For instance, in 1993, Jones International University became the first fully online university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

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The tech industry and university administrators are flooding institutions with online learning platforms, filling classrooms with new smart tools, and trying to equip their students with the digital skills that appeal to corporate employers.

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Coursera co-founder Daphne Koller said online university networks could "offer a high quality learning experience to anyone who wants it".

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Alternatively, you could pursue a degree program from an accredited university that offers flexible online and in-classroom learning options to accommodate current work and family obligations.

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Professor Seth Grant, an expert in the molecular mechanism of learning and memory at Edinburgh University, told BBC News Online that PKM was a particular version of an enzyme called protein kinase C (PKC) that had long been implicated in learning.

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