02 January 2009

TEDTalks holiday comment roundup

During this holiday break, the conversation on TED.com has been as lively as ever. We talked about our resolutions:

Cynthia Ryan writes: my resolution for 2009 is to (continue to) challenge my assumptions. Dan Dennett helps me do this, if only on his intellectual coattails. More than that, he has a way of imparting complex information about the workings of the human brain that I can really get my mind (ha!) wrapped around.

We talked about fractal broccoli, inspired by Jennifer 8. Lee's hunt for General Tso and his chicken:

Edward Carter writes: In Japan, I found Mandelbrot broccoli that looks like the coolest fractal I have seen botanically. It tasted pretty good too. Does anybody grow it in the US?

Adam Geber replies: Edward, you can absolutely find "Mandelbrot broccoli" in the United States! Usually, it's referred to as either Romanesco broccoli or cauliflower, and occasionally called "broccoflower". It's a beautiful and delicious plant, and totally rewarding to grow, but if you'd like to purchase it, try your local farmers' market or a larger store. Good luck!

And young violinist Sirena Huang checks in on the discussion around her TEDTalk, where she keeps her fans updated:

She writes: ... It's been a pretty busy season but I've had lots of fun. One of the highlights for me was the From the Top recording at the beautiful Northfield Mount Hermon School in MA, which was SO much fun because I got to meet lots and lots of incredible people and made some friends there too! The show airs on January 17th on the WQXR radio station. (And I will post the online info as it becomes available!)
Also, this summer I performed at the Aspen Music Festival Competition, and here is a clip that I hope you all will enjoy (here's the link http://www.kajx.org/listen_archive.php?prog=fest and you can just look for the festival notes for JULY 23rd. A clip should pop up =)
Thanks everyone and all the best for the new year!!!!!

Follow these conversations and many more on TED.com.

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