To think critically, is to weigh up all sides of an argument and evaluate its strengths and weaknesses. This is a skill that we use in many everyday decision making situations. This booklet shows how these skills can be transferred effectively to academic life. It explains why critical thinking is important, and contains advice on reading with a critical eye, writing with a critical voice and techniques to practice with others.There is an accompanying Skills for OU Study website http://www.open.ac.uk.skillsforstudy.If you are a current OU student please contact Student Services before ordering.

This 6-hour free course explored some institutional OER initiatives, and provided an opportunity to find, discuss and redesign some OER material.

The Problems of Philosophy, published in 1912, is an introductory book for a beginner in philosophical studies. In this book, the author attempts to provoke a discussion by posing different problems. The book covers a wide variety of theories proposed by philosophers like Plato, Descartes, Hume, Aristotle, etc. In view of these theories, Russell poses questions about the nature of reality and our perception of it. While the book refrains from providing absolute solutions to the problems it describes, it excels in guiding the readers towards developing their own way of thinking. This book is part of the Standard Ebooks project, which produces free public domain ebooks.

Dissecting in detail the arguments underlying the costs and economics of open and distance learning, this text should give the reader an insight and the confidence to cost their own open and distance learning projects.

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This 15-hour free course covered how to devise, release, use and evaluate open educational resources.

The evolution and reception of the Renaissance was mediated by developments in various other spheres of early modern life and culture. Foremost among these were the religious changes initiated by the Protestant Reformation, which are discussed in the opening chapters of this book. Religious and cultural developments in Germany are contrasted with sixteenth-century Spain and are further explored through the study of the picaresque novel Lazarillo de Tormes. The place of Renaissance science or natural philosophy is also the subject of critical evaluation in this book. Case studies on the anatomical revolution, Galileo and court patronage, and Paracelsus illustrate new approaches in the field. Subsequent chapters explore the Renaissance fascination with witchcraft and demonology in both learned discourse (Pico's Strix) and popular drama (The Witch of Edmonton). The volume concludes with a study of one of the most influential and provocative writers of the sixteenth century, Michel de Montaigne, whose Essays provide stimulating material for a reassessment of the impact of the Renaissance on contemporary thought. This volume is the third in a series of three texts designed for the Open University course The Renaissance in Europe: A Cultural Enquiry.

This book looks at how molecules react, and how the feasibility and outcome of chemical reactions can be predicted. Beginning with an introduction to the concept of an activity series of metals, Metals and Chemical Change then introduces chemical thermodynamics (enthalpy, entropy and free energy) and applies the concept to both inorganic and organic elements. A Case Study on batteries and fuel cells is also included. The accompanying CD-ROM includes video sequences of the reactions of metals with water, acid and aqueous ions, and gives the reader an opportunity to make experimental observations and predictions about chemical behaviour. A comprehensive Data Book of chemical and physical constants is included, along with a set of interactive self-assessment questions. The Molecular World series provides an integrated introduction to all branches of chemistry for both students wishing to specialise and those wishing to gain a broad understanding of chemistry and its relevance to the everyday world and to other areas of science. The books, with their Case Studies and accompanying multi-media interactive CD-ROMs, will also provide valuable resource material for teachers and lecturers. (The CD-ROMs are designed for use on a PC running Windows 95, 98, ME or 2000.)