.10 Free Courses and Favorite Resources
I’m one of those people that REALLY enjoyed the freedom that came with college. So much so that I ended up completing less than 6 weeks and dropping out. Then life happened. I never went back.
Free courses - coursera.org
Since discovering my current interests, I’ve looked into going back to school for a marine biology degree or something similar. One of the colleges in our area does have a program that would work for me, however, funding a private college tuition at 32 is not the easiest, especially when my 529 has been transferred to my kids. And to be completely honest, it would be a total waste of my time to spend all that money when 3/4 of the classes aren’t even related to my field of study. So - I did some research online and came across Coursera. In addition to offering online degrees and paid classes, they also have a collection of free courses that are offered through various universities and museums. You are able to pay for a certificate of completion for your course, but the courses are free if you choose not to get one.
The first one I did was a Marine Biology course that is offered through the Museum of Natural History. I loved this class. The videos are engaging and interesting, as was the course information. They go over marine ecosystems, conservation efforts, weather, marine life, and how the ocean itself interacts with the environments and vice versa. I thoroughly enjoyed this course and would have loved for it be longer or go into deeper detail. I understand, though, that the class would probably not be free if that were the case.
I’m currently onto Paleontology: Ancient Marine Reptiles. I am loving this one too, and it’s been so fun learning about some of the marine life I’ve found fossils from. This course is offered through the University of Alberta and is also free without the certificate of completion. I’d like to look into the Oceanography course that is offered through the Universitat de Barcelona next. While this is a translated course, it still looks to be easy to understand and very interesting, so I will update this entry once I’ve started the class.
ID Guides & Shell encyclopedias:
National Audubon Society Field Guide to Shells (North America Edition) - This pocket size guide is my one of the two books I always pack on my beach trips. While there are a few shells I’ve come across that aren’t covered in it, the majority of them are and it’s way easier to pack than my shell encyclopedias. Anything I can’t ID in here or online just has to wait til I’m home.
A Beachcomber’s Guide to Fossils - Easily my #1 favorite book in my collection. Beach fossils, including shark teeth, are covered extensively and they all include measurements, color pictures, age range, cool facts, and more. I refer to this book quite often and it is the second of the two I always pack on my trips. It’s not as small as the pocket guide, but it’s still an easy size to stick in my carry on or beach bag.
American Seashells: Second Edition by R. Tucker Abbott (1974) - Another favorite of mine. At the time of publishing, all 6,500 known species of mollusk living in waters adjacent to North America were covered in this book. While there are newer books that cover more, this one is still a classic and one I recommend having in your collection if you’re able to find it for a good price and in good condition. I hunted online secondhand book stores for a few weeks before I found a copy in Very Good condition that wasn’t astronomically priced.
Now - for two of my pride and joys. The *Encyclopedia of Marine Gastropods and the Encyclopedia of Marine Bivalves, both by Alain Robin. These books are both pretty pricey, and I decided if I was going to have to pay a good amount for them, I wanted them new. My husband ended up getting them for me as a gift. I love these encyclopedias. Both are printed in full color and have almost no text; shell photos are accompanied by scientific name, size, and geographic location. These are specifically for IDing your shells. If you need more information after, you’ll have to go elsewhere. Between the two books, over 7,500 species of marine mollusks are covered and I have yet to find a shell I haven’t been able to identify using these encyclopedias. If you can swing it, I definitely recommend these. Or add ‘em to your Christmas list. They’re fun to look at even when you aren’t IDing shells!
*The eBay seller I have linked is the same one I ordered my copies from. He was wonderful to work with and I highly recommend purchasing from him if you’ll be buying new.
Books I love for inspiration and aesthetic:
Albertus Seba’s Cabinet of Natural Curiosities 1734-1765. LOVE this book. I ended up finding the large size (honestly, it’s massive) for a great deal through ThriftBooks, but I have two other Taschen books that are the small size and they’re still amazing. This one is full of natural history illustrations, terrestrial and marine, plants and animals. My go-to when I’m feeling stuck in the studio.
The Art and Science of Ernst Haeckel by Rainer Willmann and Julia Voss - I just adore Ernst Haeckel’s art. The main themes in his work are organization and symmetry, two things that make my heart sing. I have yet to feature one of his prints in my boxes, but it’s 100% on my to-do list. This book is full of his prints taken from several of his published works, most notably Art Forms in Nature. With illustrations ranging from lichen to birds to sea anemones to jellyfish, there will be no shortage of inspiration here. This is one of the smaller Taschen books I have but honestly, unless you’re going to use it as a coffee table book, the smaller size is perfect.
Another vintage book I scored secondhand and that features works from another of my favorite natural history scientists - Sowerby’s Book of Shells by G. B. Sowerby Jr. (1990). Originally published in the Nineteenth Century, this book contains over 600 species and includes details on the structure and growth of the each shell. There is featured art from Charles d’Orbigny, a French geologist whose work I have used before, and is probably at the top of my favorites list. (He’s actually the reason I hunted this book down in the first place.)
And for our grand finale - Shells of the World: A Natural History by M. G. Harasewych. I love this one simply for the vast history of shells I have yet to find anywhere else. I’m sure it exists, but I haven’t had any need to look further than this book. Topics covered include ecology, conservation, mollusk evolution, anatomy, life cycle, behavior, distribution, unique characteristics, and more, all with full color photos. I haven’t finished reading this one yet, but I am loving it so far. I have The Book of Shells: A Life-Size Guide to Identifying and Classifying Six Hundred Shells, also by this author, on my wishlist for the future.
I know this is a pretty niche field, especially when you start going into this level of detail. So if you’ve made it this far, thank you. Thank you for being here and for taking the time to read my thoughts. It is sincerely appreciated.