The Great Courses
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According to Professor Garland, the conclusion of the Greco-Persian Wars in the early 5th century B.C. was Athens' finest hour. Then came the truly astonishing reforms of 462 B.C., when Ephialtes and Pericles attacked the aristocratic Areopagus and instituted radical democracy - direct, participatory rule for all Athenian citizens, an unprecedented experiment.
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Shift your attention to another important arm of the government. Explore the roles of the Council of 500 officials chosen by lot, required to serve for a whole year, as well as the respected (if not particularly powerful) magistrates known as archons. Then, review the relatively limited systems of taxation and welfare in ancient Athens.
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Democracy and Its Alternatives volume 20
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Delve into the global battle between free trade and protectionism.
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Democracy and Its Alternatives volume 21
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Discover what makes the European Union a unique and mysterious institution.
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Among Greek city-states, Athens was not alone in having a form of democratic rule. As you'll discover in this episode, Greek governments ran on a sliding scale from oligarchy and democracy to kingship and tyranny. Delve into Homer's epics to examine several early examples of democratic assembly.
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The expedition to Sicily is one of the biggest military blunders in ancient history. Much like the ill-advised American war in Vietnam, the Sicilian expedition was an avoidable disaster. See how the combination of poor decisions from political leaders and a bitterly divided military leadership led to a humiliating failure.
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To understand Athenian democracy, we first must understand Athens as a polis, or city-state, within the broader context of ancient Greece. Review the territory of Attica and get the lay of the land for Athenian government in the 6th and 7th centuries B.C. Then, witness the great crisis that led to Solon's reforms and set Athenian democracy on its course.
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Following the disastrous Sicilian campaign, Athenian democracy appeared to be on the ropes. But in 413 B.C., the demos appointed a board of 10 elderly "probouloi," or advisors, to deal with the immediate crisis. Find out how these leaders steadied the ship and and how the democractic experiment carried on into the next century.
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A voyage to another star would require exact information on distances and properties of the stars. This lecture shows how astronomers measure the distance to nearby stars and how they determine their surface temperatures, which are the basis for stellar classification.
14) Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy, 2nd Edition: Dark Energy-Quintessence?
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This lecture looks at problems with the quantum fluctuations explanation for dark energy. One alternative is called quintessence-a class of models that postulate repulsive energy that may be associated with unified forces or fields.
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Democracy and Its Alternatives volume 11
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What role do political parties play when it comes to elections and policymaking?
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Democracy and Its Alternatives volume 3
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How do constitutions-laws that determine how other laws are made-differ around the world?
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Beyond democracy, the cultural achievements of ancient Athens are some of the most impressive in all of world history. Survey some of the city's great buildings and sculptures - including the Propylaea and the frieze of the Parthenon - to find out what made Athenian culture so distinctive, and where it came up short.
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What did the Athenians themselves think about their system of government? Professor Garland shows that not everyone in the city-state was thrilled by the democracy. Despite moments of friction, such as during the Peloponnesian War, Athenian democracy was largely a success.
20) Understanding the Universe: An Introduction to Astronomy, 2nd Edition: Our Home-The Milky Way Galaxy
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Starting a series of lectures on galaxies, you begin with our home galaxy, the Milky Way. The band of light by that name is simply the Galaxy seen edge-on from our place within it. You also explore the nebulae in our Galaxy, many of which are regions of stellar birth.