edX

edX "The Chemistry of Life"

edX "The Chemistry of Life" edX, the massive open online course (MOOC) provider created by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University offers a variety of free interactive online courses from top-level universities. edX is comprised of 160 schools, and boasts over 35 million registered users worldwide. Kyoto University was the first Japanese university to join edX in 2013. It has provided several edX courses, called "KyotoUx" since then.

One of the "KyotoUx" courses, entitled "The Chemistry of Life", is taught by iCeMS deputy director Prof Motonari Uesugi through short lecture videos. The goal of the course is to develop skills to create new ideas by analyzing revolutionary ideas from scientists that originated from the integration of chemistry and biology. Topics covered include DNA/RNA applications, combinatorial chemistry, chemical genetics, fluorescent molecules for tracking biology and ideas for fooling sugars to name a few. The course also includes interactive self-check exercises and problems to help students master the material covered and a discussion forum where the students can interact together. This course is particularly suited for students interested in pursuing graduate studies in chemistry, life sciences or pharmaceutical sciences.