TRINITY COLLEGE Dublin has become one of the first universities outside the US to make videos of lectures and other academic material available to download from the internet.
Since yesterday, select course material from Trinity has been available free through Apple's iTunes download service. Using Apple's software, audio and video files, including course lectures, public lectures, presentations on college life and material from the recently-opened Science Gallery, can be downloaded.
TCD is one of the first universities outside the US to make content available using the iTunes U service. US colleges. including Stanford, Berkeley, Duke University and MIT, have been providing course lectures, language lessons, lab demonstrations and campus tours on iTunes U.
Trinity College has been recording some lectures for two years now, according to John Murphy, acting director of TCD Information Systems Services.
"That content has been made available internally for our own students," said Mr Murphy. "I think that was one of the reasons Apple was interested - as we were already halfway there."
Mr Murphy said he expected videos of lectures to be primarily used as an aide-memoire by students, but the potential was there to use it as the basis for distance learning in the future.
Content available at launch includes courses in immunology, education and computer programming, a virtual tour of the university, student profiles, outlining their college experience, and the inauguration of the provost, Dr John Hegarty.
Public lectures available include addresses from investigative reporter Seymour Hersh, scientist and broadcaster Prof Robert Winston, Indian author Anita Desai and the First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond.
Dr Hegarty pointed out that, with its foundation in 1592, TCD is the oldest university featured on iTunes.