Reading University 2018

Autodidact: (noun) A person who has learned a subject without the benefit of a teacher or formal education; a self-taught person.

Expanding my personal Reading University challenge in 2018.  I've made a few adjustments to the subjects and requirements this year to make it even more of a challenge to last me through 2019.  This will allow me to deep dive in areas that catch my interest but still get a broad overview of topics and learning over the next 24 months.  Here's the plan:

Concept:
Challenge yourself to work towards a degree in 8 core subjects.  To complete a subject, I will read a non-fiction book for the topic and read fiction books to accompany the theme.

Science:
Earth Science - Natural disasters, climate change, or books about ocean or underground environments
Life Science - Plant or animal topics and ecology
Applied Science - Medical conditions, diseases, epidemics, or science breakthroughs.  This can also include biographies or medical professionals or scientists.
Science Fiction - Science fiction, fantasy, paranormal, or dystopian genres and magical worlds

Literature: 
North American Novels - literature genre set in North America or by a North American author
European Novels - literature genre set in Europe or by a European author
Asian Novels - literature genre set in Asia or by an Asian author
World Novels - literature genre set outside of North America, Europe, or Asia or by an author from outside of North America, Europe or Asia
Poetry - book or collection of poems from any country, include anthologies of poetry

History:
North American History - North American history topic
European History - European history topic
Asian History - Asian history topic
South American History -  South American history topic
African History -  African history topic
World History - History topic from anywhere around the world

Social Science:
Religion - Religion, sect, or cult, or a book about a religious figure
Psychology - Psychology, a psychological disorder, a psychiatrist, or where the main character has a mental disorder
Education - Education, an educator, or other topic about learning, learning theory, or self-improvement
Political Science - Political movements, government, politicians, or spies
Philosophy - Philosophies and different perspectives on life and existence
Sociology - Studies of society, class, race, prison, and cultures

The Arts: 
Fine Arts - Fine arts and artists
Visual Arts - Visual arts - dance, theater, film, plays, and biographies about those in the visual arts fields (actors, directors, dancers)
Music - Music and musicians
Writing - Writers, grammar, writing theory, writing how-to

Mathematics: 
Math - Mathematics or number theory and mathematicians
Probability and Statistics - Odds and gambling, Chess, and game theory
Computers and Cryptography - Computers, computer science, or cryptography
Finance and Economics - Money, stocks, investments and the economy

Languages / Cultures:
Indo-European / Uralic- Europe, Russia, or India culture or langage study
Sino-Tibetan / Japonic - China, Japan, Tibet or Burma culture or language study
Niger-Congo / Afroasiatic - Africa or the Middle East culture or language study
Austronesian - Australia or Southeast Asia culture or language study
Native American - Native American culture or language study

Physical Education: 
Baseball - Baseball or biography/memoir of a baseball player
General Sports - Any sport other than baseball
Olympics - The Olympics, an Olympian, or any Olympic sport
Sports History - Historical book involving any sport or athlete