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Zeresenay Alemseged: Finding the origins of humanity
About this Talk
Paleoanthropologist Zeresenay Alemseged is looking for the roots of humanity in Ethiopia's badlands. Here he talks about what he has found -- including the oldest skeleton yet discovered of a hominid child -- and how Africa holds the clues to what makes us human.
About Zeresenay Alemseged
Zeresenay "Zeray" Alemseged digs in the Ethiopian desert, looking for the earliest signs of humanity. His most exciting find: the 3.3-million-year-old bones of Selam, a 3-year-old hominid child, from the species Australopithecus afarensis.
John Maeda: Simplicity patterns
About this Talk
The MIT Media Lab's John Maeda lives at the intersection of technology and art -- a place that can get very complicated. Here, he talks about paring down to basics, and how he creates clean, elegant art, websites and web tools. In his book Laws of Simplicity, he offers 10 rules and 3 keys for simple living and working -- but in this talk, he boils it down to one simply delightful way to be.
About John Maeda
John Maeda is a graphic designer and computer scientist dedicated to linking design and technology. Through the software tools, web pages and books he creates, as well as his devoted students at MIT's Media Lab, he spreads his philosophy of elegant simplicity.
Stephen Petranek: 10 ways the world could end
About this Talk
Stephen Petranek reveals the question that occupies scientists at the end of the day (and the beginning of happy hour): How might the world end? He lays out the challenges that face us in the drive to preserve the human race. Will we be wiped out by an asteroid? Eco-collapse? How about a particle accelerator gone wild?
About Stephen Petranek
When he was editor-in-chief of Discover magazine, Stephen Petranek tangled with questions as big as the universe. Here he confronts the biggest question on the planet: What are the 10 most likely ways that life on the Earth could end?
Paul MacCready: Flying on solar wings
About this Talk
Paul MacCready -- aircraft designer, environmentalist, and lifelong lover of flight -- talks about his long career. After his record-breaking work on human-powered aircraft in the 1970s, with the Gossamer Condor and Gossamer Albatross, MacCready's attention turned to addressing a problem he calls "Nature vs. Humans." The result: a pioneering electric car, refined alternative energy sources, and (bringing his enthusiasms full circle) a breathtaking solar plane.
Carolyn Porco: Fly me to the moons of Saturn
About this Talk
Planetary scientist Carolyn Porco says, "I'm going to take you on a journey." And does she ever. Showing breathtaking images from the Cassini voyage to Saturn, she focuses on Saturn's intriguing largest moon, Titan,with deserts, mudflats and puzzling lakes, and on frozen Enceladus, which seems to shoot jets of ice.
Kenichi Ebina: Hip-hop dance and a little magic
About this Talk
Kenichi Ebina appears to defy the limits imposed by the human skeleton. He combines breakdancing and hip-hop with mime using movements that are simultaneously precise and fluid. In addition to the playful choreography, on exhibit here are Kenichi’s remarkable strength and agility as he first appears to be manipulated by a string, then plays with a beam of light, and ends the piece as an energetic hip-hop-dancing robot who expires as he loses his power source.
About Kenichi Ebina
Self-taught dancer Kenichi Ebina blends hip-hop, martial arts, modern dance, magic and a blast of pop... Read full bio »
Richard Branson: Life at 30,000 feet
About this Talk
When Richard Branson was at school, his headmaster predicted he would wind up either a millionaire or in jail. Since then, he's done both. Here he talks to TED's Chris Anderson about the ups and the downs of his career, from his multibillionaire success to his multiple near-death experiences, from Virgin's line of spacecraft to the failure of the Virgin condom. He also reveals some of his (very surprising) motivations.
Labels:
Aircraft,
Business,
Entertainment,
Global Issues,
Music,
Science,
Space,
Technology
Hod Lipson: Robots that are "self-aware"
About this Talk
Hod Lipson demonstrates a few of his cool little robots, which have the ability to learn, understand themselves and even self-replicate. At the root of this uncanny demo is a deep inquiry into the nature of how humans and living beings learn and evolve, and how we might harness these processes to make things that learn and evolve.
Maira Kalman: The illustrated woman
About this Talk
Author and illustrator Maira Kalman talks about her life and work -- from her New Yorker covers to her children's books to her two latest books for grownups. And yes, in person, she is as wonderful, as wise, and as deliciously off-kilter as her work.
Jan Chipchase: Our cell phones, ourselves
About this Talk
Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase's investigation into the ways we interact with technology has led him from the villages of Uganda to the insides of our pockets. Along the way, he's made some unexpected discoveries: about the novel ways illiterate people interface with their cellphones, or the role the cellphone can sometimes play in commerce, or the deep emotional bonds we all seem to share with our phones. And watch for his surefire trick to keep you from misplacing your keys.
Vilayanur Ramachandran: A journey to the center of your mind
About this Talk
In a wide-ranging talk, Vilayanur Ramachandran explores how brain damage can reveal the connection between the internal structures of the brain and the corresponding functions of the mind. He talks about phantom limb pain, synesthesia (when people hear color or smell sounds), and the Capgras delusion, when brain-damaged people believe their closest friends and family have been replaced with imposters.
About Vilayanur Ramachandran
Neurologist V.S. Ramachandran looks deep into the brain’s most basic mechanisms. By working with those who have very specific mental disabilities caused by brain injury or stroke, he can map functions of the mind to physical structures of the brain.
Eleni Gabre-Madhin: Building a commodities market in Ethiopia
About this Talk
Economist Eleni Gabre-Madhin outlines her ambitious vision to found the first commodities market in Ethiopia. Her plan would create wealth, minimize risk for farmers and turn the world's largest recipient of food aid into a regional food basket. "There is no place in the world and no time in history that small farmers have had to bear the burden of risk that African farmers bear today," Gabre-Madhin says. "But I'm not here to lament or wring my hands. I'm here to tell you that change is in the air."
Sherwin Nuland: My history of electroshock therapy
About this Talk
About this Talk
Sherwin Nuland, the surgeon and author, talks about the development of electroshock therapy as a cure for severe, life-threatening depression. Midway through, his story turns personal. It's a moving and deeply felt talk about relief, redemption, second chances.
About Sherwin Nuland
A practicing surgeon for three decades, Sherwin Nuland witnessed life and death in every variety. Then he turned to writing, exploring what there is to people beyond just anatomy.
Matthieu Ricard: Habits of happiness
About this Talk
What is happiness, and how can we all get some? Buddhist monk, photographer and author Matthieu Ricard has devoted his life to these questions, and his answer is influenced by his faith as well as by his scientific turn of mind: We can train our minds in habits of happiness. Interwoven with his talk are stunning photographs of the Himalayas and of his spiritual community.
Labels:
Brain,
Buddism,
Culture,
Faith,
Global Issues,
Happiness,
Optimism,
Photography,
Science
Amory Lovins: We must win the oil endgame
About this Talk
Energy guru Amory Lovins lays out his plan for weaning the US off oil and revitalizing the economy in the process. It's the subject of his book Winning the Oil Endgame, and he makes it sound fairly simple: On one hand, the deadly risks of continued dependency, and on the other, some win-win solutions.
About Amory Lovins
Amory Lovins is cofounder of the Rocky Mountain Institute and the instigator of ingenious ideas to... Read full bio »
Larry Lessig: How creativity is being strangled by the law
About this Talk
Larry Lessig gets TEDsters to their feet, whooping and whistling, following this elegant presentation of three stories and an argument. The Net's most adored lawyer brings together John Philip Sousa, celestial copyrights, and the "ASCAP cartel" to build a case for creative freedom. He pins down the key shortcomings of our dusty, pre-digital intellectual property laws, and reveals how bad laws beget bad code. Then, in an homage to cutting-edge artistry, he throws in some of the most hilarious remixes you've ever seen.
About Larry Lessig
Stanford professor Larry Lessig is one of our foremost authorities on copyright issues. In a time when “content” is not confined to a film canister, Lessig has a vision for reconciling creative freedom with marketplace competition. Read full bio »
Paul Rothemund: Casting spells with DNA
About this Talk
Paul Rothemund compares his work to "casting a spell" -- and it does seem akin to magic. By writing a set of instructions, he can cause bits of DNA to fold themselves into a smiley face, a star, a triangle. Sure, it's a stunt, but it's also a fascinating window into the possibility of self-assembly at the smallest of scales. In other words: today a smiley face, tomorrow a micro-microprocessor.
About Paul Rothemund
Paul Rothemund folds DNA into shapes and patterns. Which is a simple enough thing to say, but the... Read full bio »
David Keith: A surprising idea for "solving" climate change
About this Talk
Environmental scientist David Keith talks about a cheap, effective, shocking solution to climate change: What if we injected a huge cloud of ash into the atmosphere, to deflect sunlight and heat? As an emergency measure to slow a melting ice cap, it could work. Keith discusses why it's a good idea, why it's a terrible one -- and who, despite the cost, might be tempted to use it.
About David Keith
David Keith studies our climate, and the many ideas we've come up with to fix it. A wildly original thinker, he challenges us to look at climate solutions that may seem daring, sometimes even shocking.
Labels:
Business,
China,
Climate Change,
Engineering,
Global Issues,
Science,
Technology
Juan Enriquez: Why can't we grow new energy?
About this Talk
Juan Enriquez offers a glimpse of some ground-breaking research to explore the potential of bioenergy. Our current energy sources -- coal, oil, gas -- are ultimately derived from ancient plants -- they're "concentrated sunlight." He asks, Can we learn from that process and accelerate it? Can we get to the point where we grow our own energy as efficiently as we grow wheat? (Less than a month after this talk, his company announced a process to do just that.)
About Juan Enriquez
Juan Enriquez is an authority on the economic and political impact of science. In his 2001 best-seller As the Future Catches You, he examines the profound changes that genomics and other life sciences will cause in business, technology, politics and society.
Larry Brilliant: The case for informed optimism
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About this Talk
Recorded at the Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship, Oxford, UK
Google.org director Larry Brilliant uses a clip from an old Frank Capra movie to show that we've known about global warming for 50 years -- yet in half a century, we've done almost nothing to solve it. He explores this and other megatrends that could inspire pessimism. But, he says, there is a more powerful case for optimism.
The Skoll World Forum on Social Entrepreneurship in Oxford, UK, is an annual gathering of innovators from all over the world who are creating positive change across critical issue areas.
About Larry Brilliant
2006 TED Prize winner Dr. Larry Brilliant has spent his career solving the ills of today -- from overseeing the last smallpox cases to saving millions from blindness -- and building technologies of the future. Now, as executive director of Google.org, he's redefining how we solve the world's biggest problems.
Robert Full: Secrets of movement, from geckos and roaches
About this Talk
UC Berkeley biologist Robert Full shares his fascination with spiny cockroach legs that allow them to scuttle at full speed across loose mesh and gecko feet that have billions of nano-bristles to run straight up walls. His talk, complete with wonderful slow-mo video of cockroach, crab and gecko gaits, explains his goal of creating the perfect robotic "distributed foot."
About Robert Full
Robert Full studies cockroach legs and gecko feet. His research is helping build the perfect "distributed foot" for tomorrow's robots, based on evolution's ancient engineering.
Ron Eglash: African fractals, in buildings and braids
About this Talk
"I am a mathematician, and I would like to stand on your roof." This is how Ron Eglash greeted many African families while researching the intriguing fractal patterns he noticed in villages across the continent. He talks about his work exploring the rigorous fractal math underpinning African architecture, art and even hair braiding.
About Ron Eglash
Ron Eglash is an ethno-mathematician: he studies the way math and cultures intersect.
Philippe Starck: Why design?
About this Talk
Legendary designer Philippe Starck -- with no pretty slides behind him -- spends 18 minutes reaching for the very roots of the question "Why design?" Along the way he drops brilliant insights into the human condition; listen carefully for one perfectly crystallized mantra for all of us, genius or not. Yet all this deep thought, he cheerfully admits, is to aid in the design of a better toothbrush.
About Philippe Starck
Philippe Starck designs deluxe objects and posh condos and hotels around the world. Always witty and engaged, he takes special delight in rethinking everyday objects.
Why you should listen to him:
Philippe Starck is a legend of modern design. He's known for his luxurious hotels and boites around the world -- notably the Peninsula Hotel restaurant in Hong Kong, the Teatron in Mexico, the Hotel Delano in Miami, the Mondrian in Los Angeles, the Asia de Cuba restaurant in New York -- designing the total environment from layout to furniture to linens.
But he has made perhaps his most permanent mark on design through his bold reworkings of everyday objects. In reimagining and rethinking the quotidian, he has produced some of the iconic shapes of the 20th century, including his leggy chrome juice squeezer , the reimagined Emeco aluminum chairs, and the witty Louis Ghost polycarbonate fauteuil.
When Starck turns his bold vision toward a chair, a shoe, a toothbrush, it's clear he thinks deeper than the glossy surface.
Murray Gell-Mann: Beauty and truth in physics
About this Talk
Wielding laypeople's terms and a sense of humor, Nobel Prize winner Murray Gell-Mann drops some knowledge about particle physics, asking questions like, Are elegant equations more likely to be right than inelegant ones? Can the fundamental law, the so-called "theory of everything," really explain everything? His answers will surprise you.
About Murray Gell-Mann
Murray Gell-Mann brings visibility to a crucial aspect of our existence that we can't actually see: elemental particles. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics for introducing quarks, one of two fundamental ingredients for all matter in the universe. Read full bio
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