Astrobiology and the Search for Extraterrestrial Life

This course is aimed at the beginner and/or general public who have an interest in exoplanetary life and it's possibilities. The depth of the course is quite elementary but the breadth is large and open ended. I really enjoyed the discussions and forum topics , however they weren't always pertinent to the class. The professor is great at explaining all topics and I personally believe he is a "natural" educator and his passion for this course shines through. Reccomended for the curious and people who'd like a "first contact" with astrobiology - there is no better place to start.

Wonderful course from University of Edinburgh. Professor Cockell's lectures are simply brilliant - educational, entertaining, and easy to follow. In the short 5 weeks you will learn a lot - what life is, life on Earth, space missions, and just humanity. Highly recommend for all levels!

Very instructive and very complete information in the domain. Well structured and explained as well.

If you're just curious about MOOCs -- take this course.

Interesting short lectures with summaries in the end.

Quizzes are multiple choice questions , not too difficult but require a little bit of work and dedication.

Discussion forums are very interesting and go beyond the scope of the course.

Perfect course for general public.

Great course! People who expect to hear some nonsense about Nibiru planet and other myths may be disappointed since there are no such things mentioned by professor. Instead, the course explains scientific approach to "aliens'" subject and whets an appetite for research and further exploration.

Thank you very much, Prof. Cockell, for creating this course! Being able to explain a complex subject in the common language is a true talent. I really enjoyed the material and would gladly take follow-up course.

Really enjoyed this course. I was always fascinated by the evolution of life and the possibility of life evolving elsewhere in the universe. This class included easy to grasp material whilst focusing on the important parts.

Very interesting topic and great instructor.
However, the course is rather short (one week can easily be done in two hours) and the multiple choice quizzes were a bit dull sometimes.

I wish this course was taught at schools. Teachers, please!!!

Well organized and structured course with fantastic lectures suitable and clear to all academic levels. Many thanks to Professor Cockell and coursera.

It's an entertaining and easy to follow course. From what life is, how it started, to how we search for life on other planets, it's a must take for fans of astrobiology and anything space related!

I really enjoyed this course. The professor explained everything efficiently making the topic feel easy! He also seemed excited about the material which could transfer to the students.

Interesting, but not very demanding - the tasks are easy to complete. Treat it more like a series of entertaining lectures aimed at general public than a real academic course.

This was a really well structured course on an interesting subject. Special mention goes to the discussion forums for bringing up an even broader range of topics.

Too bad it was only an introduction, it has a potential to become a great series of courses. I liked the teaching style, and presenting difficult facts has been done in a casual way, so it made things quite easy, maybe even too easy in the quizzes. I'm a bit sad this isn't a regular course, even though self-paced courses have their advantages, I'm always much more a fan of the live ones. A solid course and a nice introduction!

Excellent course by Professor Cockell from the University of Edinburgh. The lectures are interesting and easy to follow. A wide variety of subject are covered and presented very well. I did speed up the videos a little bit.

Only point of criticism I have: In one of the quiz questions one possible answer is "about a decade ago". This of cause does not work well in a course that is online for a longer time.