened by the crowd (SPANISH)
                        
  • surrounded by those who have been saved (SPANISH)
                        
  • that you see in the picture (SPANISH)
                        
  • the effort of the artist (SPANISH)
                        
  • the legs of a man (SPANISH)
                        
  • the painter certainly wanted to (SPANISH)
                        
  • the painters felt they were conquering the world around them (SPANISH)
                        
  • the paintings were highly valued (SPANISH)
                        
  • the waves arriving at the seashore (SPANISH)
                        
  • under (SPANISH)
                        
  • was offered to relieve their thirst (SPANISH)
                        
  • we see this amazing scene (SPANISH)
                        
  • were called (SPANISH)
                        
  • which conveys very well the pain of the woman (SPANISH)
                        
  • which is above the skeleton (SPANISH)
                        
  • which may seem forced (SPANISH)
                        
  • who is hugging the Virgin to console her (SPANISH)
                        
  • wide (SPANISH)
                        
  • with tiny brushstrokes (SPANISH)
                        
  • yellow (SPANISH)
                        
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY, University of Pennsylvania
•
Odysseus finding his way into his own house
•
Odysseus in disguise
•
makes contacts
•
dog
•
Friday, April 3, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
THE ANCIENT GREEKS, Wesleyan University
•
Solon's reforms addressed issues of his time
•
political problems
•
social problems
•
allowed for more mobility
•
but didn't undermine the underlying qualities in Athenian society... view all notes
Vocabulary:
kouros, n. [KUR-ohs] free-standing ancient Greek sculptures which first appear in the Archaic period in Greece and represent nude male youths ⇒ "A direct influence between Egyptian statues, in particular the figure of Horus, and the kouros type has long been conjectured, not least because of trade and cultural relations that are known to have existed since the mid-seventh century BCE."
Monday, April 6, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
CRÉER ET DÉVELOPPER UNE STARTUP TECHNOLOGIQUE, HEC Paris
•
Anaïs Barut
•
Présidente de l'entreprise DAMAE Medical
•
parcours de la création de l'entreprise
•
parcours académique
•
après le bac, elle n'arrivais pas à se décider entre ses deux désirs : la science ou le commerce... view all notes
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
HISTORY OF ROCK, 1970-PRESENT, University of Rochester
•
the idea of blending country music together with rock and roll at the end of the 1960s was kind of a bold thing to do
•
because in the United States country music was the music of relatively conservative, what we would call today "red state" people
•
who had no respect or regard for hippies or hippy music and rock and roll
•
we often associate red state people with country music which is very much juxtaposed against rock
•
so when people like the Byrds went to Nashville to record Sweetheart of the Rodeo in 1968... view all notes
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
THE ANCIENT GREEKS, Wesleyan University
•
Peisistratos was a tyrant but a good ruler
•
Aristotle devised a special category for him
•
tyranny is bad but he had to make an exception for Peisistratos
•
as an accomplished ruler
•
Hippias and Hipparchus... view all notes
Vocabulary:
boule, n. [BOO-lay] a council of citizens appointed to run daily affairs of ancient Athens, originally a council of nobles advising a king, in democracies a boule was composed of members typically chosen by lot and served for one year ⇒ "After the exile of Hippias, the first step of Kleomenes and Isagoras was to dissolve the boule."
People:
Cleisthenes (570-500 BC)
Referred to by historians as the "father of Athenian democracy"
  • after a leaderless, popular revolution overthrew Kleomenes and Isagoras who had gathered with a Spartan garrison in the Acropolis to overthrow Athens, Cleisthenes was recalled from exile to lead the city
  • credited with reforming the constitution of ancient Athens and setting it on a democratic footing in 508 BC
  • increased the power of the Athenian citizens’ assembly and for reducing the power of the nobility over Athenian politics
  • a noble Athenian of the Alcmaeonid family
  • was the maternal grandson of the tyrant Cleisthenes of Sicyon
Thursday, April 9, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
INTRODUCTION AUX DROITS DE L'HOMME, Université de Genève
•
des sources internationales des droits de l'homme
•
la protection strictement nationale
•
n'a pas empêché:
•
des dérives majeures
•
des violations massives de ses droits durant l'histoire... view all notes
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
REASON AND PERSUASION THROUGH PLATO'S DIALOGUES, National University of Singapore
•
Plato (427 BC - 347 BC)
•
his complete works are like a Matryoshka doll
•
you open Plato and you find mostly Socrates
•
Socrates is the substance
•
Plato is like a shell that keeps Socrates safe and preserved for posterity... view all notes
Friday, April 10, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
DÉCOUVRIR LE MARKETING, Université catholique de Louvain
•
une double approche du marketing
•
la vision du marketing la plus répandue dans la littérature
•
1. marketing stratégique
•
la facette « analyse »
•
toute une série d’analyses et de décisions sont prises en amont des actions marketing... view all notes
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
THE WORLD OF WINE, University of Adelaide
•
sensory evaluation of wine accesses:
•
appearance
•
aroma
•
flavor
•
Vocabulary:
tannin, n. a type of biomolecule which is an astringent, bitter plant polyphenolic compound that binds to and precipitates proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids ⇒ "Our perception of the sensory attributes contributed by the various components of wine, primarily alcohol, sugars, acids, color, and tannin, and aroma and flavor compounds determine our overall impression of wine quality."
polyphenol, n. a secondary metabolite of plants and generally involved in defense against ultraviolet radiation or aggression by pathogens ⇒ "A tannin is a type of biomolecule which is an astringent, bitter plant polyphenolic compound that binds to and precipitates proteins."
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
HISTORY OF ROCK, 1970-PRESENT, University of Rochester
•
black pop coming out of the 1960s and into the 1970s
•
there were two different worlds concerning what was happening in music in the 1970s
•
1. mainstream rock
•
mostly FM rock and roll radio
•
mostly white rock and roll fans... view all notes
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
THE ANCIENT GREEKS, Wesleyan University
•
Cleisthenes
•
508 BC: set Athens on democratic footing
•
came from the Alcmaeonidae [alk-MEE-an-id-igh] clan
•
was originally mistrusted because of impiety and sacrilege committed by Megacles
•
632 BC: Megacles was the archon eponymous was convicted of killing Cylon's supporters and was exiled from the city... view all notes
Vocabulary:
trittys, n. [TRIT-is] a population division in ancient Attica, established by the reforms of Cleisthenes in 508 BC, the name means thirtieth and there were in fact thirty trittyes in Attica ⇒ "Each tribe, or phyle of Athens was composed of three trittyes, one from the coast, one from the city, and one from the inland area. Trittyes were composed of one or more demes; demes were the basic unit of division in Attica."
deme, n. [deem] a suburb of Athens or a subdivision of Attica, the region of Greece surrounding Athens, enrollment in the citizen-lists of a deme became the requirement for citizenship ⇒ "Males 18 years of age were registered in their local demes, thereby acquiring civic status and rights."
phyle, n. [FIGHL] an ancient Greek term for clan or tribe, usually ruled by a basileus ⇒ "A large citizens' organization based on kinship, constituting the largest political subdivision of an ancient Greek city-state."
Monday, April 13, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
L'AVENIR DE LA DÉCISION : CONNAîTRE ET AGIR EN COMPLEXITÉ, ESSEC Business School
•
la connaissance complexe
•
une connaissance qui relie
•
c'est une connaissance globale
•
c'est le rapport entre le tout et les parties
•
il y a une tendance intellectuelle qui est pour le holisme, ou la connaissance du tout... view all notes
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
PHYSIQUE GÉNÉRALE - MÉCANIQUE, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
•
la dérivation d'une fonction simple
•
comment calculer la dérivée d'une fonction de fonction
•
je considère la position d'un point sur un axe cartésien
•
je repère la position par la coordonnée x
•
je dis que x est une fonction du temps... view all notes
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY, University of Pennsylvania
•
while Odysseus is making his connections with Eumaeus
•
Athena tells Telemachus to get going
•
appears to him in a dream
•
gods in dreams often came as hovering pretense
•
a standard feature of how epic poetry works... view all notes
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
KEY CONSTITUTIONAL CONCEPTS AND SUPREME COURT CASES, University of Pennsylvania
•
the relationship of government and religion
•
our currency says "In God We Trust"
•
millions of school children recite "One Nation Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance everyday
•
nativity scenes are displayed on state property
•
high schools have prayers at sports events... view all notes
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
HISTORY OF ROCK, 1970-PRESENT, University of Rochester
•
two names that helped shape black pop throughout the 1970s
•
1. James Brown
•
2. Sly Stone
•
Sly and the Family Stone
•
led to a rise of Funk... view all notes
Friday, April 17, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
ALEXANDER THE GREAT, Wellesley College
•
Alexander the Great may have been inspired to greatness by reading about the struggles of the Aecheans and the Trojans in the Iliad
•
the historical experience of the Greeks, however, had often been defined by violent encounters with their neighbor to the East, the kingdom of the Persians
•
one of these encounters provided Alexander justification for his war against the Persians
•
480 BCE: King Xerxes of Persia
•
Herodotus wrote that the Persians led an army and an armada of 12,000 ships and 5 million men across the Bosphorus... view all notes
Saturday, April 18, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
DEVENIR ENTREPRENEUR DU CHANGEMENT, HEC Paris
•
deux voies pour devenir entrepreneur du changement
•
1. l'entrepreneuriat social
•
André Dupon de Vitamine T
•
un entrepreneur social
•
un dirigeant qui met ses qualités d'entrepreneur au service d'un projet d'intérêt général en cherchant à résoudre une problématique sociétale... view all notes
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
A HISTORY OF THE WORLD SINCE 1300, Princeton University
•
the birth of nations, like the United States, perhaps the first nation, was the effect of global, imperial crises, not the cause of it
•
colonies had built up first national identity and they want to be free from their colonial masters
•
the story of the freedom of the United States and the separation from the British Empire has family resembles to other theaters around the world
•
the English were not the only empire dealing with internal conflicts and a global crisis of the fiscal military state
•
imperial powers were plunging themselves into a situation where they could not fiscally maintain the colonist land grab which pitted themselves against each other... view all notes
Friday, April 24, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
DESCUBRIENDO LA PINTURA EUROPEA DE 1400 A 1800, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
•
Jan Van Eyck
•
uno de los pintores más famosos de Europa, en el siglo XV
•
trabajó fundamentalmente en la ciudad de Brujas
•
pintor de corte de los Duques de Borgoña, que gobernaban los Países Bajos
•
el arte de Van Eyck se caracteriza por un realismo muy meticuloso y por la intensidad de las expresiones de sus figuras... view all notes
Saturday, April 25, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
HISTORY OF ROCK, 1970-PRESENT, University of Rochester
•
Motown comes from "Motor City" or Detroit
•
Berry Gordy Jr.
•
founder of the Motown record label
•
one of the most important record labels of the 60s
•
Motown in the 70s... view all notes
Monday, April 27, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
INTRODUCTION TO CLASSICAL MUSIC, Yale University
•
music's influence on us
•
the poetry of the air
•
can move your emotions
•
music can manipulate us
•
advertisers know this... view all notes
Vocabulary:
tonotopy, n. [toh-NAH-toh-pee] the spatial arrangement of where sounds of different frequency are processed in the brain ⇒ "The basilar membrane is tonotopic [toh-noh-TAH-pic], each of the many cilia responds to one frequency."
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
UNDERSTANDING EINSTEIN: THE SPECIAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY, Stanford University
•
"annus mirabilis"
•
phrase originally referred to
•
the year 1666 for Isaac Newton
•
in London at university
•
outbreak of plague... view all notes
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
THE ANCIENT GREEKS, Wesleyan University
•
Herodotus (484-425 BC)
•
[hair-ODD-ih-tus]
•
invented the genre of history
•
born in Halicarnassus (today: Bodrum, Turkey)
•
we don't know much about his personal life... view all notes
People:
Thales of Miletus (624-546 BC)
Regarded by Aristotle as the the first philosopher in the Greek tradition, first to define general principles and set forth hypotheses for which he is often referred to as the Father of Science, along with Democritus
  • attempted to explain natural phenomena without reference to mythology
  • almost all of the other Pre-Socratic philosophers follow him in attempting to provide an explanation of ultimate substance, change, and the existence of the world without reference to mythology
  • in mathematics, Thales used geometry to solve problems such as calculating the height of pyramids and the distance of ships from the shore
  • credited with the first use of deductive reasoning applied to geometry, by deriving four corollaries to Thales' Theorem (any angle inscribed in a semicircle is a right angle)
  • referred to as the first mathematician to whom a mathematical discovery has been attributed
  • pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from the city of Miletus on today's western coast of Turkey, he is was also known as one of the Seven Sages of Ancient Greece
William Etty (1787-1849)
English painter, best known for his paintings of nudes
  • copied a great deal from the old masters in the National Gallery
  • 1816, traveled to Paris and Florence
  • 1822, made a longer trip to Italy
  • from his studies of the Venetian masters he acquired the excellence in color for which his works are chiefly known
  • 1824, returned to England where his "Pandora Crowned by the Seasons" was much praised
  • 1828 made a member of the Royal Academy
  • possessed a great charm of color, especially in the glowing but thoroughly realistic, flesh tints
  • he remains a neglected and underrated artist, one of the few nineteenth-century painters to paint classical subjects successfully
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Watched and took notes on MOOC lecture:
HISTORY OF ROCK, 1970-PRESENT, University of Rochester
•
Philadelphia Sound
•
Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff
•
had been independent producers in 60s
•
working like Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
•
writers of such crossover hit songs such as "Hound Dog"... view all notes
show all recorded days