31 July 2009

Duncan Davidson: "It takes a team to photograph a TED"

One of the two photographers who worked this year's TEDGlobal, Duncan Davidson, shares his notes on TED photography. If you're curious about some of the "people not seen" at TEDGlobal, the backroom elves who make things appear on the web by magic, read on:

Let me tell you, I’ve seen my fair share of workflows and this one is right up there at the top as far as all the requirements pulling at it. Public web distribution via Flickr, team blog support, and news distribution. I wish I could say that some single tool just made this easy, but when it’s at this level, it’s not about tools anymore.

Read "It Takes a Team to Photograph a TED" >>

Above: Stefan Sagmeister and Gordon Brown at TEDGlobal 2009. Oxford, UK, July 21-24, 2009. Credit: TED / Robert Leslie

31 July 2009

The Market Maker: Eleni Gabre-Madhin

Following up on economist Eleni Gabre-Madhin's 2007 TEDTalk on Ethiopian markets comes an episode from PBS' award-winning documentary series Wide Angle titled "The Market Maker." Anchor Aaron Brown traveled to Ethiopia and toured the country with Gabre-Madhin, where he witnessed the trials faced by her Ethiopia Commodity Exchange, and the effects of the system on the economy there.

The story starts with Gabre-Madhin's outrage over the 1984 famine that left over one million Ethiopians dead despite the surplus of food that existed in the southern part of the country. Ever since 2002 (when another famine came), she's been determined to eliminate food waste. So she moved back to her country of birth and set up the ECX to create a trustworthy market for local farmers, distributors and exporters.

In a country with millions of uneducated farmers whose knowledge of trading is undermined by centuries of old-costumed and unreliable policies, Gabre-Madhin has more than enough work cut out for her. Adding to the enormity of the task, ECX was only eight months old when the national government asked them to take over the market for coffee (Ethiopia's largest exported crop by far), which threw the plan for slow expansion out the window.

This nuanced portrait by Wide Angle shows the complexity of ECX's economic and humanitarian missions, from administrative and bureaucratic issues to the plight of farmers during rainless seasons. While "The Market Maker" has already aired on TV in the United States, you can catch the full episode on PBS' website.

And don't forget to watch Eleni Gabre-Madhin's 2007 TEDTalk on this engaging subject.

31 July 2009

New Edge videos explore the staggering potential of genetics

What is life? Can we create it? Customize it? Edge has just published over six hours of video from their new Master Class on the future of biology, which attempts to answer those and other provocative questions. Featuring geneticists George Church and Craig Venter, the set is a a surprising, challenging look at what science has in store for our world, from the minds of two of the field's most fascinating pioneers.

Summarizes attendee George Dyson,

In this future -- whose underpinnings, as Drs. Church and Venter demonstrated, are here already -- life as we know it is transformed [...] by discovering how to read genetic sequences directly into computers, where the code can be replicated exactly, manipulated freely, and translated back into living organisms by writing the other way.

Visit the Edge Master Class and start watching now >>

You'll notice several familiar faces among the class' pupils, including TED speakers Larry Brilliant, Larry Page, Nathan Wolfe, Nathan Myhrvold and Stewart Brand.

Photo: George Church (left); Craig Venter (right). Credit: Edge.org

31 July 2009

Did we evolve from aquatic apes? Elaine Morgan on TED.com

Elaine Morgan is a tenacious proponent of the aquatic ape hypothesis: the idea that humans evolved from primate ancestors who dwelt in watery habitats. Hear her spirited defense of the idea -- and her theory on why mainstream science doesn't take it seriously. (Recorded at TEDGlobal 2009, July 2009 in Oxford, UK. Duration: 17:13)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/25

Watch Elaine Morgan's talk from TEDGlobal 2009 on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

30 July 2009

Art that looks back at you: Golan Levin on TED.com

Golan Levin, an artist and engineer, uses modern tools -- robotics, new software, cognitive research -- to make artworks that surprise and delight. Watch as sounds become shapes, bodies create paintings, and a curious eye looks back at the curious viewer. (Recorded at TED2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, CA. Duration: 15:33)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/24

Watch Golan Levin's talk from TED2009 on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

29 July 2009

TEDxBoston celebrates "Revolutionary Ideas," from folding cars to shining eyes

TED blogger Matthew Trost stopped by TEDxBoston on Tuesday. Here, he shares his notes on the proceedings.

Today's automobile weighs 20 times its driver, MIT's Ryan Chin said. It takes up valuable urban real estate. It's designed to go 100 MPH, while its driver often needs only a quarter of that speed. The supply chain for its petroleum-based fuels is problematic. In New York City, 40% of total gasoline used by cars is wasted on drivers looking for parking spots.

Chin outlined two possible remedies: highly individual transit and mass transit. He looks at Taipei as an example of the former: Scooters are extremely popular there. But a huge "sea" of scooters is cumbersome.

Mass transportation, on the other hand, does not cover an entire city; it's inconvenient and inflexible. The "first mile, last mile" problem: How does one get to and from public transit?

Chin is designing a "Mobility-on-Demand" system of transportation, where users can rent electric cars, scooters or bicycles at hubs located all around a city.

Chin and his team are also designing vehicles. In his electric car, each wheel is a module that has independent steering, power and locomotion. Without a central engine or drive line, the whole car design scheme changes: you can now fold the car. Each wheel can turn 180 degrees, so the car can turn on its own axis, and move sideways.

These vehicles will be able to plug into renewable energy sources -- and sell unused energy back to the grid. Each vehicle will have GPS, so we always know where available vehicles are, where they're going. Chin proposed a variable pricing structure for his vehicle-sharing system -- based on the number of people waiting for vehicles, the number of parking spaces nearby, and proximity to any local rental hub.

David Edwards asked, How do we develop ideas? His answer: We "translate" them to work in different cultural corners.

Humans dream, and develop hypotheses about those dreams. Even simple schemes to realize dreams encounter crises. Crisis results in confusion. We feel frustration, humiliation. But some people love those moments of disorientation, because disorientation is key to learning.

The thrill of figuring things out is fundamental to being alive. In this light, art and science fuse.

We need specialization in order to transmit what we've learned to the next generation. Specialization is supported by institutions. But specialization often forces creative people outside of institutions -- because they have so many wide-ranging, non-specialized ideas they want to pursue.

He wants to create a network of labs to foster this creative process, so that the cross-disciplinary ideas don't go to waste. He calls the idea "Culture Labs," where blue-sky ideas are pulled into realization by the "gravity" of human passion.

Edwards has launched two "idea translation labs," one in Paris and one at Harvard. In these labs, students do art and science experiments. One experiment gave people the experience of a stem cell becoming a neuron. Another experiment created a soundless composition based on the idea of infinity.

Changing culture, he said, makes you pay attention. He's hoping to foster a new Renaissance through a $100K Art Science Prize.

Read more notes from TEDxBoston >>

28 July 2009

A kinder, gentler philosophy of success: Alain de Botton on TED.com

Fresh from last week's TEDGlobal 2009: Alain de Botton examines our ideas of success and failure -- and questions the assumptions underlying these two judgments. Is success always earned? Is failure? He makes an eloquent, witty case to move beyond snobbery to find true pleasure in our work. (Recorded at TEDGlobal 2009, July 2009 in Oxford, UK. Duration: 16:52)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/21

Watch Alain be Botton's talk from TEDGlobal 2009 on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

27 July 2009

TEDsters trek to WOMAD

Immediately after TEDGlobal 2009, a group of TEDsters took off for WOMAD at Charlton Park -- the three-day world music festival founded by TED speaker Peter Gabriel (watch his talk from 2006). Sleeping in teepees, rocking all night ... the pictures tell the story. Above, twilight bubbles, photographed by TED's Lara Stein, director of the TEDx program.

Below, Peter Gabriel dropped by the TEDGlobal Internet Cafe tent. (Photo: Gary Shainberg)

At the Internet Cafe tent, Lara Stein hangs out with Cara Muñeca (in the pink wig). (Photo: Laura Galloway)

And of course: the music! Youssou N'Dour, Rokia Traoré (who played at TEDGlobal 2007), blues legend Solomon Burke ... Lara's picks: "Rachael Unthank and the Winterset was incredible! Hypnotic Brass Ensemble; Rokia, the Black Arm Band, Dhoad Gypsies of Rajasthan, Shlomo and the Vocal Orchestra. And of course Peter Gabriel.... And many more. There were 4 stages with acts playing from 11am-12 midnight." (Photo: Laura Galloway)

27 July 2009

Post-TEDGlobal: Roundups and reminiscences UPDATED

However you experienced TEDGlobal 2009 -- live, on the web feed, or via Twitter and the TED Blog updates -- this week is about reviewing, reliving and moving forward. As Arturo Ania tweeted earlier today:

First thought this morning: How can I inject my team with the inspiration and energy from #TED in Oxford?

We're collecting roundups and reminiscences right here. Check out the posts below, and comment below or email the TED Blog if you'd like to add your work to the list.

Jessica Griggs blogged TEDGlobal for the New Scientist:

So four days of TED -- what have I learnt? What a card flourisher is, that Stephen Fry thinks it's absurd when people ask where he watched the moon landing (either on his TV set or from the lunar lander, surely?), that even TED speakers like to drop a bit of dubious life-affirming psychology into their talks, and that the best theremin player lives in Oxford (Lydia Kavina, granddaughter of the instrument's inventor. ...

Carole Cadwalladr reports for the Observer:

It's true, it's addictive learning new things at TED. There's Garik Israelian, a spectroscopist who explains why he believes that we will find signs of extraterrestrial life within 10 years. Then there's Rebecca Saxe's remarkable talk on the RPTJ region of the brain which, if targeted with a magnetic pulse, can actually change people's moral judgments.

"Don't you have the Pentagon calling?" Anderson asks her.

"I do," she replies. "I just don't take their calls." ...

The astonishing Maria Popova tweeted, blogged and photographed from the audience. (I sat next to her for one session and just watched the flow -- wow.) Check out her gavel-to-gavel coverage on her blog, brainpickings.org, and her Twitter feed, @brainpicker:

In a surprising impromptu performance, crowd favorite Emmanuel Jal kicked up the afterparty with an electrifying act that transformed TEDsters into a mosh pit of dancers doing Jal's signature dance in sync and singing his chorus for a phenomenal collective experience. ...

Sound engineer (and TED U professor) Julian Treasure blogged all 4 days on his site, Sound Business:

Session 8 - In the Shadows A dark and scary session. Taryn Simon showed her superb but unsettling photographs of forbidden or hidden places and of wrongly-convicted people; Misha Glenny gave a tour (de force) of his amazing McMafia book, scaring the pants off me (organised crime is 18% of global GDP!!); Ed Burtynsky showed photographs of man's effect on land; Loretta Napoleoni suggested that terrorism had indirectly caused the credit crunch (US flooded the market with bonds to fund the $7bn war on terror, so interest rates were artificially reduced to increase yields, leading to the sub-prime market); and former child soldier Emmanuel Jal rapped for peace and had the whole house dancing and in tears at the same time. ...

Chikwe Ihekweazu has started the blog Multiple Stories to collect his thoughts about TEDGlobal 2009. The name of his blog is inspired by Chimamanda Adichie's talk on Thursday night, where she talked about "the vital importance of multiple stories in making sense of our shared humanity":

Okay..I'll confess...I struggled with some sessions - Astronomer Garik Israelian's talk on Wednesday about spectroscopy - the art of examining the spectral signature of a distant object in the universe, and inferring its qualities and behaviours - must have been excellent. But with my simple brain trying to figure out how to solve the apparently simple problems of the continent I call home....it was challenging.

Julie Lasky at Design Observer writes:

... Even better were presentations solicited with a view to the topic that might never have otherwise seen the light of TED: The astronomer Andrea Ghez positing the existence of a black hole at the center of our galaxy — and every other galaxy in the universe. The photographer Taryn Simon presenting images of off-limit facilities — a place where white tigers are bred, the rooms at JFK airport where contraband is stashed — then proceeding even deeper into the heart of darkness with a portrait series of men who were imprisoned for crimes they didn’t commit. ...

And Elaine Morgan recaps her standing-ovation TED appearance for WalesOnline:

The talks were delivered in the Oxford Playhouse, and I kept thinking “This is my last attempt to get anyone to listen. If I can’t put my ideas across to this lively, open-minded young audience, I may as well throw in the sponge and take up flower arranging.”

Comment below or email the TED Blog (subject: "TEDGlobal Roundup") to add your work to this list -- and we'll add more as we find them.

Photo: TED volunteer Karen Eng (left) watching TEDGlobal 2009 at the Oxford Playhouse. Oxford, UK, July 21-24, 2009. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

26 July 2009

Thomas Dolby's notes on TEDGlobal music

On his lively blog, TED's music director, Thomas Dolby, collects his thoughts on the music of this past week. From the post:

As TED’s music director I have the enviable task of selecting the musicians that appear here, and helping them tune their performances to fit the context. It’s an honour for me and for the musicians that play here to be able to add a little fairy dust that help these amazing ideas grow.

Read the whole post >>

Photo: Imogen Heap at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12: "Connected consequences," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

25 July 2009

How to watch TEDGlobal in California

Bruce Johnson sends us the waking and sleeping schedule he set up in order to watch the four days of the TEDGlobal 2009 Associates feed -- resetting his body clock to catch the sessions that started at 8:30am BST, eight hours ahead of West Coast time in the United States.
He lays out the plan:
12:12am GMT-8 get up just after midnight in SF to see first session
2:55am GMT-8 take a nap after 2nd session and wake up just before 3am for 3rd session of day
5:56am GMT-8 get up "after lunch" to see 5th session of day
7:34am GMT-8 turn off the feed and get ready for work

25 July 2009

Scenes from the Associates feed

Some 300 people watched the TEDGlobal 2009 Associates feed -- including 100 of our founding volunteer translators, past TED Fellows and TEDx hosts. We loved seeing photos of people around the world watching the feed, and share a few below:

Theodor K writes: "Here is Klara, Theodor, and Isak from Denmark watching the windmill built by William. The best kind of upbringing is inspiration, so thank you TED'sters":

Down in Sydney, Remo Giuffre reports: "It's been hard to get my REMO warehouse elves here in Bondi to concentrate on their work come 5.30PM. That's when we turn on the webstream."

Thanks to all who watched and tweeted the TEDGlobal Associates webcast.

24 July 2009

Brother Paulus Terwitte at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 12

Brother Paulus Terwitte takes the stage and immediately confronts the two questions he says everyone always asks. The first is, "Are you a real monk?" When he asked that, his usual reply is "Are you real?" The second is: "What do you do?" His answer to that one is, "Nothing." He says that he does nothing because he wants to find the answer to the most important question in life, one that you can read on the first page of the Bible. We still don't know what this question is, so he tells us that there’s a little machine used all over the world to remind us of this question -- it's the cell phone that everybody calls to say “Where are you?” And that was what God asked, "Adam, where are you?" Brother Terwitte asks, "Where are you with your thoughts and your feelings? Are you at home or all over the world?"

He says that he was talking to someone the other day, when their phone rang, and the person took his mobile and walked away. It happens all the time, he notes. The phone rings, in the middle of dinner, in the middle of sharing ideas and people go away like the President is calling. Brother Terwitte says he eventually left the area after five minutes of waiting on this person, thinking he must not be so important.

He says that he spends three hours of an organized, scheduled doing nothing every day at his monastery. He explains that they want to find the inner voice of their being, and that every man wants to find the inner sense of things. We all want to get the whole world in our hands, he says, and you have to decide how you will do this thing. He declares that God made a paradise, and in the middle of it he put Google, and said, "If you want to find something don’t use Google. You are a human being, so go to your neighbor, not a machine."

Brother Terwitte recounts how many followers he has on Twitter, friends on Facebook and other connections on other social media. "Is it possible that humans can have 300 friends? Is it possible to contact 600 Twitterers?" he asks. He wants to know what are we looking for. We have become primitive hunters and gatherers, he says. We are gathering information. We think that what we have is what we are. He reminds us that primitive hunters and gatherers moved forward when they began to paint. They painted the animals and all that they saw so that when there was a long winter they where happy, because they could look back on what they had seen in the world.

That’s what we friars are doing all over the world, Brother Terwitte says. He tells us that we’ve seen many things and many ideas at this conference and now he wants to give us 15 seconds to think about this alone. The room is quiet for 15 seconds.

When he speaks again, he says that now we are in a time when human beings are taught to go away, to travel, volunteer here and there, to go to Venice and New York and gather all the things you can gather. Then at the end, you can say now I have made enough experiences, I can decide what I want to do. But when you look at your life you haven’t decided the most important things, you haven’t looked for them. What you have found you have found on the street, in a party, in a book and then splash, it’s over.

He tells us that the world is not made for us such that the world has to fulfill us. We have to become astonished about the world. There is a voice in all things that we can see. No-one can show us, but we can hear it with our hearts. It is necessary to begin to realize that we have the inner sense of the world in our life. Every man has the inner point of everything in themselves. He says that if we were to take 15 minutes to meditate, to go on vacation without our mobiles, to make it one day without the Internet we would find that we are all creative human beings and we would find the source that connects us all.

Photo: Brother Paulus Terwitte at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12: "Enquire within," July 24, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Brother Paulus Terwitte asks, "Where are you?"

A Capuchin friar and a household name in Germany, Brother Paulus Terwitte looks at the possibility of a simple, contemplative spiritual life -- in a world laden with distractions and complications. Is posting a Twitter Snapshot slightly ... ironic? Twitter users meditated on this, and other questions:

Google is the new forbidden apple.. Brother Terwitte.. -- Gabelapagos

Terwitte on why we engage in "organized doing nothing" (pray, meditate, etc.). "We want to find the inner voice of things." -- brainpicker

Brother Paulus Terwitte: "We have again become primitive hunter gatherers - we are gathering information" #TED -- WiredUK

now Monk dude is listing how many friends and followers he has on facebook and twitter etc haha AWESOME -- grumblemouse

Paulus Terwitte providing an interesting perspective on social media and contemplating the world - what really matters? #TED -- bwdumars

Paulus Terwitte: gives the audience 15 seconds in silence to think (and conducts this by holding up his hand). Felt like a century. -- kokoe2

If you're on Twitter, share your own ruminations under the tag #TED.

24 July 2009

Daniel Birnbaum at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 12

Daniel Birnbaum is a curator and is especially known for curating the Venice Biennale. He begins by answering the question, "What does a curator do?" He says that a curator is someone who shows things, puts things on display. "What a strange career!" he exclaims. He explains that if the curator is very successful, the he or she should not be so visible.

There was a time, Birnbaum says, when it was easy to say what art is. He shows slides of a show in Vienna of the history of frames. We used to be able to say that art was the thing inside the frames, he points out, but the frames themselves have become art. Now, he says, modern art has seen a disappearance of the frame. The framing seems to have become bigger and is now the gallery the salon, the museum. In a show like the Venice Biennale or any other big show it's not longer clear what the art is and maybe the framing device is the city itself.

He has a brief clip to show that curating isn’t an exact science. One of the artists participating in the Venice Biennale, Mike Bouchet, brings a typical American house to Venice and floats the suburban home on the water of the canals. It's a bizarre and fascinating image, and in the end, the house sinks. Birnbaum describes the American house sinking into a Venetian canal as a disaster in logistics but a memorable performance in art.

He says that the world of contemporary art used to be small and bohemian, and now it has become very large and global. The world of art is now also governed by fashion, lifestyle and huge amounts of money. He shows a clip of a piece by Mark Rothko being auctioned, and the bidding is continuing well over $35 million. Birnbaum stops the clip and tells us that eventually it went for $45 million. This might make us think that art world is drenched in money. But as someone who teaches art, he assures us that its not always like that. His Venice Biennale is not really about collection like this, but about production.

An exhibition, Birnbaum says, is not just flat pictures on a screen so you can't look at it on the Internet. It's a medium in itself. It’s a bodily experience. He shows clips of the work of another Biennale artist, Yona Friedman, who wants to build things, who is an anti-totalitarian architect and wants to provide the tools for all of us to build our own life. His work looms overhead, tangles of wires and large suspended objects.

Birnbaum also notes that the Biennale used to be a very Western affair, but now there are artists from all areas of the world. In fact, non-Western artists in are now playing very key roles. It's become a little bit like the Olympics of art, where the artists come to represent their nations. He says that these pieces are about the world, about you, and about an art piece that has been waiting for your arrival.

Photo: Daniel Birnbaum speaks at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12. Oxford, UK, July 21-24, 2009. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

24 July 2009

Itay Talgam at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 12

Itay Talgam begins by inviting us to imagine that we are sharing his magical moments of conducting. You get on the stage, the orchestra is warming up and you get on the the podium. In front of all the noise, he says, you make a small gesture and suddenly you get order out of that noise. Now, Talgam says, it would be nice to think it’s just him that creates that order out of noise, but he's tried making the same movements out in the regular world and it doesn’t work.

He shows a clip of an orchestra playing with a vibrant conductor at their head. "Was that nice?" he asks, "If that was a success who should we thank?" There were several parts contributing, he explains. The musicians played beautifully, then there was the clapping audience taking part in the music (which is not normal in Vienna) and is being happy. He’s spreading happiness. The joy of conducting, Talgam says, is about enabling other people’s stories to be heard -- the story of the orchestra, the story of the audience. the story of each person in the orchestra, the story of those who built the concert hall. And, he notes, all those stories are being told at once.

Next, he shows a clip of Riccardo Muti, describing him as one of the great conductors. When the clip is over Talgam adds that even though it was very short you could see a completely different feeling. It was so commanding and so clear, he says. Then he explains that he is going to conduct the audience at TEDGlobal. He makes everyone sing a note and then stops them by holding up a finger. So, you see I can stop you with a finger, he declares. He repeats the exercise, but this time to stop the audience from singing he makes a huge movement similar to Muti's and then jokingly gestures like he’s going to choke someone. He describes Muti's approach as "It’s Mozart as I say it." Then he tells story about Muti saying that even though he is one of the greatest conductors, three years ago he received a letter form all 700 musicians in his orchestra saying: You’re a great conductor, please resign. This, Talgam says, is because he didn’t let them develop.

He shows a clip of another conductor, Strauss. In this clip the conductor barely moves, and looks almost bored. Talgam explains that when Strauss was 30 he wrote 10 commandments for conductors. The first was that if you are sweating by the end of the performance, you've done something wrong, and the second was never to look at the trombones, it only encourages them. To him, Talgam says, it was not about his story, it was only about yours and he gave his orchestra room to explore their story. He did not interfere at all.

Then, he shows another clip of a conductor, this one the German Herbert von Karajan. At the end of the clip, Talgam remarks that this one is more subtly different but that it does look different in a way. Karajan's eyes are closed and his hands are flowing. Talgam conducts the TEDGlobal audience again, once like Muti and then like Karajan. The crowd doesn't seem to able to follow the Karajan style of conducting. Let me tell you, Talgam says, even the philharmonic looked at Karajan and then they had to look at each other. He explains that Karajan's philosophy was that the worst damage he could do to his orchestra was to give them clear instructions because that would prevent them listening to each other.

Talgam shows another clip of a German conductor, this time Carlos Kleiber. He interprets the clip by saying that in this one Kleiber's dramatic movements may look very different form the other conductors, but he is controlling his orchestra in the same way. He’s making the gesture of the music. It is another layer, another story. It’s like being on a rollercoaster -- there are no instructions but the process itself makes you do something. Kleiber creates the rollercoaster in the players heads. It’s very exciting for those players, Talgam says. He shows clips of Kleiber correcting mistakes, showing that when it's needed, authority is there. In the last clip of Kleiber, he is conducting Mozart and Talgam says he’s not there commanding the music but enjoying it. Control is no longer zero-sum game, its about partnership.

Then he show a clip of the conductor Lenny Bernstein, who he says always started from the meaning of the music. After the clip, Talgam asks "Did you see Lenny’s face?" He explains that the pained expression on his face is there because the meaning of this piece is pain. He’s suffering, but in a good way. Talgam calls it "enjoying in a Jewish way."

For the last clip, he shows us a conductor that makes no body movements, but communicates to the orchestra using only the expressions on his face.

Photo: Itay Talgam at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12: "Enquire within," July 24, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Itay Talgam conducts better leadership

Conductor-turned-business motivator Itay Talgam showed a collection of enlightening and amusing clips of famous conductors doing what it really is that they do best: lead. The process of drawing out beauty from a brigade of musicians is a powerful metaphor with real applications for anyone who manages people. Our prolific #TEDsters captured the best moments:

Rule #4 of conducting: Conductor Itay Talgam at #TED: Don't look at the trombones; it only encourages them. -- griley

Conductor culture is fascinating. Silly sense of humour. -- Alli7on

conductor Itay Talgam is using classical music and conducting as a metaphor for leadership. Funny guy. Muti, Strauss and Karajan. -- emilkang

Talgam: Trying unsuccessfully to conduct the TED audience again but making a pt of how diff condctor's behaviors produce diff responses -- pragzter

Talgam.. doing without doing.. orchestra directing.. with a smile.. and a nod.. -- Gabelapagos

24 July 2009

Dan Pink at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 12

Dan Pink, once a speechwriter for Al Gore, is now a career analyst beginning a revolution in the workplaces of the world. This morning at TEDGlobal he begins by noting that a little over 20 years ago, he did something that he regrets. He went to law school. He didn’t do very well. Pink jokes that he graduated in the part of his class that made the top 90 percent possible. He never practiced law a day in his life as he wasn’t allowed to. But today, against his better judgment, he says, he wants to use some of those legal skills. He wants to make a case for rethinking how we run our businesses.

Pink shows a slide title "The candle problem," a psychological experiment created by Karl Duncker in 1935. A person is brought into a room and given a candle, a box of thumbtacks and matches and asked to attach the candle to the wall so that the wax doesn’t drip on to the table. The person who can solve the candle problem is one who, rather than seeing the box as receptacle for the tacks, sees it as something that can be used in the solution. The box is tacked to the wall and the candle placed on it.

This experiment is used to learn about incentives, Pink explains. Two groups of people are offered the problem -- the first group is simply timed and the second group is offered rewards. It takes the second group three and and a half minutes longer than the first group, on average, to solve the problem. "That’s not how its suposed to wrk! I’m an American. Incentives work!" Pink exclaims. But, he says, this experiment has shown that incentives actually dull thinking and block creativity and he notes that this is not an aberration. It’s been shown over and over again. It’s one of the most robust findings in social science and also one of the most ignored. There’s a mismatch between what science knows and what business does.

Another experiment was done with the problem presented in a slightly different way. Th tacks were taken out of the box, and then the incentivzed group did much better than the other. Pink says this is because it’s an easy problem. For these types of tasks of narrow focus, where you can see the goal right there, rewards work really well.

However, he points out that around the world, white collar workers are doing less of this second type of work and more of the first. Narrow tasks have become fairly easy to outsource and to automate and right-brain conceptual tasks have become more important. Everybody in this room, Pink says, is dealing with their own version of the candle problem. And for those people the if-then rewards don’t work. "This is not a feeling. I'm a lawyer, I have no feelings. This is not a philosophy. I'm an American, I don't believe in philosophy," he says. This is a fact, Pink asserts.

He draws on the a study by Dan Ariely and his colleagues. Ariely et al found that once the given task in one of these experiments was only a mechanical skill, rewards would mean better performance, but if any rudimentary cognitive skill was needed, a larger reward would mean a worse performance. The study was retested in India to control for cultural differences and they found got the same results. Studies at the London School of Economics have also found that financial incentives can result in a negative impact on performance.

So, Pink says, to get out of the messes of the 20th century, we don't need to do more of the wrong things. We need a new approach, one that includes three basic elements: Autonomy, mastery and purpose. These are the building blocks of an entirely new operating system. Today, he says he's going to talk about autonomy. The traditional notions of management are great if you only want compliance, he explains. But for creative thinking, we have to approach things differently.

He points to the software company Atlassian -- a few times a year, they tell their engineers to go off for 24 hours and work on anything that is not their regular job. Then they all come back together and present their work. They call these Fedex days, because they have to deliver something overnight. Atlasssian has taken also implemented the 20 percent time rule that Google has, where employees can take that 20 percent of their time at work to work on whatever they want. Pink says that about half of Google's products have come from that time.

Pink also advocates results only work environments (ROWE) where there are no schedules, people don't have to work in the office, employees can work wherever and whenever they want and meetings are optional. When companies implement ROWE policy, he says, productivity always goes up and turnover goes down.

For more evidence, he discusses two different models that were posed for creating a digital encyclopedia. The Microsoft model which included hiring researchers and experts and extensive planning, and the Wikipedia model where people would participate because they were interested. Pink asserts that 10 years ago, you could not have found two economists who would have said that the Wikipedia model would work better, but it does.

Science knows that motivators only work to solve narrow problems, Pink declares, but they destroy creativity. Maybe, he says, if we can increase productivity in solving the candle problems everywhere, we can change the world.

Photo: Dan Pink at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 12: "Enquire within," July 24, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Dan Pink contests carrots and sticks

Dan Pink, former speechwriter for Al Gore, is now hoping to spark a right-brain revolution in business and management. The spark clearly caught on with several of Twitter's most familiar #TEDsters.

Pink on psychology research: "There's a mismatch between what science knows and business does." -- brainpicker

Pink: "Rewards by their very nature narrow our focus, concentrate the mind." Work only for concrete problems, not abstract -- brainpicker

Daniel Pink: monetary incentives don't work or often do harm. The most solidly verified theory in social sciences -- lucadebiase

Dan Pink says rewards work well w narrow work and narrow goals...at Acumen, rules and envs are complex so if-then rewards don't work... -- jnovogratz

Pink: Dan Ariely experimnts w/ MIT students; then with villagers in India (WOOT MIT and India). higher incentives lead 2 worse prfrmnce -- pragzterv

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Magnus Larsson has a wall to build

Magnus Larsson is an architect with a blueprint to build a wall across Africa. A wall made with bacillus pasteurii (microorganisms that create sandstone) to help provide shelter for individuals and curb the destruction of sandstorms. Support for this project was widespread from TEDsters on Twitter:

Magnus Larsson wants to build a sand wall across Africa - extraordinary practical imagination -- sfbassociates

Architect Larson takes our childhood fantasies (and expertise) of building sand castles -- into reality at the Sahara Desert! -- Idit

Today's speakers are hammering home the theme that humanity has created massive problems that require creative solutions & CHANGE. -- ruthannharnisch

Larsson - hope you get a TED Wish for your efforts in building the sand structure using bacteria. -- rom

I'm developing an even greater respect for architects. They are id'ing the massive problems AND creative solutions. -- Alli7on

Photo: Magnus Larsson at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 11: "Cities past and future," July 24, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Bjarke Ingels thinks big

Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, principal of BIG charmed the crowd at TED Global 2009 with his talk on his optimistic and innovative projects. He also showed his "Yes Is More" manifesto, a 130 meter long cartoon strip designed to encourage big thinking. Those on Twitter were super complementary of Ingels' talk:

Ingels: Denish architect with a GREAT sense of humor - rare phenomenon! -- Idit

... Some of his talk is untweetably funny, kinda a "you had to be there" moment. -- ruthannharnisch

... Ingels features building designs that will WOW you! Thinking why can't architects in UPD do something similar? --rom

Ingels is the FIRST architect who creates sustainable green architecture fun and desireable to live in.. the next Gehry !!! -- Idit

I want to be an architect. Bjarke Ingels is a rock star. No wait better: he's an architect. -- nauiokaspark

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Carolyn Steel asks how to feed a city

Carolyn Steel is a food urbanist, meaning she can explain what we all take for granted- our food and how it gets to us. In her talk today at TED Global 2009, she presented frightening stats about where food demand is headed in addition to gripping historical context about how the food chain has evolved. Here's how TEDsters on Twitter grappled with this question:

... How do you feed a city? One of the great questions of our time, yet rarely asked. We assume food will be there, magic. -- ruthannharnisch

Steel disagrees with Romer from yesterday – we have to stop building, we can't feed megacities. -- brainpicker

... The world is desperate to embrace the Western Diet. SO True. I see this all the time; it makes me sad. So unsustainable -- pragzter

OH - Carolyn Steel could have given this talk every ten years for the last 400 years. -- ruthannharnisch

... Half the food currently made in the US is thrown away. Anyone know if the figures for the UK are similar? -- id

Carolyn Steel: "Sitopia" = "food place" (from Greek sitos, food + topos, place) or simply a better word for utopia :-) -- TEDIndia

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Constanza Ceruti explores above and beyond

TED Fellow Constanza Ceruti provided a captivating look at her work as a high-altitude archaeologist. Her talk included breathtaking pictures of the Andean mountains and details of what she's learned from mummies. The Twitter feedback proved fascinated:

Ceruti lived inside the crater of an open volcano for over 3 weeks. WOW. -- brainpicker

Constanza Cerruti, dedicating her talk to mentor who died suddenly while she was enroute 2 TEDGlobal. God Bless him. what a protege! -- pragzter

... for peace she just climbs to remote high elevation mountains! -- Gabelapagos

Constanza Cerruti is AMAZING. Found 3 incan children mummies on the world's highest archeological site. Research showed Incan diets. -- pragzter

Ceruti - Peruvian archaeological adventures at 19,000 feet . Hard to believe this unassuming, sweet person is Superwoman. -- ruthannharnisch

You can find out more about the TED Fellows program here.

24 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Eric Sanderson rediscovers "Mannahatta"

The last day of TEDGlobal 2009 kicked off with landscape biologist Eric Sanderson, who gave a thrilling look at the Mannahatta Project- a re-envisioning of Manhattan in its original, 17th-century glory. This Google Earth of ancient New York definitely wowed the TEDsters on Twitter:

Eric Sanderson: Amazing how many water sources have disappeared from NYC since Revolutionary Days. He looks for lost features of NYC. -- ruthannharnisch

Eric Sanderson doing a marvelous job of historical mapping. Great use of GIS, anthropology, history and ecology. A world that once was -- pragzter

Sanderson should get funding to map the world before we destroy it! We owe it to our kids! Cmon TED give him support! -- rom

Eric Sanderson opens Session 11, "Cities Past and Present," with fascinating maps on optimal citibility -- brainpicker

Amazing talk by Eric Sanderson: Manhattan as you've never seen it. Beautiful. -- nauiokaspark

If you've got something to say about one of the speakers and you have a Twitter account, please make sure you're using the #TED hashtag or replying to @TEDGlobal.

24 July 2009

Running notes: Thursday night bonus session

From last night: Felix Thorn talks about his instrument, Felix's Machines -- a bank of analog instruments wired to two Mac laptops to play a haunting music. It sounds like the singing voice of a lonely robot.

More notes from the bonus session on our Twitter feed, @TEDGlobal >>

Photo: Felix Thorn and Felix's Machines at TEDGlobal 2009, during the Bonus session at the Sheldonian theater, July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

The future beckons. Meet it at TEDIndia.

Photo: Lakshmi Pratury speaks about the upcoming TEDIndia conference at TEDGlobal in 2009. Oxford, UK, July 21-24, 2009. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

TEDIndia director Lakshmi Pratury took the TEDGlobal 2009 stage to give a glimpse of what is on offer for the TEDIndia conference, which is only months away.

The conference, whose theme is "The Future Beckons," comes at a time when, increasingly, India, China and the rest of Asia are making their presence felt globally in new technologies, design brilliance and countless instances of cultural and economic innovation.

As an attendee, you'll enjoy a delicious cultural experience as the context of four days of jaw-dropping TED magic.

Registration for the one-of-a-kind TEDIndia Conference this November 4-7 in Mysore, India is now open.

Register now >>

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Karen Armstrong and the charter for compassion

Minutes ago, religious scholar Karen Armstrong, winner of a 2008 TED Prize, spoke about her wish, The Charter for Compassion, to the audience at TEDGlobal 2009. The Charter aims to bring the golden rule back into a global focus. Currently, religious leaders of many faiths are working together in crafting this document for peace, which launches in September here on TED. The crowd documenting the conference over on Twitter appeared very supportive of Armstrong and her wish.

About to hear Karen Armstrong's talk. She is why I came today. Love her work. -- Olasofia

Armstrong is great - she's speaking about how the media affect peoples perceptions of others, especially the youth. Too darn right! -- v_voicebox

Armstrong wants to do 2 things: Educate and stimulate compassionate thinking. An idea worth spreading! -- brainpicker

Karen Armstrong is my hero, a model of truth and love. Can you help her TED Prize wish come true? armstrong@ted.com -- ruthannharnisch

Karen Armstrong: People want to be "right" rather than "compassionate". Sadly I couldn't agree more... -- pragzter

Karen Armstrong's Charter of Compassion - I'm thinking that I might prefer it to a Pledge of Allegiance. -- ruthannharnisch

For more on Karen Armstrong, here's her previous TEDTalk. Also, remember to keep sending your responses to @TEDGlobal.

23 July 2009

Parag Khanna at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes on Session 10

Parag Khanna asks: Do we live in a borderless world? Our world has over 200 countries. He suggests that those of us watching TED live in "TEDistan" -- a world we feel is defined by cities -- a world that looks like the image of the world at night from space. But for 90% of the population, that's not true, not real. They live within borders. And often they deal with violence.

Border conflicts justify so much of the world's military-industrial complex. This is why we need a deeper understanding of how people, money, power, religion and culture interact to change the map of the world. We need to be able to anticipate the changes that will affect where the world goes.

He starts with the world of 1945. At that time, there were about 100 nations. In the following decades, waves of de-colonization took place, adding more states. The end of the Cold War added yet more nations. The entire planet is now covered in sovereign states. But does someone's gain have to be someone's loss?

He shows a map featuring Russia and China. Russia is the largest country; China is the most populous. What you don't see on a map is that most of Russia's population is concentrated in its eastern provinces, and its population is declining by millions and millions. That population has begun to move to the west. Then there is Mongolia, what some call "Mine-golia," sandwiched between. (China, he says, isn't going to conquer Mongolia -- it's going to buy it, mostly in the form of mines.)

Global warming will thaw out Siberia, making it useful for farming. And in record numbers Chinese people have been "voting with their feet" by moving north, and selling the resources there back to China. But ... surprise! Khanna isn't showing a contemporary map -- he's showing a map of 700 years ago. "History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme."

How should we look at this region in Asia? No matter what the borders tell you, what you have is hubs of commerce that form a more "fluid" sociopolitical zone. What lines on the map should we then focus on? It's our choice, but clearly the commercial lines are really what is shaping the eventual political lines.

Khanna turns to the problem of state building. He asks us to consider Iraq. In the north, the Kurds have been waging a struggle for independence for 3,000 years. The oil pipelines in the region, since the U.S. invasion of Iraq, may finally redeem them. They are now using their control of oil pipelines as a political bargaining chip. If they control the pipelines, they can control their destiny.

What about Palestine? 30 years of rose-garden diplomacy hasn't delivered peace. So what can supply peace? Khanna suggests infrastructure: roads, commuter rails, ports. That would allow for a viable economy, and thereby peace. Infrastructure, the curvy lines on Khanna's map, cross the "straight lines" of the national borders.

The question in the United States is no longer "How will we use their oil?" It's "How will they use their oil?"

Europe, to shift focus, has now become a single currency bloc, rather than disjointed individual nations. This is also shaping the future of world policy. But what is the EU's future? Europe is divided by countries that are dependent on the rest of Europe, and those that have other connections for support.

What is the lesson? Khanna says geopolitics is an "unsentimental discipline." It's shaping the world -- like climate change. We're searching for equilibrium, but we also fear changes -- death tolls, wars. But infrastructure is slowly bringing us toward a truly borderless world.

Photo: Parag Khanna at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 10: "Worldview rethink," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Parag Khanna on the appearance and disappearance of borders

Geopolitical expert Parag Khanna examined the historic and present-day implications of nation-state borders. Borders may be popping up on the atlas year after year, however, in practical human interactions, borders seem to be vanishing. A critical component to guiding this trend in a benevolent direction is building infrastructure. Followers on Twitter were receptive to Khanna’s ideas:

Great presentation by Parag Khanna at #ted on the dangers of clinging to existing arbitrary national borders -- nauiokaspark

Parag Khanna http://bit.ly/cHgLX gives a tour d'horizon of the world's proximate future -- TEDxCambridge

Turkey does not have to be member of EU, it is already member of Euro-Turkish superpower by pipelines said Parag Khanna @paragkhanna -- nanoturkiye

Parag Khanna, geopoliticalist: 100 new countries since WW2. World fragmenting. Conflict can be overcome with crossborder infrastucture. -- pangy_twit

Let us know what you think on Twitter: @TEDGlobal.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Bertrand Piccard wants to fly sans fossil fuel

Balloonist Bertrand Piccard flew around the world in 1999. He stated today in his talk that the next time he goes he will make sure he completes the journey without consuming any fossil fuels. This determination is the reason he promotes Solar Impulse, which intends to design a one-seat, long-range solar plane. And here's the Twitter reaction to this intrepid goal:

Bertrand Piccard - Building a plane to fly around the world on solar power. Fantastic goal to motivate people to reduce energy use. -- bwdumars

Tim brown of IDEO explains that great design begins with the human not the technological. Bertand Piccard is going where no one has gone... -- erwinmcmanus

Latter-day Lindbergh, Bertrand Piccard, plans to fly around the world in a solar-powered aircraft with 64 m wingspan. -- DesignObserver

Bertrand Piccard - Wonder if his childhood ambition was "Professional Balloonist?" (He's called a "solar adventurer") -- ruthannharnisch

wooooow, another great highlight: Bertrand Piccard, fan-tas-tic talk -- vangeest

You can see the feedback as it roles in by searching for the #TED hashtag.

Photo: Bertrand Piccard at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9: "Revealing energy," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

TED's volunteer translators weigh in on Session 9 and 10: Now in Greek!

Here are unedited running notes for Sessions 9 and 10 from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 9 and 10 in ...

Ελληνικά

23 July 2009

Eric Giler at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes on Session 9

Running notes from TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9.

Eric Giler is working on bringing wireless transmission of electric power to a commercial scale.

Early visions of wireless power were first conceived by Nikola Tesla about 100 years ago. He, in fact, didn't know why anyone would want to transfer power using wires. But we love electricity so much that we've dragged hundreds of millions of miles of copper wiring all over the earth. It's a huge drain on resources to create the infrastructure. In fact, in contemporary parlance, Eric Giler says "wires suck." (So do batteries, he says.)

Enter wireless electricity: MIT physicists recently invented technology that can light a 60-watt light bulb at several meters. The concept of "resonant energy transfer" -- where the same principles used in electrical transformers are used to send electricity over a long distance -- was created when a professor was awoken three nights in the row by a cell phone whose battery was dying. He wondered "Why can't all this electricity in the walls just come out and power my phone?"

"WiTricity" works using the principle of inductance, where an electric charge is stored in the form of a magnetic field in a coil of a conductor. Two such coils, resonating at the same frequency, can exchange charge across space. This is not radiative power transfer -- since it uses only magnetic fields. The technology also limits power transfer to other objects. It's completely safe and, Giler assures us, won't to the sort of thing we heard about Rebecca Saxe's talk (where a magnetic burst interferes with the brain's processing).

Giler sees unlimited applications for WiTricity -- powering electric cars (who, he asks, really wants to have to plug in a car?), appliances of all sorts, industrial manufacturing equipment ... even an electrically heated dog bowl. (A business person recently approached Giler to ask him if wireless electricity could do such a thing.)

Giler then does a live, on-stage demo of his system. With a a rectangular conducting frame less than a meter wide mounted on a person-sized stand, and a base transmission unit plugged into a normal power strip, he powers on a regular, commercially available TV screen.

People often ask Giler, "But how small can you make this system?" Taking the example of a cell phone battery running out of charge, he takes a G1 phone and holds it near the transmitting coil -- and the phone turns on automatically. He then does the same with an iPhone -- and, sure enough, the green "battery charging" symbol appears on the screen.

Photo: Eric Giler at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9: "Revealing energy," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Eric Giler shows off wireless energy

"Wires suck" was how electrician and innovator Eric Giler validated the motivation behind his startup WiTricity, which he demonstrated today in his talk at TEDGlobal 2009. Naturally, the main response was from people very eager to give it a try:

Eric Giler on the fantastic prospect of wirelessly charging our devices! (Would come in handy in simulcast lounge where outlets =gold) -- ruthannharnisch

Eric Giler's "Wireless Electricity" gives me hope for a greener future. Can't wait for him to demonstrate the technology. -- techramblers

I am indeed. In heaven. And Eric Giler is full of win. -- kn0thing

Eric Giler: live demo of tv powered completely wirelessy. Also electric cars won't need to be plugged in. Witricity - fantastic -- brenthoberman

Wireless connectivity to charge your electronics! Awesome! ... -- sangco

23 July 2009

Steve Cowley at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes on Session 9

Running notes from Session 9 at TEDGlobal 2009

When will we get fusion energy? We've known about fusion for a long time, but harnessing it as an energy source has been elusive. Steve Cowley is concerned about the rate at which we're using up resources on Earth. And the realm of energy today is dominated by finite resources. "I'm the only one who enjoys it when Mr. Putin turns off the gas, because my budget goes up."

But in the future, we won't make energy from resources. We'll make it from knowledge. In the future, the base load energy drivers will be fission, solar energy ... and fusion. Solar is difficult, but being worked on. Many new nuclear reactors are being built right now in the UK and in China.

But fusion is clean, safe ... and virtually inexhaustable. But there's a catch: It's extremely hard to do. We've been trying to do it for 50 years. (Note: Cowley researches "hot" fusion, not its discredited room-temperature counterpart.)

How nuclear energy works: Small elements want to join together to make bigger elements. In stars, for example, hydrogen joins to create helium, and then helium atoms fuse, and so on. But it has to happen under high heat and pressure. We are looking for an easier way to create fusion energy by colliding lithium and tritium in the right configuration. Lithium, which is in sea water, would last for 30 million years as fusion fuel -- unlike the other energy sources which may run out shortly. The price of fusion would be the same price as current energy creation sources.

To create fusion energy, you must hold gas at 150 million degrees. People say "fusion is always 30 years away." But it's already been done. The JET fusion experiment got 16 megawatts of power in 1997, and the same device will break records when it's fired up in the next years. But that's not in the form of usable electricity yet. His estimate says that we'll have real electric power from fusion in 2030.

His final statement: We need to push that date forward as quickly as possible.

Photo: Steve Cowley at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9: "Revealing energy," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Steve Cowley says we'll have fusion soon

Theoretical physicist Steve Cowley acknowledged today that while fusion is really hard to do it's also the planet's best shot of having a clean and safe renewable energy source. Twitter seemed to be shaken by this desirable concept:

Okay that woke me up (Steve Cowley) -- RichMulholland

Steve Cowley's fusion talk is making me as excited about fusion as when I first unlocked it in SimCity -- kn0thing

Fusion. Want it now. 150 million degrees makes it happen. So what's preventing it? Not " cold fusion" nonsense. EU Power awaits in 2030 -- joeltalks

the best form of energy isn't the SUN, it is the one that you save... -- leeander

Can't tweet the nuclear physics talk from Steve Cowley. Requires my full attention. -- ruthannharnisch

Remember that those of you watching the live feed can share your reactions directly to @TEDGlobal.

23 July 2009

Nick Veasey at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 9

Running notes from TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9.

Nick Veasey uses X-rays to create photographs that reveal the inner workings and structure of objects such as shoes, a city bus, a tractor, a bat ... and men's briefs. (He calls the men's briefs "exquisite.") Instead of focusing on solely biological entities, he also looks into (looks through) technology. But nature is Veasey's greatest inspiration. Design and architecture, he notes, are both related deeply to nature.

He takes his X-ray photographs in a shed with a door of lead and steel and thick concrete walls. He uses a high-powered X-ray machine. But instead of looking for disease, he looks for beauty. Since he wants to display his pictures in large format, and since today's typical X-ray technology only takes lower-resolution photographs, he uses a drum X-ray from the 1980s, often photographing one component at a time in order to execute his larger photographs.

He spent three months X-raying an entire 747 in an aircraft hangar.

He also adds coloring to his X-ray photographs now. The coloring is not accurate to the actual information gotten from the original X-ray image, but it adds a beautiful quality to the photographs. (Coloring also helps his 2D images look 3D.) He then shows a short video of him at work in his lab, as he X-rays objects such as toy dolls, boots, and a multi-story home complete with inhabitants.

As radiation is highly dangerous, Veasey X-rays cadavers to produce the human elements of his photographs. Veasey himself has already been exposed to a dangerous amount of radiation. He wears a device that measures the amount of radiation he's been exposed to.

It's work that encourages us to consider the unseen inner workings of our world.

Nick Veasey at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9: "Revealing energy," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Nick Veasey reveals what's on the inside

Nick Veasey creates art with x-rays to expose the hidden interiors of everyday objects, including clothing, dolls, computers, leaves, and even… cadavers! Veasey reveals the surprising beauty and intricate structure of the mundane. His newest project: sawing a MINI Cooper in half and pasting inside a compilation of x-ray images of all of the parts! Twitterers were wowed, to say the least:

Nick Veasey: takes x-rays of ordinary objects -- his shoes, a bus! (using a cargo scanning x-ray), a bulldozer! -- kokoe2

X-ray fashion from Nick Veasey - "it doesn't matter if it's me or Kate Moss wearing it - it'll look the same." -- WiredUK

Wooow, x-rays of nature for architecture -- vangeest

Nick Veasey's X-ray photography is phenomenal: http://www.nickveasey.com -- brainpicker

Nick Veasey waits in the queue for dead bodies to use in his X-ray art. There's a queue? Who knew? -- digitalronin

Veasey points out child's doll xrayed looks like robot, humanistic but also spookily futuristic with pins holding limbs to torso -- Thandelike

What do you think? Share with us on Twitter: @TEDGlobal.

23 July 2009

Ross Lovegrove at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 9: Revealing Energy

Running notes from TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9.

As a young boy, Lovegrove says, he lived near a cliff shore, where the outgoing tide would reveal fossils that had washed against it. Since that age, he was driven by speculation, by thinking, and the deep inspiration of the forms of nature. Although we call him an industrial designer, his current job, he says, isn't making things, but "walking, thinking, dreaming."

Lovegrove unveils his new project, Lovegrove Genesis, which imagines combining ancient biological designs with the modern production of objects. He imagines a spherical "membrane" out of which might be born any form we want to create.

He presents a slide filled with images of ancient biological forms such as diatoms, intermixed with contemporary designs such as a briefcase or a table. By conceptually combining different forms along this grid using what he calls "neural paths," he finds new types of products that he might be able to generate. For example, a designed object might, over its lifetime (or span of ownership) change its own properties the way a living creature would.

Lovegrove seeks to create a "textural beauty" to his objects, the same kind of beauty natural objects have. There is no "unused side" to any of his designs -- you can't look at the bottom of one of his tables, for example, and find it unvarnished. He shows a video of "single-surface deformation," which shows how a simple, flat form can evolve to fold and contort into three dimensions to suit a particular need -- such as a table. Lovegrove uses computer models to test various designs.

Lovegrove shows the world's lightest suitcase. Last year, 3.2 billion seats were sold on aircraft, and so lightness of luggage is a very important factor. The suitcase has no lining, but was created as a single mold by a large Japanese company that, he found later, took interest in his project because they were interested in learning new molding techniques.

A humorous moment: "If you keep a straight face, you can get exactly what you want in Japan." When he designed JAL, he proposed putting a bonsai tree on every seat. Instead of saying no, the firms there did two months of serious research and concluded that they "could not keep bonsai trees alive in a cabin environment."

Lovegrove points out: "Our ancestors made everything." They had to make tools and objects that were light enough that they could carry them around everywhere with them. "Lightness is a human objective."

50% of Lovegrove's studio's time is spent on pure research on projects that attempt to achieve these human objectives.

Photo: Ross Lovegrove at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 9: "Revealing energy," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Ross Lovegrove's organic, elegant designs

Industrial designer Ross Lovegrove delved into his design philosophy of organic essentialism. Lovegrove strips down his designs to their essence to create, he jokes, “good, sensible Welsh stuff”, alluding to his Welsh upbringing that emphasized economy and efficiency. Lovegrove extricates himself from the fear of failure and seeks out the impossible in his designs. The Twitter audience appreciates the simple beauty of Lovegrove’s philosophy and designs:

Ross Lovegrove is speaking freshly about his approach to organic design, at #TED Global. More captivating than other times I have seen him. -- markwhiting

"I don't know why people paint things" Ross Lovegrove at #TED - an approach I quite like. The elegance of what is there. :-) -- markwhiting

Ross Lovegrove: a bicycle called SKIN viewed from above looks like a strange insect. The bike has a cover over the open spaces! -- kokoe2

"If you keep a straight face long enough in Japan, you get whatever you want." Sounds *awesome*. -- nothingelseis

Lightweight bags that look like they have been formed by having air blown into them. Who would have thought luggage could be so cool -- WiredUK

Check out Ross Lovegrove’s previous talk on organic design on ted.com. Also, let us know how your thoughts compare on Twitter: @TEDGlobal.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: The Radio Science Orchestra with Lydia Kavina

The Radio Science Orchestra united with Lydia Kavina, great-niece of Leon Theremin who invented the eponymous electronic instrument in 1920, to deliver a stellar performance at the start of Session 9: Revealing Energy. Kavina and the RSO played several futuristic selections, albeit without actually touching a physical instrument, but rather by interacting with the theremin’s electromagnetic field! Kavina and the RSO certainly captured the wonder of the audience on Twitter:

Incredible. Lydia Kavina acts as if she is plucking the air & using her fingers as bowstrings. Amazing spectacle as well as aural treat -- jobsworth

Radio Science Orchestra. Makes me feel like a naive child - how do they make music from air? -- FrankiesFancies

Radio Science Orchestra rocking the Doctor Who theme but are the TEDsters up in the aisle dancing again? -- WiredUK

Niece of the creator of the Theremin playing Dr. Who themesong at #TED. Serious geekfest moment. http://yfrog.com/7hmkzsj -- davetroy

Dr Who on the Theramin. Madder than a box of frogs but perfect for 1st session after lunch. http://twitpic.com/bbmx7 -- MarkLittlewood

How did your impression of Lydia Kavina and the Radio Science Orchestra measure up with the above viewers? Share with us on Twitter (@TEDGlobal)!

23 July 2009

TED's volunteer translators chime in on Session 8: Now in Greek and Hungarian!

Here's Session 8's unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 8 in ...

Ελληνικά - Hungarian

23 July 2009

Emmanuel Jal at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 8

Emmanuel Jal at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 8: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Emmanuel Jal, a tall, dreadlocked young man takes the stage and introduces himself as a rapper. It's unusual to have a rapper at TED, but as Jal tells his story it's obvious that he's not your usual rapper.

Jal was born in Sudan, he explains, and he calls himself a child of war. His youth was characterized by violence. As he starts to tell the stories of his childhood, the audience is palpably silent. He says that he watched his aunt raped, his mother was "claimed by the war" and his brothers and sisters scattered everywhere. He does not know where any of them are now. At eight, he became a child soldier because he was angry. He wanted to avenge his family, his mother.

Now, he chants a powerful poem about his time as a child soldier, that begins "My dreams are like torment ..." The audience is transfixed.

After the poem, he continues speaking. He says that what kept him going was the music. He never had access to therapy. Music was his therapy. He says that music can can influence the way you live without knowing it. "Music is the only thing that can enter your sound system, then your head, your heart, your soul," he declares. The power of music is the power of love, he continues. He explains that he found a way to bond to with Arabs after everything, through listening to Arab music.

Then, this well-off rapper explains to the audience that today is his 233rd day where he only eats one meal a day, at dinnertime. He donates his breakfast and lunch to his charity, Gua Africa. Also, he says, no-one in his village can eat breakfast or lunch, and so he won't either until they can. He says that people have been donating to the cause, sometimes as little as 20 cents, and he appreciates it all.

Jal explains that to him, education is so important that he's willing to die for it. As a nation, he says, Sudan has been crippled for so many years. If anybody wants to help, he encourages that they give tools not aid. Invest in education, he pleads, so that they can have strong institutions for the new generations. "All those old men who are creating wars in Africa they will die soon," he declares.

Then, he announces that he is going to perform a song dedicated to Emma McCune, an aid worker who he says, "is the reason I am here." McCune rescued over 150 child soldiers during her short life, and Jal was one of them. Jal makes the audience stand and instructs them to dance. He gives a highly energetic, rousing performance of the song, thrashing his dreadlocks and chanting with a poignant mixture of joy and reverence for the woman who changed his life. It's more than enough to bring a person to tears.

Chris Anderson joins him on stage for quick Q&A. Jal explains that McCune smuggled him out at great risk. "I’m going to build a school in honor of her in my village," he says.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Emmanuel Jal sings for peace

Hip-hop artist Emmanuel Jal started his talk today on a poignant note by recounting his life as a war child in Sudan. Jal's outlet for his inspirational life and desire for peace has been channeled into his music (he performed after talking). Everyone tweeting on the #TED hashtag seemed genuinely touched:

moving and very authentic talk by Emmanuel Jal. great! --vangeest

TED made me cry again -- samfromwgtn

Not sure why Emmanuel Jal insists on being called a hip-hop artist – he's an inspired, profound poet -- brainpicker

TED is a purportedly a place for inspiration, not for a danceparty - Emmanuel Jal showed it can be both. He's absolutely inspiring -- kn0thing

not one to be emotional. In fact my wife thinks i'm half Vulcan. But Emmanuel Jal has managed to bring a lump to my throat -- jonfildes

Great seeing Tedsters united through dance and music -- SlickTweets

Jal is the voice of others. He speaks for the dead, for the living without voices. -- ruthannharnisch

Don't miss these reactions as they happen. Be sure to follow @TEDGlobal on Twitter for the latest updates from the conference.

23 July 2009

Loretta Napoleoni at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 8

Loretta Napoleoni at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 8: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Macroeconomist Loretta Napoleoni is here to talk about how terrorism interacts with our daily life. Fifteen years ago she was asked if she would like to interview the Red Brigades -- a terrorist organization in Italy from 1980s who never spoke to anybody except their own members. In 1993, they drew a list of people who they would talk to, and she was one of them. One of the women in the brigade was her childhood friend and had put her name forward.

Napoleoni had just had a baby and wasn't sure it was the right time to be interviewing terrorists. But, she says, she wanted to know what had turned her best friend into a terrorist and why she had never tried to recruit her. Napoleoni discovered that she failed the psychological profiling of a terrorist, as sh was too opinionated but her friend was good at following orders and had even embraced violence.

She also discovered that the life of a terrorist was not ruled by politics or ideology, but by economics. They were constantly searching for cash. Terrorism, she explains, is actually a very expensive business -- arms, vehicles, explosives. If you live underground, it's very hard to produce this amount of money. Most people were extremely reluctant to talk about politics, because they had no ideas. The ideology is decided by leadership of a terrorist organization, all the others do is search for money.

Napeoloni began thinking that there might be commercial links between organizations. It was when she interviewed Mario Moretti, the head of the group, she realized that terrorism is actually a business. When she talked to him, she realized that he thought like a banker or fellow economist. Now, Napoleoni wanted to investigate the economics of terrorism, but could not find funding. So, she sold her company and funded the research herself.

She found in terrorism a parallel economy, that had been around since the close of World War II. It has followed step by step the trends common to any other economy. First, there was state sponsorship. During the Cold War there was a fully funded mix of legal and illegal entities, and she also points to the contras in Nicaragua. During the 1970s and 1980s, some groups carried out privatization. They gained independence and started funding themselves.

An even greater change came with globalization. Napoleoni says that now, organizations were able to link with each other and started to do serious business with crimelords. This is when we see the birth of Al Qaeda, an organization able to source money in many countries and operated in many countries. This she says, is rogue economics, which is constantly lurking in the background of history. Politics loses control of an economy and economy becomes a rogue force acting against us.

Until 9/11, the bulk of all the money produced by terrorism was in US dollars and flowed into US. This was a vital injection of cash. Napoleoni says that, since the 1960s, a growing number of dollars have leaving the US never to come back. These was money taken out by criminals and money launderers to fund the growth of terror and criminal economies. As a result, the US was the country that funded the reserve economy of the world. The US was borrowing against the growth of the terror and illegal economies.

Then came the "war on terror" and with it the Patriot Act. Napoleoni explains that there is a section in the Act that refers specifically to finance that prohibits US banks from doing business with offshore banks. It also gave US authorities the ability to monitor any banking activity in the world. So criminals got out of the dollars. People moved their money laundering activities away from the US to Europe. In six months, she says, Europe became the epicenter of the money laundering activities of the world.

Terrorism can affect your pockets, your wallets, Napoleoni asserts. The "war on terror" has cost the US about seven trillion dollars and it did not have that kind of money. So, a decision was made to use government bonds on international capital market to fund the war and the best way to make bonds competitive is to lower the interest rate. Interest rates went from 6 percent on eve of 9/11 to 1.2 percent in the summer of 2003 (at the "end" of the war in Iraq). These created the ideal conditions for the sub-prime mortgages crisis, Napoleoni says. This is the genesis of the credit crunch.

She concludes by urging us to understand that there is a world that goes well beyond the headlines of the newspaper. She says, "You’ve got to question everything that is told to you, including what I told you. It will be scary and frightening but it will enlighten you and abve all its not going to be boring."

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Loretta Napoleoni on rogue economics

Today at TEDGlobal 2009, macroeconomist Loretta Napoleoni explained her fascination with the underworld of crime and terrorism in a large, global context. On Twitter, people had a lot to say (and ask) about this dark subject.

... Heavy... 'The international budget of terror is 1.5 trillion dollars' #TED - Bloody 'eck! Is it money well spent? -- TarikF

Loretta Napoleoni - step into the dark side for enlightenment. Almost kabbalistic -- citizenrobert

we are deep "in the shadows" tough stuff this morning at TED; organized crime, terrorism, oil, and other bad things. Painful. -- Idit

Napoleoni - "Question everything you are told, question everything I have told you today." Great Quote. -- bwdumars

... Napoleoni: "Terrorism is actually a very expensive business." does it mean we shld hv deep pockets to fight it? -- vacantparkbench

23 July 2009

Misha Glenny at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 8

Misha Glenny at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 8: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Journalist and underworld investigator Misha Glenny starts by addressing the financial crisis. "These are grim economic times, so I want to cheer you up with one of the greatest commercial success stories of the last 20 years," he says. What is it? Organized crime. Criminal activity now accounts for over 15 percent of the world’s GDP, Glenny explains. In the last two decades, it has experienced massive growth.

He begins to tell the story his life investigating organized crime. First, there was collapse of communism and, at the time he had been smuggling books across the Iron Curtain. He started writing about what was going on around him and eventually became the BBC ‘s chief correspondent. He was ecstatic but also worried about the some of the things lurking behind the wall. Glenny explains that it took him a little while to understand that some of the people who wielded power before, continued to do so.

He points to the slide behind him of a weightlifter in his prime. He explains that these men used to win gold Olympic medals and were great celebrities. Then he shows another slide of large men with heavy gold chains around their necks. These are the same guys after their 1989 makeover, he says. When communism collapsed it was also the state that collapsed. So how did a business man make sure his deals would be honored? Privatized law enforcement, Glenny says, otherwise known as mafia.The weightlifters now became a big part of that. In Bulgaria, they were soon joined by 14,000 ex-members of the armed forces -- people trained for smuggling, building underground networks and killing people, with no jobs. Glenny realized that the same people organizing paramilitaries were the same people that were operating organized crime.

This is when he decided to travel around the world, talking to policeman, consumers of illicit drugs and particularly the criminals themselves. The Balkans was a good place to start. As they say in reals estate, he declares, it was location, location, location. It was a vast transit zone for illicit goods and services, most of which were heading to the European Union, which was now the most affluent consumer market in history. A significant minority enjoyed spending their spare cash on sleeping with prostitutes, doing cocaine and other illicit pastimes.

Glenny explains that even in the criminal world there are zones of production, distribution and consumption. The production and distribution tend to lie in the developing world and are often threatened by appalling violence and bloodshed. He points to Mexico and to the Democratic Republic of Congo where five million people have died since 1998. Mafias around the world cooperate with the local paramilitaries to seize supplies of coltan. The Western desire to consume is the primary drive of organized crime.

Glenny shows a video of a speedboat smuggling in cigarettes to the European Union. The boat is worth one million euros, he says, and there are about 20 of these boats smuggling at any time. The Italian police have only two boats that can go at the same speed. Sometimes, the smugglers bring women with them to be trafficked for prostitution and hurl them into the sea so that the police are forced to save them and stop chasing the boat.

Globalization has led to liberalization of international financial markets. Markets around the world are competing for criminals' trade, Glenny says. There a lot of licit bands that are happy to accept their money, no questions asked, but offshore banking is at the center of it. At last, he says, there is someone in the White House who has consistently spoken out. Now, he says, let's take a look at Bernie Madoff. He stole $65 billion. He is the Olympus of gangsters but he did this for decades in the heart of Wall street. So how many Madoffs are there? Quite a few.

Then, Glenny shows marijuana farm photos in British Columbia. This is one of tens of thousands of mom and pop grow ups. He shows photographs of regularly confiscated goods in the trade: -- a speed boat and a helicopter. By the polices' admission confiscating these goods does not make a dent in the profits. The global narcotics market has expanded enormously, but there has been no concomitant increase in the resources afforded to police forces.Canada has become a key area for the production of ecstasy and other synthetically produced drugs. That's a game changer, he notes. Production has shifted into the Western world. The trend has been set to overwhelm our policing.

Organized crime has also already adapted very well to the recession. Glenny says he's not surprised as it is the most adaptable business in the world. It has shifted operations, as people not are not smoking as much dope or sleeping with as many prostitutes, and shifted to financial centers through cyber crime. Now he shows photographs of a Pringles can rigged to pick up some sort of signal and hooked up to a laptop. He says he watched a cyber criminal use this can-laptop rigging to penetrate the security system of a major Brazilian band in 5 minutes.

Glenny points out that it's easy to persuade people to do things with their computers that are not in their interest -- viruses. He shares the example of the “I love you” virus. He got it from an ex-girlfriend who hated him so he knew it wasn't real. The Internet is even assisting malarial mosquitoes. There are drugs that can destroy malaria, but the malarial parasite is developing resistance because cheap drugs bought over the internet have only low doses of the active ingredient.

Organized crimes affects us all -- our bank accounts, our pension funds, the foods that we eat and our governments, Glenny concludes It's a major economic force and we need to take it very very seriously.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Misha Glenny digs into the mystery of organized crime

Journalist Misha Glenny expounded upon the ideas presented in his book McMafia, on how organized crime has run rampant in Western society. TEDsters reporting via Twitter were abuzz with this talk, especially Glenny's stat that states organized crime accounts for "15% of the world's GDP."

Apparently it is the western world that fuels global organised crime. I can believe that! -- TarikF

... Underworld Investigator Misha Glenny "organized crime accounts for 15% of the world's GDP." This is remarkable -- meetforeal

Misha Glenny on organised crime - Fascinating - although i knew about the reach of organised crime had never put it all together - Wow -- mojonojo3

... Misha Glenny: Organised crime equals 15% of global GDP #TED (yet crackdowns reserved for young, mentally ill, addicts...) -- neilsonandrew

Misha Glenny was an engaging, entertaining, informative speaker - a standout for me (even tho we read "McMafia" already). -- ruthannharnisch

23 July 2009

Taryn Simon at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 8

Taryn Simon at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 8: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Taryn Simon is a photographer whose subjects are often as fascinating as her images. This morning, she launches into a series of photographs from her amazing collection An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar. She has managed to take shots of decomposing bodies studied by forensic anthropologist and a federally funded marijuana growhouse. She notes that if she seems to jump from governement to science to religion, it's on purpose. She wanted to cover all these areas.

Simon shows more photos: translatlantic cables carrying millions of voice conversations, a braille edition of Playboy magazine (it only includes the the text), imported birds undergoing quarantine and a caged white tiger. She stops again to note that all living white tigers are the result of genetic inbreeding. Mothers are bred with sons, brothers with sisters and so the majority are not born in a "saleable state" and then killed at birth. It's a violent business, she sighs. Then she announces that the next photo is of an object from George Lucas’ personal archive -- the Death Star, which in reality measures about 4 feet by 3 feet.

Then she comes to a photograph taken at Fort Campbell in Kentucky of the World Church of God. It's supposed to be a generic site of worship. Along with another artist she manipulated the image to put a wall around the church and superimpose images of a suicide bomber and crowds to make a statement about the situations in the Middle East. To round out the collection, she shows images of a live HIV virus and more.

She moves on to show her heart-wrenching series of portaits titled The Innocents which depict men convicted of crimes they did not commit. The primary reason that these men were convicted was misidentification. Simon notes that after exposure to many photos and sketches, eyewitness testimony can change. The men in her series were convicted of serious crimes, including burglary, kidnapping, rape, sodomy, and murder. Some of them served time for over a decade before their innocence was discovered. In one case, she says, the key witness in the case was found to be perpetrator of the crime.

Simon finishes with a self-portrait. She shows two identical and inverted black and white photos of herself. Then, she flips the photographs and its obvious that one has a mustache and shadows over her eyes, while the other does not. She leaves us with the thought, "Distortion is a constant and our eyes are easily deceived."

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Taryn Simon shows the hidden and unfamiliar

Photographer Taryn Simon goes to places few people ever get to see. She's photographed everything from a white tiger breeding facility to abortion clinics. Her shocking talk astounded the crowd on Twitter:

Taryn Simon's talk is dense with details on the background of her photos. The context is the story. Eclectic. -- bwdumars

Incestuous white tigers? This is just getting more and more interesting... -- TarikF

Simon: Her photographs reveal truth that might be uncomfortable for some ... -- ruthannharnisch

Taryn Simon just rocked my world -- kn0thing

I deeply thank Taryn Simon for her courage and information through her thoughtful photography -- Idit

If you're watching the live stream, make sure you're tweeting on the #TED hashtag and joining the discussion.

23 July 2009

TED's volunteer translators weigh in on Session 7: Now in Hungarian and Greek!

Here's Session 7's unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 7 in ...

Ελληνικά - Hungarian

23 July 2009

Tim Brown at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes on Session 7

Tim Brown at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Designer Tim Brown of IDEO begins his talk by posing the question, "What happens if you move from design to design-making?" He sees a profound difference between the two. He explains that when he first began working as a designer he had a small view of design. He shows his first projects: a woodworking machine and a fax machine. In both cases, he put a prettier casing around an existing object and in both cases the companies were out of business within months.

He thinks that his small view was influenced by more recent trends in design. But, he says, design used to be big. He shows a slide of Isambard Brunel, and introduces him as one of the great designers. Brunel was responsible for the Great Western Railway and wanted to achieve for passengers the experience of floating across the countryside, which meant creating flattest gradients ever. He imagined an integrated transportation system where a passenger could embark on a train in London and take that straight through to a ship to New York City.

Brown explains that design thinking begins with integrative thinking. Opposing ideas and opposing constraints create new solutions. It's a matter of balancing desirabilty with feasibility and viability. But then, he says, design became a priesthood of black turtlenecks and designer glasses focusing on an ever smaller campus and creating pretty but not necessarily useful objects.

Today, he thinks design is beginning to think big again. Design has returned to being human-centered, meaning that it starts with what humans need, which is more than good ergonomics. Brown expands by saying that good design is often about understanding culture and context.

Then he describes the main characteristics of good design-making. First, he says, one must begin learning my making and building in order to think. Prototypes speed up the process of innovation. One has to put products into the world to see their successes and failures. Then, instead of making our primary objective consumption, we must see it as participation. Brown thinks the design of participatory systems is going to be the major theme for design and for our economy. Design has greatest impact when put in the hands of everyone. At this point, Brown gives an example of nurses at Kaiser Permanente designing new system to increase patient comfort using in-depth conversations with the patients.

Now, Brown returns to speak about Brunell. He says that connection is change and that in times of change we need new alternatives and new ideas. Brunell proposed change in the industrial age. Industrial systems have run their course and we need another massive change. We need new choices. Design thinking gives us a new way of tackling problems. It takes a divergent approach that allows us to explore new ideas.

What is the question we’re answering today? Brown explains that he's also working on safe drinking water for the world’s poorest, along with Acumen Fund. He teamed designers with eleven water experts across India. Then, they hosted a competition and had winners develop their ideas. The solutions were participatory and Brown thinks we can continue to use models like these to tackle bigger and more interesting questions.

23 July 2009

Rob Hopkins at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 7

Rob Hopkins at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Rob Hopkins is one of the leaders of a new movement of people living as fossil fuel-free as possible called the Transition Movement. He explains that he teaches people how to grow their own food and build their own homes. Before he began his current work, he worked with the current global economic growth model, but then he says, he came into contact with something that changed him. At this point, he unveils a liter of oil. He tells us that this bottle of oil contains the energy equivalent of five weeks of human labor by 35 strong people.

Hopkins says that our degree of oil dependency is our degree of vulnerability. We will not have oil forever. For every five barrels we consume, we only gather one. There are 98 oil producing nations but 65 have already passed their peak. "Is our brilliance and creativity going to evaporate?" he asks. The answer he gives is no, but he says that our options have to be realistic and mentions that climate change scientist have an increasingly terrified look in their eyes.

He asserts that our society seems to have the idea that technology will solve everything, pointing out that this idea is always popular at TED. But, Hopkins says, we can’t create new lands and energy systems at the click of a mouse. There are still people mining coal, as we speak. We live in a world of real constraints and demands. Energy and technology are not the same thing.

Hopkins outlines the qualities of the transition response: iviral, open-source, self-organizing, solutions-focused, sensitive to place and scale, learns from its mistakes and is a joyful process. It’s not about winning the argument, he says, it’s about changing the climate. Transition depends on the idea of resilience, which he thinks is a more useful concept than sustainability. Sustainability wants the supermarket to be more energy efficient, while resilience questions the vulnerability of depending on the supermarket.

Then, Hopkins walks us through how one of the transition projects are realized. It begins when you have a group excited by the idea. That group then runs an awareness-raising program, looking at how this might work in their town. They form more groups from which projects start and then continue to spread. There are over 2,000 transition projects around the world at the moment and thousands more in the mulling stage. There are community agriculture schemes, community energy schemes, groups promoting recycling, garden-shares and even alternative currencies. There are also groups designing energy descent plans, in case there is not more growth in the world, but less.

Hopkins noted that the Transition handbook he has written was the fifth most popular book that Brits took on holiday. The Leicestshire and Somerset transition communities have become involved in local government. He says they're not changing things, things are inevitably changing and we just have to work creatively with that.

We’ve been astonishingly lucky, Hopkins tells us, but he also asks us to honor what it has bought us. By loving and leaving all the oil age has done for us, he thinks we can begin a world of more resilience where we are fitter, more skilled and more connected to each other.

23 July 2009

William Kamkwamba at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 7

William Kamkwamba at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

William Kamkwamba took the stage this morning to tell the story of his young and remarkable life. He explains that two years ago he stood on the TED stage in Arusha, Tanzania and spoke about a windmill that he built himself. That experience, he says, changed his life. Before that, he had never left Malawi and he had never seen the Internet. Kamkwamba tells the audience that in his first appearance at TED his English was not good enough to share his story himself. He recalls saying only a few words

He begins to tell us about his life. "I was just a simple farmer in a country of poor farmers," he says. There were seven siblings in his family, and he was the only boy. In 2001, there was an awful famine in Malawi. His family ate one meal per day, at night. "We dropped down to nothing," he explains. In Malawi they must fees to attend secondary school. Kamkwamba's family could not afford it, so he was forced to drop out. "It was a future I couldn’t accept," he says. Determined to do anything to receive education, he went to the library and borrowed books, especially those on physics. He couldn’t read much of the English, so he studied the diagrams.

Eventually, he found book called “Using Energy” that described windmill, and decided that this could be used to help his family. He went to the scrap yard to find material. Kamkwamba laughs that many people, including his mother, said he was crazy. He used a bicycle frame, PVC pipes and all manner of other odds and ends and built his windmill. It powered one light at first, and then he installed three more as well as a circuit breaker and switches.

Soon, he says, queues of people started lining up at his house to charge their mobile phones. "I could not get rid of them," he smiles. The lines led to bloggers, to reporters and finally to TED. "I had never seen an airplane before and never slept in a hotel.

Kamwaba has a poignant final message. He ends his talk by saying, "To all the people out there like me -- to the Africans, and the poor, and the struggling, maybe one day you'll watch this on the Internet: Trust yourself and believe. Whatever happens, don’t give up."

23 July 2009

Michael Pritchard at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 7

Michael Pritchard at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Inventor Michael Pritchard's talk involves a strange prop -- a large aquarium filled with cloudy water. After being introduced, he explains that he's here to talk about water. He asks how the water at the conference has been and points out that audience is probably sure it's from a safe source. "But what if it wasn’t?" he asks. Then, he declares that half the conference would suffering from diarrhea. He thinks that its that scale of the problem that overwhelms governments and aid agencies. Since he's been speaking, he tells us, 13,000 people in the world have been suffering with diarrhea and four children have died because of unclean water.

Pritchard says that he invented the Lifesaver bottle because he got angry while watching the tsunami in Thailand play out and watching people forced to drink contaminated water or face death. He points out that, months later, Hurricane Katrina hit and he hoped for the US to do better. It took five days to get water to the Superdome. So, he began spending a lot of time in his garage and kitchen over the next weeks and months to develop a product that could help.

Before the Lifesaver, he says, the best filters could only filter particles larger than 200 nanometers, which is the size of the smallest bacteria, so some bacteria got through. And, the smallest virus is 25 nanometers. The Lifesaver's pores are 15 nanometers. Nothing gets through, Pritchard declares.

Then, he begins his demo. He points to the aquarium, which he says contains water from nearby rivers, like the Thames. Then, he pulls out another container and adds water from his pond at home. Then he adds run-off from a sewage plant, other “bits an piece” and a “gift” from a friends rabbit and gives it a stir. He scoops the filthy water up and pours it into the Lifesaver bottle, which looks quite like any regular plastic sports water bottle. He replaces the top, pulls out a hidden pump mechanism and gives it a few pumps. He pours clear water from the bottle into a glass and hands it to Chris Anderson to have a taste. Anderson does, and declares it completely potable.

Pritchard says that the filter in the Lifesaver is good for 6,000 liters. When it expires, the system will shut off to protect the consumer. In a crisis, he explains, we ship water and people are forced to got to camps to get water where diseases spread and the problem intensifies. By shipping these instead, people can stay put.

Now doesn’t require a natural disaster for this to work, he continues. We could use the Lifesaver bottle or the same technology on larger scale where people routinely have no access to clean water and it costs 1/2 cent per day to run. Mothers and children would no longer have to walk four hours to get their water. According to his calculations, with only $20 billion we can have safe water for all. Pritchard reminds us that the UK alone spends $12 billion on aid each year.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: William Kamkwamba in Session 7

William Kamkwamba spoke at TEDGlobal 2007, as a shy young man who'd built his family a windmill from scrap. His story captured the world's attention. Today he walked onstage with confidence to tell his story from that point to this.

@herbkim Google 'William Kamkwamba' - sat next to him at dinner last night having no idea he was gonna blow me & the TED audience away this morning

@CosmoCat William Kamkwamba telling how he decided to built his own wind-powered pump to get water and save himself and his family from starving

@beckyblanton Michael Kamkwamba had a dream, made it happen, self-taught in libraries - built his own windmill from scrap. Hope always finds a way.

@frogdesign And the crowd goes wild. Incredible story about hope and invention in Africa from William Kamkwamba.

@ruthannharnisch #TED Fellow William Kamkwamba tells his powerful story - you'll have to buy his book, "The Boy WHo Harnessed The Wind"http://bit.ly/OQPUG

Photo: William Kamkwamba at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: "Radical development," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Marc Koska at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 7

Marc Koska - MiniSlot at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 8: July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

Twenty-five years ago, Marc Koska read a newspaper article that said one day syringes would be the main vehicle for spreading the AIDS virus and the thought of this preventable tragedy never left him. Today, he tells us, syringes kill 1.3 million people a year.

He begins his talk with pictures of a young girl and boy in India who got AIDS from syringes, and where then thrown out of their home by their parents because of the stigma attached to it. Koska describes skilled and unskilled practitioners blindly giving injections around the world. People trust the doctor to do the right thing, and they’re not. To prove his point, he shows a video, shot undercover, of nurses in India giving a series of injections over a 30 minute period, using only two syringes.

The problem is certainly not isolated. Koska goes on to go show photos of children in in Pakistan picking up syringes behind hospitals to re-sell them. Of course, during the collection process they get injured, so that infection becomes very possible. Koska explains that at one point their father pricked his finger and then burnt the cut with match saying that that would stop HIV infection. Next are photos from China of syringe recycling on massive scale. And, in Indonesian schools there are toy vendors on playground that sell syringes with still visible traces of blood in them, which the children use to squirt water, sometimes into their mouths.

Koska presents his solution -- a very normal looking syringe, but after the plunger has been pushed all the way down once, if someone tries to reuse it, it locks and breaks. It even costs the same as regular syringe. It's a simple but brilliant idea and the audience applauds loudly. Additionally, he's begun an information charity in India called Safepoint that educates people on the dangers of reusing syringes.

23 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Inventors of Session 7

A thread runs through this session, captured best here:

@Thandelike When inventors "get mad" about the world's disasters they get to work. Love that.

Economist Paul Romer unveils a plan for Charter Cities -- brand-new places where the economic rules are reset. It could create opportunity for people now trapped in badly managed regimes (the people Paul Collier calls the bottom billion).

@lucadebiase: Paul Romer: building charter cities with the right rules that help sustainable development where people can opt-in

@citizenrobert Paul Romer's Charter Cities reminiscent of New Lanark Mills

@citizenrobert Guantanamo can be the new Hong Kong - Romer

@tedtochina Paul Romer has a talk at the Long Now Foundation on the same topic some months ago: http://bit.ly/3SG4qq

Next, TEDster Marc Koska talks about the idea that got him mad: the plague of re-used syringes in poor regions. He plays undercover footage that shows a busy clinic where used syringes are dropped into a tray -- and then picked right up again to inject another person.

@ruthannharnisch: People trust doctors, injections so valuable, people wiiling to risk the dirty re-used syringe.

@ruthannharnisch: People think u can stop spread of syringe-borne HIV by lighting a match and burning the spot where needle pierced skin.

@pangy_twit: New syringe whose plunger breaks after use to stop infection from reuse. 64% injections in India unsafe.

@CosmoCat: Marc Koska showing his invention: The one-use syringe! When you try to reuse it, it breaks!! Thank you Mark!

Water engineer Michael Pritchard got mad about the problem of dirty water in developing countries. So what did he do? Invent a portable device that turns the filthiest sludge into sterile drinking water. His short, peppy demo drew groans of horror from the audience as he stirred up a disgusting brew of dirty water:

@ruthannharnisch: Got water from River Thames, brought pond water (makes cameraman smell the stench), pours sewage runoff into river water. Ugh

@Mach3te: Pritchard demos bottle on stage: Dumps sewage, rabbit waste into tank, filters w/ bottle, produces clean, sterile water. Drinks it!

@pangy_twit: Michael Pritchard: new water bottle to filter 25mn (Polio virus is 50mn) at source costs just $0.05. World cost $20bn. UK spend $12bn

@jobsworth: Michael Pritchard keeps costs low by designing to process water at the point of use. A principle we should use in many other cases. #TED

@ruthannharnisch: People can make their own sterile drinking water and stay put to rebuild lives instead of bcmng refugees seeking water.

@ruthannharnisch: @tedchris tastes the water that comes from the LifeSaver bottle. If anything happens to him, we will hunt Pritchard down like a dog.

Photo: Paul Romer at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 7: "Radical development," July 23, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

23 July 2009

Paul Romer at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 7

Paul Romer is a Stanford economist with radical ideas for new global growth. The first to the stage this morning, he has a little difficulty with his slides and jokes, "My work is about how wonderful technology is."

When the first slide does appear he urges us look at the picture of African students doing their homework under streetlights because they have no electricity in their homes. He zeroes in on one of the students and christens him Nelson. "I’ll bet Nelson has a cell phone," Romer remarks. He then asks the audience why Nelson would have a cutting edge technology like a cell phone but no access to electricity. His answer -- rules. Romer explains that in this country the electric company has to provide electricity at a subsidized price, and so cannot make profit. They have no incentive or ability to reach more customers. The president has tried to change pricing but protests broke out from businesses and the public.

"How can we change rules? " Romer asks. He answers his question by saying that we can do so by giving more choices to people and leaders (who he notes in many countries are also people). If you give to only one side you have tension, but giving choices to both will produce a set of rules for changing the rules.

He shows a picture from NASA of the Earth at night, clearly showing the electric lights of cities and town. He points out that North Korea looks like a black hole compared to neighbors, and reminds us that North Korea and South Korea began identically but made choices that led to very divergent paths. He points to the Caribbean. He shows how dark Haiti is compared to the Dominican Republic and that they're both dark compared to Puerto Rico. Haiti warns us that rules can also be bad when governments are weak, as opposed to the strong government of North Korea.

He moves our attention to China. China, he says, demonstrates both the strengths and weaknesses of working with rules. They developed steel and gunpowder, but never developed rules for spreading those. Then, they developed rules that cut them off while other countries were zooming ahead. However, in the late 1970s, growth took off in China. Something changed. Romer shows that the brightest spot in China is Hong Kong. Hong Kong was a small bit of China that for most of the 20th century operated under a different set of rules, that were copied from working market and under the care of Great Britain. Hong Kong, he says, became a model people could copy when the rest of mainland moved to the market model. The demonstrated successes there led to a consensus on a market model move throughout the economy.

Romer asserts that we must preserve choices for people and operate on the right scale. A village is too small and a nation too big. Cities give you the right balance. The proposal is he conceives of is a charter city with investors to build infrastructure, firms to hire people and families who will raise children there. All he wants is some good rules, uninhabited land and choices for leaders, which he thinks should translate to partnerships between nations

He notes that some of the audience might be starting to think is this bringing back colonialism. Romer urges everyone not to let the emotions that come up get in the way and shut down new ideas. He says that colonialism involved coercion and condescension -- this model is about choice, which is the antidote to those two.

He proposes charter cities in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (calling Canada to take a partnership there) and throughout Africa. He says that most leaders he's talked to get the idea. They understand that they can make more credible promises to long-term investors if they do it with a partner nation. Romer claims that only a failure of imagination will keep us from delivering a global win-win solution. The power of ideas will do it, he says. We can share ideas and we all get more. We must keep moving progress forward so Nelson and his friends don't have to study under street lamps.

At the end of the talk, Chris Anderson does a quick audience poll by a show of hands. "What do you think? Mad or exciting?" Anderson asks. Overwhelmingly, the hands say exciting.

22 July 2009

Elaine Morgan at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes on Session 6

Why is the human phenotype so different from the chimpanzee, even though experts constantly point out how similar the genotypes are? Why are we bipedal while they walk on four legs? Why are we hairless while they are hairy? Elaine Morgan seeks to look beyond what she thinks are the utterly incorrect answers proposed by evolutionary biologists. If we're so different than the other higher primates, something must have happened to make us so. So: what happened?

Morgan is intrigued by evidence that shows that savannah habitats -- long thought to be a driving force behind the way humans evolved -- didn't exist at the time when the adaptations happened. This indicated that a paradigm was about to radically change. She says, What do scientists do when paradigms fail? They continue working on the paradigm as though nothing happened!

But finally a new paradigm was about to emerge. In the '60s, a scientist wondered whether human evolution was shaped by a more "aquatic" lifestyle. But the idea was ridiculed by scientists for years -- although now the theory is beginning to enjoy some favor. There is a set of questions that, in particular, throw doubt on the conventional story of human evolution:

Why are we hairless? The other mammals that are hairless are mostly aquatic -- dolphins, whales. But what about elephants?, we might ask. Morgan says it's been discovered that elephant ancestors were aquatic. While not all aquatic mammals are naked, like seals, all animals that are naked have so far been discovered to have had aquatic ancestors.

Why are we bipedal? There is only one situation in the mammalian world where mammals walk around on two legs: when they are in water.

Why do we have the layer of fat under our skins, unlike other primates? Aquatic mammals include a layer of fat, and a layer of skin. Humans can become obese in a way that is physically impossible for other primates.

Why can we control our breath? The only animals with conscious control of the breath are animals that spend time in water.

Why do we have streamlined bodies? Perhaps, Morgan suggests, to optimize us for mobility in water.

Morgan has struggled her whole life to show that perhaps the prevailing theory of human origins is wrong. After all, she says, history is riddled with instances where theories proved to be wrong. She says Dan Dennett, David Attenborough and other prominent scientists and thinkers have come to agree that the aquatic ape theory is important. To laughter and applause, she encourages TED to "come on in, the water's fine."

Morgan looks forward to a new point in science where conventional ideas about human evolution can be synthesized with the aquatic ape theory -- but, for now, the "rival" theories live apart.

Photo: Elaine Morgan at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 6: "Curious and curiouser," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Elaine Morgan believes in aquatic apes

Octogenarian scientist Elaine Morgan became the oldest speaker in TED's history (at the sprightly age of 90) at TEDGlobal 2009 when she presented her addition to evolutionary science: the theory of aquatic apes. Here's how the excited crowd on Twitter responded to her vibrant talk:

Elaine Morgan talking pure sense at #TED about paradigm shift and aquatic ape theory - and in a Welsh accent too. -- rorysutherland

Of all the big ideas at TEDGlobal, Elaine Morgan's radical theories on the aquatic ape evolutionary theory are most challenging yet. -- shanehegarty

Elaine Morgan aquatic ape theory has been miscategorised as lunatic fringe! It's not lunatic fringe! -- izahoor

Someone get this woman a #TED prize. 'soon' Elaine Morgan rocks. -- casinclair

LOVE IT! Elaine Morgan ended her TED talk with, "Never be afraid to rock the boat." She got a LOT of cheers over that! Loved her talk! -- beckyblanton

Wow, Elaine Morgan's talk was exactly what #TED is all about. Brave, intelligent, and f***ing hard to ignore. Brilliant! -- RichMulholland

On Elaine Morgan, I'm impressed by people who follow their passion and refuse to give up, even if everyone else calls you foolhardy -- jenbrea

Elaine Morgan has just convinced me that we are fishpeople -- ladysatin

22 July 2009

Garik Israelian at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 6

Israelian explores distant objects in the universe using spectroscopy. By looking at the spectral signature of distant object, he can infer the qualities and behaviors of the objects. He thinks spectroscopy will be how we finally discover whether there is life elsewhere outside of our solar system.

Israelian discovered that stars sometimes swallow their planets -- not by direct observation of the event, but by looking at the spectral signature of a star, which indicated that lithium was present in the star. (Lithium, we know from physics, is not normally present in stars without them having devoured another type of object.) "The power of spectroscopy was actually discovered by Pink Floyd," he joked.

We do not yet understand the spectrum of the Sun. 15% of the spectral lines we see from the Sun are not understood.

Supernovae, the largest disasters in space, are the only places where the elements required for planets -- and for life itself -- are created. We owe our existence to the existence of supernovas.

A colleague showed Israelian an interesting spectrum that included a huge amount of oxygen. This amount of oxygen had never been seen before. And the conclusion was that a supernova had occurred in a star system, and that explosion had created a black hole.

Our galaxy also includes some "alien" stars -- they are stars that have come from other galaxies. When galaxies collide, some stars are left behind, and spectroscopy allows us to detect which ones are "foreign."

He also looks at a binary star with a phenomenon called a "super flare." What causes extremely large super flares? No one knows -- but he hopes that the mystery of super flares will be finally explained by spectroscopy.

But first, we need to understand the whole evolution of the universe, and how the objects have been producing and recycling various chemical elements. It's an extraordinarily complex study, and occasionally some anomalies appear. Those anomalies, Israelian thinks, may help us discover other life elsewhere in the universe. Biomarkers such as oxygen and ozone may indicate whether a planet is hospitable to life. In fact, water and methane have already been detected on distant planets outside of our solar system.

Photo: Garik Israelian at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 6: "Curious and curiouser," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Marcus du Sautoy at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 6

Mathematician and science communicator Marcus du Sautoy began his talk with the story of Evariste Galois, a Paris revolutionary who died in his brother's arms. The night before, Galois had stayed up all night trying to explain his mathematical ideas before his duel the next day. He was trying to explain symmetry.

Symmetry helps us understand the world: crystals, microbiology. Swine flu virus is a symmetrical object, and uses symmetry to its advantage as it attacks. Symmetry communicates genetic information. We perceive symmetry in human faces as beautiful. Symmetry is helping in uncovering the nature of fundamental particles. Scientists and artists both are interested in symmetry, although artists' relationship with it may be more "ambiguous," quips Sautoy. Artists set up expectations of symmetry, and then break them. 14th-century Japanese essays say "Uniformity is undesireable."

But ... what is symmetry? Galois asked whether by knowing one symmetry, we know all of them. One characteristic of symmetry is that by fixing an object at a point and rotating it in some way, that rotation can happen without it seeming that the object has rotated.

A "twisted, six-pointed starfish," for example, can be rotated by thirds or fifths of a turn, and still look the same. But after the rotations you can do something besides rotation. You can "pick it up and put it down again." Galois called this the "zero" symmetry. A triangle has the same property. It can be rotated -- and also "reflected."

Math is not a spectator sport, says du Sautoy. You have to actually do it to understand it, to enjoy it.

The interaction of the symmetries is different from the symmetry itself. In other words: "Are the symmetries themselves symmetrical?" He uses a grid of rows and columns representing the points of a symmetrical figure to illustrate whether it matters what order of rotations you can perform on a given figure. This allows us to explore how the symmetries between different objects are fundamentally different. This allows us to determine whether two different symmetrical objects have the same underlying abstract symmetry.

For example, there are only two objects with six symmetries: the twisted six-pointed starfish and the equilateral triangle from the original example.

But Galois' language for symmetry allows us to understand the symmetry of objects that we cannot actually see. Du Sautoy works on symmetrical objects in high-dimensional spaces.

Du Sautoy presented TED with a new symmetrical object he was working on the previous night, and offered any TEDster a chance to have their name as the name of the symmetrical object. To win, they had to say how many digits are in the number of symmetries a Rubik's cube has. Speaker Andrea Ghez won the contest.

Photo: Marcus du Sautoy at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 6: "Curious and curiouser," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Marcus du Sautoy on symmetry

Marcus du Sautoy used his math and science skills to open Session 6 with a thorough talk about symmetry. Reactions to this talk on Twitter seemed to range from amusing to challenging, but to be fair, Marcus du Sautoy did challenge the audience first.

You know you're at #TED when mathematicians get cheers on stage. :) -- christinelu

Marcus du Sautoy talks about symmetry and likes the Alhambra (which happens to be my view right now :-) -- TEDxCambridge

Thinking about symmetries giving me a slight headache :-) -- liaonet

Sorry, has to be for me --> "mathematics is not a spectator sport" says Marcus du Sautoy -- Thandelike

"Leaving something incomplete makes it interesting" quotes Mathematician Marcus du Sautoy. Next article from me will be half written. -- WiredUK

@TEDGlobal has the insider perspective on the conference, make sure you're following!

22 July 2009

TED's volunteer translators weigh in on Session 5: Now in Hungarian and Traditional Chinese!

Here's Session 5's unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 5 in ...

Hungarian - 繁體中文

22 July 2009

David Deutsch at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 5

Unedited running notes from TEDGlobal 2009.

Our ancestors wondered what stars are. Humans have always yearned to know more -- it is a survival instinct. "How can I be warmer, cooler, safer, in less pain?" Prehistoric cave artists may have wished to draw better. But although they wished for more knowledge, for progress, they failed. The world did not improve for a long, long, long time.

What makes stars shine? We only really knew why as recently as 1899. We made many important discoveries and advancements in the 40 years that followed, so why did we not discover this in the 100,000 years before? Our ancestors had brains of the same design as we have. But somehow they stagnated, while we have driven our knowledge and technology forward at a staggering pace. Deutsch asks, Why? What event revolutionized the human condition?

The scientific revolution is where we should start to look for answers. Ever since then, our knowledge of the physical world and how to adapt it to our wishes has grown. The revolution was based on the fact that "It is possible to know." But what is that notion itself based on?

It was thought, in more primitive times, that "all that is important to know is already known." People believed that ancient scrolls and dogma were all the truth we needed. But starting to actually make progress away from that is not as simple as just "rejecting authority." Authorities have been rejected many times before, with no scientific progress resulting.

Promoting observation is important, but, as we learned today, perception does not offer a direct channel into "absolute reality." It's not like equations are carved into mountains. And if they are, it's because we carved them there. (He says: "By the way, why don't we DO that? What's WRONG with us?")

How do we know things? Empiricists would say: induction. How do we know spacetime is curved? "Looking at an eclipse, and seeing a dot here rather than there." How do we know evolution is true? "Looking at rocks." A creationist would say, "Ah! Gotcha! You're using guesswork." But they fail to see that their understanding of their ancient religious texts is also based on guesswork.

So is testability, as Karl Popper would say, the key to advancement? No. Even cranks can make theories that are "testable."

What is the one thing that allows for scientific advancement, for progress, rather than stagnation? Deutsch's answer comes from a Simpson's clip. In the clip, Lucy Lawless, actress who played Xena in Xena: The Warrior Princess answers geeky fans' questions about plotholes and inconsistencies with one answer: "If you see any plothole, remember that a wizard did it." Deutsch says, interestingly, this type of explanation is not problematic because it contradicts a different explanation -- it's just about it being a bad explanation. In the clip, character Professor Frink asks for an explanation. Lucy Lawless offers a poor explanation. (Does it make sense to argue about what happened off stage in fiction?) The reason Lucy Lawless' explanation doesn't work, according to Deutsch, is because the "Wizard" entity that provided the explanation could easily be substituted for any other entity.

Easy variability is a sign of a bad explanation.

Look for explanations that can't be easily varied, which still explain the phenomenon. In the case of our explanation of seasons, the tilt of the Earth's rotation has many specific characteristics, any given one of which when challenged would affect everything about the theory. That's why it is powerful. But if the activities of fickle gods were what the changing seasons where attributed to, any given detail could be changed about the gods -- they created spring as a revenge! vs. spring returned as a sort of godly marriage blessing! -- without actually affecting the end result.

Deutsch's final conclusion: The truth consists of hard-to-vary assertions about reality.

Photo: David Deutsch at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: "Hidden algorithm" July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: David Deutsch boggles minds

Quantum physicist David Deutsch is at TEDGlobal talking about how the stars shine, reality as conjecture and parallel universes. It's fascinating, but some of us are a little mentally intimidated and Twitter reflected that.

Day 2 @ TED. Settling in for a talk by quantum theorist David Deutsch. Is my mind ready fir this one? -- afar_diaz

will virtually hug the first tweeter to tweet the 'what makes stars shine' formula ;-) in David Deutsch's talk -- iamhelenharrop

David Deutsch "The Nature of Scientific Explanation" is beyond my twit-ability, sorry. Must. Focus. Brain. Hurts. -- ruthannharnisch

Chris Anderson asks physicist David Deutsch how the whole parallel universe thing is going. -- shanehegarty

David Deutsch talking about how we should look for the explanation that is the hardest to vary in order to progress in knowledge. -- tweodor

Well then, there's a reason for all the headache.

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: James Geary and the patterns of metaphor

Aphorist James Geary took the stage at TEDGlobal 2009 this morning. Recognize a pattern? It was his second appearance on the TED stage for the conference and he took the opportunity to discuss metaphors and pattern. Twitter lit up, creating yet another pattern.

Watching James Geary talking about metaphors. My favorite way of explaining things. -- hecatomber

James Geary talking about Elvis Presley the King of Metaphor -- grumblemouse

Metaphor is a creation of patterns as well as the detection of patterns, James Geary -- izahoor

James Geary on metaphors and its' mathematics (hint X=Y) -- casinclair

Geary: Metaphors matter because they create expectations, influence decisions, + open the door to discovery. Yes! -- DesignObserver

Remember to follow Geary on Twitter for more metaphor!

Photo: James Geary at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: " Hidden algorithm," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Manuel Lima at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 5

Unedited running notes from TEDGlobal 2009.

An interaction designer at Nokia, Lima looks at how complex interconnectedness can be understood. He is compelled by the divide between information and knowledge. So he looks at information visualization. He built a visualization tool called Blogviz that helps display how word-of-mouth information travels from person A to person B.

To understand how to visualize info, Lima started collecting hundreds and hundreds of examples of visualizations of complexity, which he compiled onto VisualComplexity.com. Subjects the visualizations deal with include social networks, computer systems, biology, transportation networks, food webs ... Now he tracks close to 700 projects.

Networks are omnipresent. They're in brains, in cells, power grids, ecosystems. This is why it is important to try to map networks. He studied Warren Weaver, who wrote on complexity, and "problems of simplicity." There are problems of simplicity, problems of disorganized complexity, and problems of organized complexity.

How do we connect interconnected and interdependent components of systems? In collecting visualizations, he's found some very interesting trends. How do we map the blogosphere? Nodes are not placed abstractly, but in an organized way, for example, according to geography. He shows a snapshot of the entire blogosphere, called "Hyperbolic Blogosphere."

Lima also tracks photo-sharing sites, i.e. Flickr, semantic structures of tags used in Flickr. He even tracks the most popular paths that people take through a particular city.

Using a network of GPS receivers which each collect paths, we can create "GPS drawings" that show traffic lines. Children using GPS have created drawings. He has also anchored GPS information to emotions, so you can find out what types of places in a certain city are associated with which emotions.

Later in the day he will show some video of visual complexity.

Photo: Manuel Lima at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: " Hidden algorithm," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Manuel Lima's new way to see networks and data

Interaction designer Manuel Lima was a last minute addition to the TEDGlobal program, but he made an impact by showcasing his new method for displaying data and networks. Needless to say, the crowd and the Twitterverse was engaged and enthralled:

listening to manuel lima and hearing about data vis that is actually useful and not just something marketing people like -- clemo

People are using Flickr to plot the most popular tourist pathways in cities. Derivative and hidden data is amazing and a bit scary. -- liaonet

noticing that my favourite #ted talk seems to be 'whatever talk I'm watching right now' - Manuel Lima's *definitely* my fave tho -- iamhelenharrop

Check out visualcomplexity.com amazing way to see networks -- liaonet

"[Data visualization] is becoming the syntax of a new language." <-- Right on. [yep!] -- brainpicker

Manuel Lima is one of the many TEDGlobal speakers you can follow on Twitter.

22 July 2009

Henry Markram at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 5

Unedited running notes from TEDGlobal 2009.

Henry Markram is leading the Blue Brain Project, which hopes to create a realistic digital 3D model of the whole human brain within the next 10 years. (The simulation promises to do all the things that real human brains can do, including consciousness.) He's done a proof of concept by modeling half of a rodent brain. Now he's scaling up the project to reach a human brain.

But why? It's essential to understand the brain for us to get along in society. We can't keep doing animal experimentation forever. We have to embody our data in a working digital model. We need better medicines that are more specific, more concrete, more precise. (Also, it's just fascinating.)

Markram, for the first time, shares how he is addressing one theory of how the brain works. The theory is that the brain "builds" a version of the universe and projects this version, like a bubble, all around us. But Markram says we can directly address this philosophical question with science. Anesthetics don't work by blocking receptors. They introduce a noise into the brain to confuse the neurons to prevent you from making "decisions." You must make decisions to perceive anything. 99% of what you see in a room is not what comes in through the eyes -- it's what you infer about that room.

Instead of speculating or philosophizing, we can actually build something to test the theories.

It took the universe 11 billion years to build a brain. The big step was the neocortex. It allowed animals to cope with parenthood, social functions. So the neocortex is the ultimate solution, the pinnacle of complex design that the universe has produced. The neocortex continues to evolve rapidly. The neocortex uses the same basic unit for computation, over and over again, and built up so fast evolutionarily that the brain had to fold itself up to fit more of the stuff into the skull.

The holy grail for neuroscience is to understand the design of the neocortical column. It will help us understand not just the brain, but perhaps physical reality. Understanding the structures that make it up is extremely difficult, because beyond just cataloging the parts, you have to figure out how they actually work -- and then build realistic digital models.

The branches of neurons intersect in millions of locations, and in each location, each synapse, communication happens. The circuit, or the fabric of the brain, the way it is patterned is a challenge to any theory of the brain. Every neuron is different. How is it possible, then, that we create a reality that we all share? Although the circuitry may change, the pattern of design does not change.

Mathematics underlies the models of the brain. Each neuron has a mathematical representation. Even though this simplifies things, you still need a huge computer to do the kinds of simulations Markram is talking about. You'd need one laptop for every single neuron in order to accurately model it. So what do you do? You go to IBM!

"Where is the rose?" is a popular formulation of what the study of cognition is all about. Amid the tangle of neurons, amid the raw, chaotic electrical activity, where is reality -- metaphorically thought of as a "rose" one is perceiving or thinking about -- actually physically represented? Markram looks at "electrical objects" that neural activity forms, in order to nail down how thoughts are represented.

The universe has evolved a structure for it to become aware of itself. We're about to create another such structure in the digital universe we ourselves have created.

Photo: Henry Markram at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: " Hidden algorithm," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Henry Markram builds and explains brains

Henry Markram is a cortex visionary. This means he is trying to build the equivalent of a human brain through software as the director of Blue Brain. While this occupied a significant portion of his talk, he also literally delved into the center of a brain (in an astonishing 3D model). The folks on Twitter seemed quite impressed with his presentation:

... Q4 Henry Markram (TEDG-S5): How long before we can upload our brains & thus live forever? And will we be Mac, PC or Open source? -- bizlike

2 billion people are affected by mental health disorders - understanding the brain opens up the possibility of offering concrete help -- iamhelenharrop

Unbelievable. Watching an awesome clip of the movements of electrical current within the brain when it's stimulated -- vikkichowney

Markram 99% of what you "see" comes to you through inference of the brain. (Yikes. The Matrix plot in real life, eh?) -- ruthannharnisch

Henry Markram (cortex visionary) THE most brilliant talk today at TedGlobal brain able to create copy of itself! -- Idit

22 July 2009

Rebecca Saxe at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 5

Unedited running notes from TEDGlobal 2009.

Rebecca Saxe talked about "the problem of other minds." One of the most complicated things the mind does is try to comprehend what other people are thinking. But the problem she researches is not what you might think -- not "why is it so hard to know other minds?" but: How is it so easy to know other minds?

One snapshot of a stranger diving into the ocean or holding a baby allows you to guess what other people are thinking or feeling -- joy, or thrill. The brain, the machine we use to think, is made of the same pieces as other animals' brains are made of, and even sea slugs have them. But how is it that the particular network of pieces we humans in particular have allows us to think about other peoples' thoughts so easily?

We have a special reasoning module called the right tempero-parietal junction that is what we use to think about other peoples' thoughts.

How do we learn to predict actions? It takes time for human children to learn this ability. 5-year-olds can understand that other people have false beliefs. 3-year-olds don't understand this. The same goes for the ability to make moral judgment based on what is (or is not) known about peoples' intentions.

But even in adulthood, people differ on this ability. Saxe tries to explain how these differences come about with fascinating experiments. Adults are given a version of the experiment given to the kids, involving a jar of sugar that is labeled "poison." People disagree about how much blame people should get when they do something intentionally wrong -- givng a co-worker sugar, but believing that the sugar is poison -- and doing something by accident -- giving people poison that they think is sugar -- that is wrong.

Saxe wanted to know if we can change this function, and it turns out that we can. We can do so using a magnetic pulse to disorganize the function of the neurons in the region responsible for this type of thinking. The magnetic pulse, which is powerful enough to shoot a quarter into the air, causes an involuntary twitch in the hand when applied through the skull. When this pulse is applied to people who are making a moral judgment, people come to believe that accidents are less OK, and actions done with actual intent to harm is more OK.

In a brief Q&A, Chris Anderson asked about the dangers of such technology. Is Saxe talking to the Pentagon about this technology? Saxe said, "They're calling, but I'm not talking to them." It's not any danger (yet), because there's no way for this technology to work without the person knowing that the brain interference is happening.

Will this research make any impacts on education? Saxe says that is the hope. By exploring this field, we'll understand how human brains do distinctly human things.

Photo: Rebecca Saxe at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: " Hidden algorithm," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Rebecca Saxe on how the brain invents the mind

In her talk at TEDGlobal, cognitive neuroscientist Rebecca Saxe presented her breakthrough discovery of a particular section of the brain that becomes active when we contemplate the workings of other minds. Here's what people had to say about this remarkable and "brainy" talk:

Crap. Another #TED talk by someone who is half my age and 10x my brain power. When I hear 'brain', I think zombies. -- casinclair

Saxe uses magnetic pulses to temporarily disorganize specific regions of the brain. Perfectly safe, I am sure, but a little freaky. -- TEDxCambridge

Rebecca is fascinating. She works at MIT & uses FMRI to identify what happens in our brains when we think about the beliefs of others -- vikkichowney

TED is like drinking from five fire hoses. And it's only Wednesday. Rebecca Saxe, neuroscientist, had a fascinating talk on the mind. -- beckyblanton

Rebecca Saxe talks about using pulses to alter moral judgments, and how she gets calls from the military. She doesn't pick up. -- shanehegarty

Be sure to follow @TEDGlobal and the #TED hashtag while the conference is going on!

22 July 2009

Beau Lotto at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 5

Unedited running notes from TEDGlobal 2009.

Beau Lotto began with a simple game for the audience, based on an illusion. He showed two panels covered with large dots of a variety of colors. The backgrounds of the two panels were white and black, respectively. He then surveyed the audience to find which dots across the two boards were the same colors. The audience split three ways in their guesses, and most were wrong. Lotto said that this tendency to see color "incorrectly" based on context uncovers a crucial fact about the way we're wired:

We have no direct access to our physical world other than through our senses, and the light that falls on our eyes depends on the color of objects and the color of the space between us and those objects. For this reason, the same image with any single parameter changed would have a completely different appearance.

The patterns of light that fall on our eyes is meaningless -- it could mean literally anything. And that's true of sensory information generally. So, how do we see? The brain evolved to find patterns and associate those patterns with behavioral meaning.

Our brain is good at quickly re-defining reality. He showed two identical desert scenes, one below a red panel and another under a green panel. As you stare at the images, the brain learns that the green and red are important for context. When the context is removes the scenes' appearance dramatically changes. (The crowd oohed when Lotto removed the colored panels.)

These various illusions illustrate how the brain modifies meaning based on sensory information. But we are not the only creatures to see illusions. Bumble bees see illusions in much the same way as we do. Lotto shows this with a science-art project called the Bee Matrix. Using colored lights, he shows that bees' behavior can be manipulated with color information that interferes with their ability to recognize patterns in order to find nectar.

Illusions are often used to demonstrate "the fragility of our senses." Lotto says this idea is rubbish. If our senses were fragile, we would not be here. We evolved to see the world in the way it was useful, and how we see is continually re-defining normality.

How can we exploit this tendency for the better? He shows an amazing wearable interface that interprets visual information as sound, and this allows a blind person to successfully navigate the room based only on the sound information.

No one is an outside observer of nature. We are not defined by the bits that make us up -- but our environment, our ecology. Only through uncertainty is there potential for understanding.

Photo: Beau Lotto at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 5: " Hidden algorithm," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Beau Lotto's optical insights

Session 5 started in a very pronounced way with neuroscientist and artist Beau Lotto's colorful talk which featured interactive optical illusions and software that can turn drawings into music. Here's what people on Twitter took away from his talk:

There is no inherent meaning in information, it's what we do w/ info that matters (Beau Lotto) -- ruthannharnisch

Beau Lotto: "the brain evolved a way to see because it proved useful in the past" -- kevglobal

Lotto: We see by finding patterns and associating these patterns with behavioral relationships in the world. -- brainpicker

Beau Lotto's talk will be super-popular as an opener at TEDx events, I predict, for showing ppl how perceptions are shaped, amusingly. -- ruthannharnisch

Beau Lotto: "No one is an outside observer of nature." -- frogdesign

22 July 2009

TED's volunteer translators on Session 4: Now in Hungarian, with more to come!

Here's Session 4's batch so far of unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 4 in ...

Hungarian

22 July 2009

Lewis Pugh at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 4

Seven years ago, Lewis Pugh went to the Arctic for the first time, and since then he says he has seen it change "without description." To bring awareness to the issue of climate change, Pugh decided that he would swim across the North Pole, in waters at -1.7 degrees Celsius.

Today, on stage, Pugh describes his experience and the months of training that go into an Arctic swim. He says it was only after a year of training that he felt confident enough to enter the icy waters. They stopped the ship, he dived into the sea. He says, "I have never felt anything like that moment." The paradox of the experience was that he felt like he was on fire, he explains. His hands froze immediately, and even by the next day had not regained feeling. As a swimmer who must grab the water with his hands to move, he was panicked, but eventually he regained full feeling.

He persevered in his efforts until, eventually, came the day of the actual swim. He remembers looking into the black water and seeing big chunks of ice. Now, he shows us the video of the 20-minute Arctic swim in nothing but a Speedo swimsuit. In the water, he moves comfortably, it looks almost effortless, and save for the ice caps behind him, he could be in any pool. But, when he gets out of the water, the difficulty of the challenge is written all over him. He seems barely alive.

The robustly athletic Pugh of today calls us back to reality. He explains that this swim has afforded him the opportunity to speak to people all over the world. They want to hear about his experience, and he tells them about climate change.

22 July 2009

Mathieu Lehanneur at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 4

Mathieu Lehanneur is a designer who is fascinated with science, and it shows. He explains that his fascination is quite unique in his field, as rules of marketing say he should simplify but science embraces complexity. He's impressed by science's ability to investigate the human being; after all, he designs for the human being.

Then, Lehanneur begins showing us images of his designs. He's created a product called dB, a white ball that emits white noise and interacts with us to improve our concentration, without alienating us from the people around us. Then he delves into his medical designs -- an antibiotic course that comes in peel-and-eat layers, encouraging patients to finish it successfully; a living plant system to filter air called ANDREA; and LOCAL RIVER, an indoor system for growing plants and farming fish (for the ultimate locavore). His designs are fascinating, sleek and useful, a rather unusual combination.

22 July 2009

Volunteer translators ring in on Session 3 -- Now in Turkish and Hungarian, with more to come!

Here's Session 3's batch so far of unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 3 in ...

Türkçe - Hungarian

22 July 2009

Janine Benyus at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 4

This is Janine Benyus' second appearance on a TED stage and for those who have seen her first talk, expectations are high. She is a science writer and innovator who fervently believes in the field of biomimicry.

She begins her talk by painting a picture for us of her 7-year-old neighbor, a boy who spends hours on his back studying nature and constantly comes to her with his questions. One day he asks about the large wasps' nest on her back porch, wanting to know, "Who built it?" Benyus explains that she was taken aback at his assumption that because it was beautiful and complex, it was built by a human. It's an assumption she thinks many of us hold.

We constantly forget, Benyus points out, that we were not the first to build and to construct. "If you think it's hard to plan TED, try planning spring," she tells us. From there she walks us through project after project inspired by nature's designs -- project's that employ biomimicry. She shows slides of a train streamlined to resemble the beak of kingfisher to minimize air resistance, how new surfaces are mimicking shark skin to repel bacteria for use in hospitals and many many more.

To encourage more designs like these, Benyus has begun a new website called asknature.org, in cooperation with the Encyclopedia of Life. She dreams that one day designers and inventors everywhere will consult the site when beginning projects, to ask the question, "What would nature do?"

22 July 2009

Cary Fowler at TEDGlobal 2009: Running Notes from Session 3

Cary Fowler is archiving biodiversity, and more specifically crop diversity. As this unassuming man begins his time on the TED stage it's quickly evident how important and relevant his work is to us all.

After reading from The Apples of New York, a catalog of all the varieties of apples in the state that was published in 1903, he declares that we have lost more than 6,000 varieties of apple alone. The Fowler apple, namesake of his family, is luckily not one of them. The book describes Fowlers as not being especially good. So, he asks, why should we save it? Because we don't know what the future holds and we don't know what properties of pest or disease resistance that variety may contain. When we lose diversity, we lose options and we lose those options forever.

So, he's begun a global crop diversity seed bank, in the side of a mountain in Svalgard, Norway. He shows us clips of the bank and its environs. It's an absolutely unpopulated, startling white environment, dotted only by reindeer and polar bears. He chose this environment so that the bank would have a natural refrigeration. Fowler's operation is a true bank. Norway owns the mountain, he says, but not the seeds. The seeds can be withdrawn whenever they are needed by the parties who deposited them.

This project is his life's work. And in all seriousness, he refers to the cavernous, bleak stone walls of the seed bank projected behind him and says, "Some of the happiest days of my life have been spent here."

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Lewis Pugh's Polar Plunge

Lewis Pugh, long-distance and cold-water swimmer, recounted his extraordinary feat of swimming across the North Pole in an effort to raise awareness for climate change. Melted ice in the Arctic afforded him the opportunity to swim 1 mile in the -1.7C water. TED Tweeters were awestruck by Pugh’s conviction and the footage of his swim alike:

Lewis Pugh: Climate change is real. We need to do something about it, right now. -- tedtochina

Lewis Pugh: because of global warming, there is water at (or near) the North Pole, at least thanks to the ice breaker ship -- kokoe2

Pugh wanted to swim across the North Pole to "shake the lapels of world leaders" on climate change. Have YOU ever heard of him? -- ruthannharnisch

"It's f**king freezing" - Lewis Pugh, Arctic swimmer -- andrewgerrard

Lewis Pugh who swam one mile across the North Pole in freezing waters is on the stage. Female Tedsters are swooning -- WiredUK

We must all walk to the end of our lives, turn around and ask the question 'what world do we want to live in?' (LP) -- iamhelenharrop

22 July 2009

Rory Sutherland at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

Rory Sutherland describes himself as an ad man. It's not a job most people associate with an elevated morality. He begins by joking with us, "I usually speak at TEDEvil. It's held every other year in Burma."

He's here to speak about value, about value that you can't always see. In the world if advertising, Sutherland explains, they realize that many problems in life can be changed by tinkering with perception rather than reality. For example, when given the problem of making a train ride more pleasant, engineers come up with a solution to make it shorter, one that costs millions. He says, take not even half that budget and hire supermodels to walk the cars with Chateau Petrus. People will ask that you make the journey longer.

He points out that almost everything is concept and perception. We always seem to find spending much easier than saving. Sutherland points out that we've created many opportunities for impulse buying, but that we've never created an opportunity for impulse saving. He suggests that if he placed a large red button in your home that dumped $50 in to your 401K just by pressing, you'd see results. Though as an ad man, he admits to thinking of saving as consumerism needlessly postponed.

He argues that perceived value, as much as it gets a bad rap, can be a good thing. Going forward, Sutherland says, we actually need more perceptual value. We need to appreciate what we already have, rather than agonizing over what we don't.

22 July 2009

Carlos Ulloa at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

Carlos Ulloa, founder of Papervision3D, is also here to present a stunning demo. He brings to the stage interactive, three-dimensional worlds, all created using ubiquitous Flash technology.

He starts his demo with an brilliant undersea landscape. Ulloa switches perspective, looking at the seabed from the top, then the bottom, and waiting quietly as a shark glides overhead. Ulloa wants 3D in the browser to give every user a unique experience. He wants us all to be able to explore, move around and interact.

He shows the TED logo in three dimensions, topples the letters every which way and then suddenly drops a truck on to the "E" only to drive it over the letters and crash into them. He says, "When I see people using Papervision, they forget they are using a browser. They are like children." It certainly feels as easy and as natural as child's play.

22 July 2009

Aza Raskin at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

Aza Raskin is the head of user experience for Mozilla Labs (the people who created Firefox), and today he's giving us a demo of a whole new kind of Internet browser. Instead of asking us to become computer literate, he's making the browser learn our language.

In Raskin's new browser you can type straightforward commands and request and have the Internet do exactly as you tell it. No more copying and pasting foreign languages into Google Translate. He simply writes "Translate this into German" into a dark gray text box at the top left of the browser, and we watch the magic happen. Want to email a link to your friend? Raskin writes "Email this to Jono" and the browser connects the dots and assembles an email based on his link and the contact in his address book called Jono.

This is all part of a new breed of design sensibility. Raskin sums up the credo behind the change in this sentence: "Your train of thought is sacred, and we should never disturb it."

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Mathieu Lehanneur blends fantasy and functionality

Designer Mathieu Lehanneur presented several of his imaginative creations, inspired by the interplay of nature and technology. Among his designs: a petaliferous antibiotic, an interactive lung for asthmatic children, a sound-neutralizing fiber-optic ball, and Andrea- an air filtration unit that harnesses the natural processes of living plant systems (to name a few). The audience was quite impressed on Twitter:

Mathieu Lehanneur: Peel-and-eat antibiotic that encourages patients to complete treatment. Cool. -- joeltalks

Mathieu Lehanneur: Therapeuitic Objects: The 3rd Lung: Asthmatic kids learn to trust/need the object which in turn needs him -- kokoe2

Lehanneur follows the theme of invisible design, as if an object's function exists implicitly and invisibly around it – brainpicker

Mathieu Lehanneur: LOCAL RIVER, an indoor mini-system, to filter water. (permaculture in the livng room!) -- kokoe2

Fantastic ball from mathieu lehanneur: it positions itself in the center of noise and annihilates it by emitting the opposite soundwave -- ostinelli

22 July 2009

Stefana Broadbent at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

Technology anthropologist Stefana Broadbent analyzes how we text, IM and talk. Today, she says these new methods of communication are helping us break out of old institutions and bringing us closer together than ever before. She's speaking with a backdrop of constantly refreshing, beautiful black and white portraits, always of two people seated together. She explains that in each picture is someone she interviewed and the person the communicate with most in the world, whether it be their significant other, parent, grandparent or sibling, along with the communication tools they use -- by and large, these are cell phones.

She says that although we may have many people on our Facebook friend lists (120 on average) and in our cell phone directories, we typically use these technologies to interact with a small core group of people. The typical cell phone user makes 80 percent of their calls to just four people, and the average Facebook user exchanges most of their messages with only five or six friends. So these technologies are not networking us with more people, but reinforcing our communication with our inner circle.

Even more interesting, she says that we are now seeing the democratization of intimacy. As more communication technologies are written, and can therefore fly under the radar more easily in a workplace, the boss is not the only one that can keep in touch with their family and friends during working hours. She finds companies' restrictions on Facebook and schools' restrictions on texting appalling. We always lived with work and family together, she explains, this compartmentalization of our lives only began 150 or so years ago with the Industrial Revolution. Broadbent is glad to see that cleavage ending.

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Janine Benyus observes how nature influences design

In her talk today, biomimicrist Janine Benyus made the case that we can learn a lot from nature. In keeping with this idea, here's what TEDsters on Twitter learned from her:

Janine benyus: Nature is a selfcoordinating genius with no top down commander.. -- lucadebiase

"Imagine designing spring" biomimicry expert Janine Banyus. "Whenever you want to invent something, start with nature." -- Idit

Janine Benyus: To solve a design problem, ask "What would nature do?" -- DanielPink

Benyus shows us images of wind turbines that mimic whale flippers to reduce drag by 30% and can turn in very slow winds. -- frogdesign

Benyus: Look to nature for engineering inspiration. "We´re not the first ones to build houses for our young" -- TEDxCambridge

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Cary Fowler keeps seeds safe

Session 4 of TEDGlobal started with biodiversity archivist Cary Fowler giving a talk about his project at Svalbard -- a global seed bank focused on making sure food crops don't become extinct. Here are the excited and concerned responses from Twitter:

Fowler says no way to determine the "best" of species - we should save ALL bcz each has traits that might be savior-like in future. -- ruthannharnisch

Cary fowler biodiversity archivist: apple species are disappearing. There's not such a thing as the best apple. Diversity => adaptation -- lucadebiase

Fascinating yet scary talk about agricultural diversity at #TED. Will never look at an apple the same way again. -- globaltolerance

Cary Fowler by 2070, crops will need to grow in a climate never cooler than the hottest days we see now -- kokoe2

Cary Fowler: "We can't solve any of the world's problems without crop diversity." Don't endow a museum in NY, endow wheat in Svalbard. -- bupbin

Fowler: if agriculture doesn't adapt to climate change, neither will we. -- Thandelike

Remember that you can get the latest conference updates by following TEDGlobal and searching for #TED on Twitter.

22 July 2009

Evgeny Morozov at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

Evgeny Morozov is a member of the illustrious group of TED Fellows and hails from the former Soviet republic of Belarus. He explains that it's not exactly a liberal democracy, so he's always been fascinated with democracy and how that intersects with media. Lately, there's been a lot of hope placed in new media's role in promoting democracy, but Morozov says dictatorships do not crumble so easily. Some, he asserts, have survived the Internet challenge and even become more impressive.

Morozov left his job to study how the Internet can impede democratization. He says there is bad logic underlying some of the more hopeful new media prediction. One of the classic mistakes he says, takes the form of "iPod liberalism." This is the assumption that every Iranian and Chinese person that happens to love their iPod will also love liberal democracy. We confuse the intended users with the actual users of technology, as quite often they are the ones spreading propaganda.

Sometimes, Morozov says, governments pay bloggers to make ideologically charged comments. He gives the example of a case in China that he calls “Elude the Cat.” In this tragic situation, a 40-year-old man died in prison and officers said that he had been playing hide and seek with fellow inmates and hit his head. This did not sit well with Chinese bloggers. But, instead of censoring, the government reached out to bloggers and asked them to become investigators, to see the site and then blog about it. Within days, the incident was forgotten.

Morozov also points out that these dictators usually operate in an information vacuum, but that now they can go online and see what's happening in the country. In recent events in Iran, the government was able to gather open-source intelligence. They now know how activists connect to each other by looking at their Facebook pages. The KGB used to torture people for this information, he notes.

He also says that we must consider cyber-activism versus cyber-hedonism. For every digital renegade, he thinks there at least two digital captives doing nothing but playing World of Warcraft. The Internet usually plays a social role but, according to Morozov, not necessarily one that leads to social engagement. People may just be using it to view pornography, Sex and the City or funny videos of cats. Instead, we have to think about ways we can empower dissidents and NGOs in real ways.

Photo: Evgeny Morozov at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 3: "Connected consequences," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

22 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Evgeny Morozov

Evgeny Moroz steps onstage and says: "As an Eastern European, I was brought in to play the pessimist this morning. Bear with me." His short early-morning talk laid out some uncomfortable truths about the way repressive governments are using the Internet -- challenging the assumption that the web is bringing more openness and democracy:

@TEDGlobal We thought the internet could do what missiles could do: promote democracy in difficult places

@TEDGlobal We assume that every single Iranian or Chinese who loves his iPod will also love liberal democracy.

@Casablanca "If you give people enough connectivity, and enough devices that can connect, then democracy will inevitably follow" - Evgeny Morozov

Instead, he points out ways that repressive regimes are harnessing local networks to track local activitists, such as:

@kokoe2 "Authoritarian Deliberation" -- Governments encourage bloggers to discuss their world.

@frogdesign: How can we empower political dissidents with social media and the Internet without endangering them?

@ruthannharnisch: Morozov says Spin + Internet = Spinternet. Excellent coinage, yes?

@kevglobal Morozov: #TED Censorship is less effective than spin. Only way to control message is to try to spin it.

22 July 2009

Jonathan Zittrain at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 3

As the second day of TEDGlobal unrolls, the morning's program begins with the Connected Consequences session. This is a session all about technology, especially the Internet, and how it interacts with our lives. TEDGlobal director Bruno Guissani takes the stage to welcome Jonathan Zittrain who is a lawyer that specializes in technological, and of course, Internet-based law.

As Zittrain begins his talk, he jokes that there is no better way to set low expectations than to tell people they’re going to hear from a lawyer. Today, he says, he wants to give hope. because we all seem to be laboring under the impression that people are less kind. He asks the audience: How many people have hitch hiked? Hands shoot up. Then he asks: And how many within the last 10 years? Very few hands go up. Now he questions: What has changed? He points out that it's probably not better public transport. We no longer feel that we can rely on the kindness of strangers.

But, here comes the hope. He feels that the Internet is changing that. He remarks that the Internet began without a business plan, without a CEO and without any firm being singly responsible. It began as folks getting together for fun. It made people ask if the Internet could really work? He compares the Internet to the bumblebee, whose ability to fly scientists have had a very hard time explaining.

"What is this bizarre network configuration we call the Internet?" Zittrain asks. He says that it's a lot less like a package courier and a lot more like a mosh pit. To understand the Internet he asks that we imagine we're at a concert and get handed a beer at the aisle, and we then know that our neighborly duty is to pass the beer along. We're not paid, it's just our neighborly duty.

He gives three examples of kindness on the Internet. The first one happened when the government of Pakistan blocked YouTube and one Internet service provider effected the block in such a way that it blocked YouTube for everyone around the world. But, within two hours YouTube was fixed. This was the work of NANOG or the North American Network Operators Group. He explains that these are random people who operate from nowhere, put out the fire and then leave without expecting payment or praise -- like Batman.

The second example Zittrain gives is Wikipedia. He says that Wikipedia may well seem like the dumbest idea ever, but now that there are more people checking for problems than there are problems on the site at any time. At all times, Wikipedia is 45 minutes away from from utter destruction, but it's something people feel compelled to do because they care. He also mentions blogs and the photographs associated with them. To Zittrain, it is amazing that people will immediately remove another person's photograph, simply by request. It shows a courtesy and respect we don't often see.

Example number three, he says, proves that we still hitchhike -- we just don't call it hitchhiking. He points to the Craigslist rideshare board. To take it one step further, he also points out couchsurfing.org. He explains that the couch-surfing site was one guy's idea to bring together people who would like to sleep on a stranger’s couch for free, with people who would like people to sleep on their couch for free. This is a bee that flies, and there are not yet any known fatalities.

Zittrain ends with a short, simple call to arms: The Internet is not a noun.It’s a verb. That information is saying something to you. It’s saying, “Let’s march."

Photo: Jonathan Zittrain at TEDGlobal 2009, Session 3: "Connected consequences," July 22, 2009, in Oxford, UK. Credit: TED / James Duncan Davidson

21 July 2009

Wiring a web for global good: Gordon Brown on TED.com

We're at a unique moment in history, says UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, speaking earlier today at TEDGlobal in Oxford. He says we can use today's interconnectedness to develop our shared global ethic -- and work together to confront the challenges of poverty, security, climate change and the economy. (Recorded at TEDGlobal 2009, July 2009 in Oxford, UK. Duration: 16:43)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1u

Watch Gordon Brown's talk from TEDGlobal 2009 on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

21 July 2009

TEDGlobal Day 1: Quotes of the Day

"Imagine if we could combine the power of a global ethic with our new power to communicate and organize globally." - UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown

"Next time you see someone in a Ferrari, don't think: 'They're greedy." Think: "This is someone incredibly vulnerable and in need of love." - Alain De Botton, on the challenge of modern society, in which we -- and others -- measure our worth by what we "do" and what we own

"I thought it might be helpful to cut five years from retirement and intersperse them in my working years." - Designer Stefan Sagmeister on taking sabbaticals every seven years

"You wouldn't expect a black hole to be a kind neighbor to a stellar nursery." - Astronomer Andrea Ghez on the curious fact that the stars closest to super-massive black holes appear to be relatively young, in contradiction to what she predicted

"What we call intellectual inquiry is often the pursuit of the abstract over the real and tangible." - Comedian Stephen Fry on the need to combine intellect and passion in all our pursuits

"I have to be careful I don't inhale my work. That's happened to me." - Willard Wigan on manipulating the tiny shards of glass and shreds of fiber from which he creates sculptures so small they fit in the eye of a needle

"I have a global vision for vision: To get 1 billion people wearing the eyeglasses they need by the year 2020." - Josh Silver on the roll-out plan for his low-cost, adjustable eyeglasses

"Great music and art are just moments in time. But we can use them to bring people together." - Mark Johnson, producer of "Playing for Change," videos of musicians around the world, playing a single song

"I'd like to tell you about the greatest stunt on earth: a parachute jump from space" - stuntman Steve Truglia

21 July 2009

Reorienting the war formerly known as “on Terror”

PK%20blog.jpg Parag Khanna, Director of the Global Governance Initiative and Senior Research Fellow in the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation, recently coauthored with Michael A. Cohen an article in Foreign Policy entitled, “Where the Real Fight Is”. Khanna and Cohen reassess the feasibility of US military and political goals in Afghanistan versus Pakistan vis-à-vis the realities on the ground in both nations, and endorse a realignment of U.S. strategy accordingly. In light of the waning influence of the Taliban, the inability of Afghan security forces to contribute significantly to counterinsurgency missions, and the poor prospects for nation-building in Afghanistan, Khanna and Cohen advocate a shift in US focus and resources (i.e. the 20,000 newly dispatched troops and the $65 billion spent annually on the war in Afghanistan) to Pakistan, where improved US-Pakistani intelligence-sharing has translated into military success in the form of drone attacks on the Taliban and al Qaeda leadership.

Ultimately, the current U.S. strategy in Afghanistan will cost significantly more in U.S. blood and treasure, and it has at best a marginal chance of success. Far better would be a more limited strategy that eschews the goal of nation-building in Afghanistan and embraces that goal in Pakistan. It is there, not in Afghanistan, that the United States can deal al Qaeda a devastating blow and foster regional stability. The sooner the United States realizes that the better.

Parag Khanna will speak at TEDGlobal 2009 in Oxford this Thursday, July 23 in the Wordview Rethink session.

21 July 2009

Volunteer translators' notes on Session 2 -- now in Hungarian, Albanian, Greek, Turkish, Mandarin Chinese, Spanish and German!

Here's Session 2's batch of unedited running notes from our crack team of Open Translation Project translators, taken as they watch the live webcast of TEDGlobal 2009!

Click through to view the running notes for Session 2 in ...

Hungarian - Shqip - Ελληνικά - Türkçe - 中文 - Español - Deutsch

Enjoy!

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Mark Johnson on one world and one song

Mark Johnson delivered a poignant conclusion to the first day of TEDGlobal, as he screened two videos from Playing for Change, his project to record different artists around the world playing the same song, to be combined in one composite film. A palpable sense of hope and unity pervades the reaction on Twitter:

Mark Johnson asked the street musicians why they played on the street. "I'm in the joy business" -- kevglobal

"What brings us together between birth and death is up to us." Precioso. -M. Johnson. -- eRomanMe

Mark Johnson is creating a global force of music and song! It is just uplifting music to reach enlightenment! -- liaonet

The #TED crowd seems to love Mark Johnson and his vision of uniting the world in music. His org is "Playing for Change," peace thru music. -- ruthannharnisch

Mark Johnson said something interesting about us gaining world peace by speaking the common language of music [inspiring] -- iamhelenharrop

21 July 2009

Mark Johnson at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

Mark Johnson began the now iconic Playing for Change movement. Before his talk, the YouTube video that started it all jumps on to the screen and we hear the first notes of "Stand by Me," as performed by artists all over the world. For those who have not yet seen the video, it's a magical moment. Those who have seen the video sway along, simply delighted to see the familiar faces of these diverse musicians again.

Johnson takes the stage, saying that Playing for Change is all about the power of music and technology. He tells the story of how it all began. While working as a sound engineer in New York, he saw two monks playing music on the subway on his way to work. About 200 people had stopped, watching the performance, some crying. He realized that great music and great art were the product of moments in time like this one. He was inspired to take his studio to the people.

Then, he says, a little over four years ago he was walking in Santa Monica, California and heard the blind street musician Roger Ridley singing "Stand By Me." That was the beginning of the video now seen by millions. Johnson recounts his recordings on city streets, in subways, at Indian reservations and the inspiration he found in every person and every situation.

He's now created the Playing for Change foundation to create and give money to music schools for children around the world. He's mounted cameras in the schools and connected them to the Internet so that donors can log in and see the children they're giving too. Johnson is also connecting the schools so they can see each other, learn from each other and maybe break stereotypes at a young age. A film has been made about the foundation that premiered at the Tribeca film festival and the video of "Stand by Me" has been viewed over 30 million times. He wants people everywhere to watch, share and learn about each other. He wants to create a global family of musicians and he wants us all to work together for the common goal of peace through music.

When Johnson steps down from the stage, another of his videos appears on the screen. This time, it's a passionate rendition of Bob Marley’s "War" and “No More Trouble” by dozens of incredible musicians. As the video fades out, the room explodes into joyous applause and breaks into those whoops Chris Anderson promised when beginning TEDGlobal.

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Steve Truglia wants to jump from space

Stuntman Steve Truglia plans to jump to earth from the edge of space. His talk at TEDGlobal 2009 included the facts that he'll be falling at the speed of sound while clad in a customized spacesuit. Be sure to follow Steve on Twitter and check out what viewers of the online feed had to say about this ambitious stunt:

Steve Truglia shows how technology is reshaping stunt. -- tedtochina

We're listening to Steve Truglia now, who's planning a parachute jump from the edge of SPACE...that's120,000 feet!! -- vikkichowney

Truglia: Jumping from the edge of space, "The greatest stunt on earth." -- TEDxCambridge

Truglia demos prototype space jump suit - only weighs 15 pounds. Looking for his major sponsor. Any takers for the biggest stunt ever? -- ruthannharnisch

Stuntman Steve Truglia at TEDGlobal: "Being run over is never easy. But now we have padding and fantastic shock-absorbing things." -- DesignObserver

21 July 2009

Steve Truglia at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

Before we even see Steve Truglia on stage, we're treated to an action-packed video of his stunts for movie and television, as well as his personal record-breaking, daredevil stunts. There are explosions, car crashes and high falls out of buildings. Truglia is being set on fire, fencing, driving a car through a loop de loop, bursting through walls and skydiving.

He bursts onto the stage, saying that he's extremely excited to talk about what he considers to be the biggest stunt on earth. He plans to jump from the edge of space. But before he talks about that, he wants to show us how technology has started to interface with the physical skills of the stunt performer.

He runs more clips, this time personally narrating the history of the stunt and pointing out the great risks they took in the early days. But now, technology has provided air ramps that will fire you anywhere from five to 30 feet, new types of padding that allow you to be run over by a car with minimal discomfort, and compressed nitrogen to flip lorries, coaches and almost anything else over. He also pays tribute to the magic of the green screen.

Suddenly, he's on to Project Space Jump. He plans to jump from 120,000 feet. You’re in a near vacuum at that height, he says, so you need to be in a space suit. No aircraft will fly at that height, so he's going up in a gas balloon. He needs two balloons for each of his test jumps and also for the main jump, because they’re known to tear. At 100,000 feet, without a suit, your blood actually boils and it's called vaporization. He notes that that's probably not very fun. We agree. His mission still needs a major sponsor but he's confident they’ll find one.

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: James Geary and his amazing aphorisms

Aphorist James Geary took to the TED Global stage in vibrant fashion, reciting a large portion of his talk while juggling. In his talk, he laid down the laws all aphorisms must heed, and the Twitterverse responded delightedly to his musings.

James Geary Mirrors will do better to reflect a little bit more before sending information back -- Idit

Geary will juggle while giving laws of aphorisms. Aphorisms must be brief. (His juggling is not world-class, but his speech is.) -- ruthannharnisch

Aphorism: Short, definitive, not necessarily true, refuge of skepticism -Geary -- eRomanMe

James Geary on aphorisms, e.g., Love is that brief moment of time when someone holds the same opinion of us as we do of ourselves. jenbrea

A weekend wasted is not a wasted weekend. James Geary Fifth law. It must have a twist. Sixth law, it must have a tweet. -- aviatorone

Remember, you can follow James Geary on Twitter.

21 July 2009

James Geary at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

James Geary is an aphorist. He loves the short, witty sayings we know as aphorisms. As he takes the TEDGlobal stage, he gives us a couple of his favorites: “Baldness is the gradual transformation of the head into an ass, first in shape then in contents” and “No snowflake in an avalanche feels responsible.”

Geary reminds that aphorisms are everywhere. They're not not just found in books. He sees them advertising yogurt: "Lick the lid of life." He's spotted one on a teenager's t-shirt: "A weekend wasted is not a wasted weekend." Not to mention all the sayings we have in our heads.

So, how can you recognize an aphorism? Geary presents his five laws of aphorisms (while juggling):
1. It must be brief.
2. It must be definitive But not necessarily true.
3. It must be personal. Common sayings are not aphorisms. Original sayings are.
4. It must be philosophical.
5. It must have a twist.

How many aphorisms do you think you can spot at TEDGlobal?

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Willard Wigan tours the magical world of his microscopic sculpture

Twitters were entranced and inspired by the story of how TEDGlobal 2009 speaker Willard Wigan (follow him on Twitter) came to create sculptures small enough to fit within the eye of a needle. His heartbreaking early life, which saw him rejected by other children his age and unable to fit in or succeed at school, followed by the astonishing refinement of his one-of-a-kind skill, shows that beauty is in really the microscope of the beholder!

Willard Wiggin creates sculptures in the eyes of needles. Yes, u read that right. He says each of us was once that small or smaller. -- ruthannharnisch

Wiggin says he slows down his nervous system to create his microsculpture, takes care not to inhale his work (which he has done). -- ruthannharnisch

Willard Wigan http://bit.ly/16FLWc Discovered the world in miniature because didn't fit in at school "My world was seen as less." -- TEDxCambridge

Wigan builds houses on the heads of pins. What's that saying about angels? -- jenbrea

Willard Wigan's story in itself defies any notion of impossibility. -- tedtochina

Use the #TED tag if you'd like to join the conversation on Twitter!

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Josh Silver’s global vision for vision

Josh Silver shared his ambition to supply the billion people worldwide in need of glasses with his innovative, low-cost adjustable lenses by 2020. On stage, Silver demonstrated the effectiveness of his glasses and also provided insight into the economic and educational repercussions on impoverished populations that result from the dearth of vision correction options. The gravity of Silver’s talk certainly resonated with the audience on Twitter:

Josh Silver asks: if u had no access 2 eyewear, would u b at TED today? Half the world's people need corrective eyewear. -- uthannharnisch

Josh Silver: "Over one billion people would see their world change if they had glasses." -- brainpicker

Poor eyesight = an education problem and an economic problem, not just a health problem (Joshua Silver) -- iamhelenharrop

Josh Silver, 60% of people need corrective eyewear = 1 billion people in need of glasses and don't have them! -- liaonet

21 July 2009

Josh Silver at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

Josh Silver makes affordable, adjustable eyeglasses with a dream to solve the vision problems of the world. He begins by asking the audience to raise their hands if they wear glasses or contact lenses, or if they've had laser refractive surgery. "It’s too many of you to count," he says, "but the general statistic is about half." He asks us to project that statistic to the world. And as we do so, he asks that we remember that poor vision is not just a health problem, but educational and economic as well. If you’re a child in developing world with poor eyesight and no access to vision correction, you miss out on education.

According to Silver, the real problem is that there aren't enough eyecare professionals in the world to use the developing world's model of delivery everywhere in the world. He points out that some countries in sub-Saharan Africa have only one optometrist for every eight million people. So, he came up with a solution based on adaptive optics (which also helped Andrea Ghez see the stars).

Running out of time, Silver gives a demo of his glasses with his adjustable lenses. He quickly puts them on and adjusts the lenses' strength by injecting liquid into the them through two ingeniously compact attachments. He declares "I can now see that guy running around in the back. And now that one."

These aren’t the only glasses like this in the world, he explains. Silver has put about 30,000 in use now. He delivers his global vision for vision: To get one billion people wearing the glasses they need by 2020. Currently a pair costs $19, and the distribution hurdle will only be crossed when the cost is brought down to serve populations that live on less than one dollar per day.

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Andrea Ghez: Spying on supermassive black holes

Astronomer and astrophysicist Andrea Ghez captivated the TEDGlobal 2009 crowd with an up-close look at the style and substance of the peculiar space phenomenon known as a black hole. At UCLA, she's working on imaging techniques that will bring these mysterious objects into better focus than ever before. Here's what Twitter had to say:

you've to check out Andrea Ghez - a stargazing detective. Smart, witty and a famous astronomer. She rocks! PS: am to shy to take a pic -- danielahinrichs

Andrea Ghez: "Your job today is to be skeptical." -- brainpicker

Andrea Ghez: All galaxies might harbor super, massive blackhole at their center. -- tedtochina

Atmosphere makes it tough for large telescopes to see astronomical detail, the way a moving stream obscures a clear view of pebble. -- ruthannharnisch

Astronomer Andrea Ghez actually has a favorite star in solar system, based on the speed of its travels, increasing her chances to see. -- ruthannharnisch

21 July 2009

Willard Wigan at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

Willard Wigan is a microsculptor, creating iconic sculptures small enough to fit on the head of a pin or in the eye of a needle. This morning at TEDGlobal, he explains why he's driven to create these tiny masterpieces and shows examples of his incredulous work.

He opens the talk saying, "Every human being in this room was once as small as my artwork." Wigan wanted to show the world that the little things can also be the biggest things. He started making tiny objects at age five. Academically, he explains, he couldn’t express himself and would hide in a shed at the back of the garden rather than going to school. In that shed, he entered a fantasy world, and thought that maybe if he made the ants around him an apartment, they’d move in. He got a piece of wood and constructed a little apartment -- one that he says, "looked like a shanty shed." Then, he watched the ants come around. From there, he says, "I watched this little world and it became part of me."

As he got older he wanted to experiment with this world that we can't see. He began with the Hoff house on a pinhead, made for a client who said, "I don’t believe you can do this. Can you?" Wigan went under the microscope and he did. He used crushed up pieces of glass, fiber from his sister’s old teddy bear and pulled out of his jumper. He held his breath while working, and tried to work between heartbeats.

Wigan then rolls through a selection of his extreme miniatures, as the audience gasps at each slide: Homer Simpson choking Bart on the head of a pin; Charlton Heston on with an aphid fly looking giant for scale; the Statue of Liberty in the eye of a needle; the Incredible Hulk breaking out of the eye of a needle; a ship with full rigging on top of a diamond; in formal dressage, a horse and rider on the head of a pin. It seems that Wigan has proved his point -- the diminutive is not to be overlooked.

21 July 2009

TED volunteer translators' notes on Session 1 -- Now in Greek, Turkish, Albanian, Hebrew, German, Hungarian, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish!

A team of volunteer translators who are participating in TED's Open Translation Project have stepped up to help bring TEDGlobal 2009 TED Blog running notes outside of the English-speaking world.

Click through to view the unedited running notes in ...

Ελληνικά - Türkçe - Shqip - עברית
- Deutsch - Hungarian - 中文 - Español

Enjoy!

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown takes the TED stage by surprise

The much-buzzed-about surprise speaker at the first session of TEDGlobal 2009 was finally revealed to be British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. A Twitterer himself, the Prime Minster's appearance on the TED stage quickly drove the #TED tag into Twitter's top trending topics today. Here's a slice of what people were tweeting:

our Prime Minister was good - a really powerful, articulate and poignant talk -- doug_graeme

Gordon Brown @TED gives shout out to citizen media's role in Burma protests http://bit.ly/rXx6d -- TEDxCambridge

Mr Gordon Brown: Amy Winehouse thinks she has in common with Mr Mandela - her husband spent time in prison as well LOLOLOLOLOL -- j_mf

Special-guest Gordon Brown at TED, talking about the modern speed of communication as a unifying force for social good -- doug_graeme

#TED and PM Gordon Brown: what we see unlocks what we cannot see: the invisible ties and bonds that bring us together as a human community -- kokoe2

Inspiring talk by PM Gordon Brown @ #TED Global on global citizenship. "We must build a proper relationship between rich and poor countries" -- kyraocity

"Whatever you may think of him, that was a fantastic speech by Gordon Brown... Looked a leader." -- jamesmcnicholas

And TED's own Chris Anderson also chimed in:

talking to Gordon Brown about Global Citizenship! Africa is really in his agenda! -- TEDChris

Gordon Brown! Excellent talk! Great questions by Chris!! Back him in a corner and watch him come out ! -- abelapagos

Stay tuned to the TED Blog for more TEDGlobal 2009 coverage!

21 July 2009

Andrea Ghez at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 2

Andrea Ghez is an astronomer and a specialist in black holes. She begins her talk today by asking: How do you observe something you can’t see? It's a basic question for someone studying black holes. Then, she asks an even more intriguing question: Is there a supermassive one at the center of our gravity?

Ghez clarifies that ordinary black holes are the end state of a star’s life. Supermassive black holes are thought to reside at the center of galaxies, and of course, galaxies come in all shapes and sizes. There are some galaxies, she calls them the primadonnas of the galaxy world, that are very active. These galaxies appear to have jets emanating out from their centers. Some think this is evidence of supermassive black holes on to which matter is falling. And some think, Ghez included, that maybe all galaxies have these at their centers.

If we’re going to look for black holes at the center of galaxies, Ghez says the best place to look is in our own galaxy -- the Milky Way. It makes sense as the next closest is 100 times further away. Her team uses the stars' orbits of the black holes to measure their radii. To see these star orbits they use the largest telescope in the world, Keck I, based in Hawaii. Even with the largest telescope in the world, Ghez explains that they have to employ the technology of adaptive optics to correct for fluctuations in the atmosphere and have a clear view of the stars. Otherwise, she jokes, it’s like looking at a pebble at the bottom of a stream.

At this phase, Ghez and her team have begun testing their ideas. The team expected old stars to be clustered around these black holes, but young stars to be far away, as the black holes should pull their delicate new energy formations apart. Surprisingly, they found the exact opposite to be true. How are they resolving this contradiction? Ghez says her grad students are at the telescope in Hawaii as we speak.

21 July 2009

Stephen Fry at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 1

From TEDGlobal (a group Twitter feed for TED staffers): Stephen Fry is wearing a tie because he heard it was a tradition at #TED not to. That rebel!" Fry seems glad to be in Oxford, home of the 0.9 beta version of the modern university. The perfect 1.0 version is, of course, Cambridge. He talks a bit about the rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge, as expressed in the interpersonal dynamic among the members of Monty Python. The expansive, joyful Terry Jones: "Let's get, oh, 30 ballerinas up onstage." John Cleese: "Why?"

Fry moves on to examine a more universal dichotomy -- between heart and mind, passion and intellect, C.P. Snow's two cultures of Humanities versus Science. Why are they forcefully separated? He suggests that a hero of TED, a person who combined the two, is his friend Douglas Adams, the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. "He was passionate in his intellect and intellectual in his passions." (As Richard Dawkins also pointed out in 2002, Adams would have enjoyed TED.) Fry grows tender in his reminiscence of Adams -- "I miss him every day, because I want to know what to think about things." Adams' mind sounds like the kind of mind that one would dearly miss.

21 July 2009

Alain de Botton and Stefan Sagmeister at TEDGlobal 2009: Running notes from Session 1

It's time for TED! Alain de Botton begins with a meditation on snobbery. What is a snob? He defines it: "Someone who uses a small part of you to come to a global conclusion about who you are." But he points to a basic desire of ours to ascribe moral values to those who are less and more succesful than we are. In the past, rich people would call the poor "unfortunates" -- implying that fortune had not smiled on them through no fault of their own. But now, at least in America, we call them "losers." But the belief that we merit what we get, whether good or bad, success or failure, is dangerous.

Designer Stefan Sagmeister has just returned from a long sabbatical in Indonesia. He stayed as busy as a bee, it's clear, but it was a busyness that cleared his mind, refocused his vision and led to a renewed excitement in his own work. And, he says, everyone should try it. Add five years to your planned working life, and plan to take a year off every 7th year. He does it, and here's why: It's good for your work and your life. In 6 words: "My job became a calling again." He shows some work from his post-sabbatical period, including astonishing new furniture and the opening titles from a work in progress called "The Happy Film" -- created by pigs, ducks and monkeys. To do: If you haven't yet taken a sabbatical, find someone who has (Stefan's straw poll shows that about 5 percent of TEDsters have taken sabbatical) and ask them how they did it and whether it was worth it. Then start to make your own plan.

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Stephen Fry shares what he knows

Actor and author Stephen Fry boldly took to the stage at TEDGlobal (sporting a multi-colored tie in defiance of TED’s no-tie policy) to touch on a pastiche of topics, including philosophy, culture, experience and intellect. The following comments from Twitter embody viewers' reactions to Fry’s talk:

Stephen Fry on stage with a tie - which is illegal at TED :) -- Idit

"The real mistery of life is in the visible not in the invisible." Fry. -- eRomanMe

"Cambridge produces martyrs, Oxford burns them" an old saying from @stephenfry #ted (via @iamhelenharrop) Never heard before! :)) -- inckognito

Fry good talk on physicality, art, essence. emotion, intellect and third culture incl. Adams & Snow -- vangeest

A beautiful person or thing has substance but "Beauty" itself doesn't exist. Nothing abstract does. - Stephen Fry -- AmyLeaman

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Stefan Sagmeister on how sabbaticals can keep you busy

In a focused and nuanced talk, Stefan Sagmeister talked today at TED Global about his unique way of keeping a fresh perspective in his work and in his life. He also shared some of his innovative designs. Here was the feedback from Twitter:

Stefan Sagmeister: closes is studio every 8th year, essentially taking 5 of his retirement years interspersed into his lifestream -- kokoe2

Three mechanical dogs running a lamp across the room! :D One of many design examples from Stefan Sagmeister -- leeander

5% of the tedsters in Oxford have taken a sabbatical - Sagmeister's advice is for the others to talk to them about it -- iamhelenharrop

Stefan Sagmeister invented a logo generator of AWESOMENESS! <- GOLD -- grumblemouse

beautiful insight on branding from Stefan Sagmeister "Sameness is overrated" -- SethDaggett

TED Global 2009 Stefan Sagmeister "Obsessions make my life worse but my work better" -- bwdumars

The conference is only just getting started, and you'll find plenty of reaction coverage right here, so make sure to come back often.

21 July 2009

Twitter Snapshot: Alain de Botton on snobs and visualizing your own success

TEDGlobal 2009 is under way! Writer Alain de Botton (you can follow him on Twitter) kickstarted the conference with an insightful talk on why people are snobs and how we define our own success. Here were the reactions from TEDsters watching the live feed.

A snob: "Someone who uses a small part of you to come to a global conclusion about who you are." Opposite of a snob: Mom -- TEDxCambridge

Snobbery is a global phenomena! -- rom

Alain de Botton: we are drawn to nature as an escape from the human ant hill. A way to feel connection with the non-human -- kokoe2

Most unlikely tweet today, from the #TED conference. 'Alain de Botton is off and rocking them'. Like he's Status Quo at Live Aid. -- Mr_Considerate

"Never before the expectations of what human beings should achieve with little have been so high" -- javiermalagon

Keep checking this page for more updates from Twitter on TEDGlobal 2009.

21 July 2009

TEDGlobal University running notes

TED U celebrates the fact that the people who attend TED are just as interesting as the speakers and performers onstage. Here are selected running notes from Tuesday morning's two sessions:

Ian Goldin, from the James Martin 21st-Century School in Oxford, shared six things we will need to know about the year 2030. Among his points: We'll see more globalization -- and Goldin sees two Achilles' heels of globalization: inequality (and the growing rift between the "haves" and those who are left out, those who are angry) and complexity, the growing brittleness of our interconnected world, the possibility of systemic shock from one incident rippling around the globe. In 2030, population pressures will change -- in developed countries, people will get older on average. Which will affect current systems of taking care of older people, he says: Developed countries will need to attract younger immigrants "to drive our economies and push us around in our wheelchairs. Xenophobic concerns will be turned on their heads." As he says, "The rest of our lives will be in the future. We have to plan for it now."

Cynthia Schneider of the Brookings Institution, gave an eye-opening talk called “How American Idol Changes the World.” With footage from competitions in Pakistan and Afghanistan, she shows how these merit-based competitions, open to anyone, are giving new vitality to tribal values: "Does it introduce Americanization? No, just the opposite is happening." She tells the story of Aydah Al-Jahani, a Saudi woman who entered an American Idol-style poetry competition called Millions' Poet that airs in Arabic-speaking countries. Wearing a full niqab, she made it to the final rounds. A key value of these shows in tribal cultures: "Contestants learn how to lose gracefully without avenging the winner." She closes with news of a new show, "The Candidate," in Afghanistan, where young people present competing policy platforms in a reality show environment.

Barbara Aronson is the founder of Research4Life.org. Her talk, “How to ‘Give Away’ Scientific Research -- And Make a Difference,” detailed her work in bringing cutting-edge scientific research to doctors and researchers in poor countries who can't afford expensive medical journal subscriptions. By giving this these studies and data free to doctors in Africa, not only does this project help them provide better care, but it encourages more doctors around the world to do their own research and contribute to the body of medical knowledge.

Julian Treasure, from the Sound Agency, gave a charming talk called “Sound Affects!” which demonstrated -- pleasantly and unpleasantly -- how sound influences our happiness and our ability to work, shop and navigate life. Working in a noisy open-plan office, his stats show, reduces productivity a shocking 66 percent; shops that play unpleasant music can lose 20 percent of potential business. Among the many takeaways: "I recommend everyone listen to 5 minutes of birdsong a day."

Sam Martin, the writer for frogdesign US, showed a groovy slideshow of “Manspace: The Spaces That Men Carve Out for Themselves.” Inspired by a few manly garages and basements in his hometown of Austin, Texas, he said, "I wanted to go out on a journey and see what spaces men create. I didn't find what I expected to find: pyramids of beer cans. What I found: men who make spaces for their passions -- spaces that reflect who they were and what they loved to do." Some very appreciative and jealous low-pitched ooooohs when he shows slides of these special, customized, personal spaces.

Above: Julian Treasure. Photo: Duncan Davidson / TED.com

20 July 2009

Q&A with Nina Jablonski: Society and skin

Before her TEDTalk went up on Friday, anthropologist and skin expert Nina Jablonski took some time out of writing her new book to talk to the the TEDBlog. Nina had a lot to say about how our skin affects how we are perceived, sometimes in ways we want it to and sometimes in much more pernicious ways.

Are you excited that your TEDTalk is being posted?

I’m very excited, very happy. I greatly enjoyed being at TED and the atmosphere of the gathering. Also, I think the spread of TEDTalks via the Internet is even more important than being there. It’s all over the world. I know people all over the world who watch TEDTalks. It’s important to get these ideas out to more and more people. One can never predict where one’s idea might go.

So, of all the things you could study, why skin?

It started as an accident more than 15 years ago. I was asked by a colleague to give a lecture in his class, on skin. This lecture was being give to an introductory class of human biology. I read up on the relevant materials, but then realized that I also wanted to tell the students about the evolution of skin. As I started looking for information, I discovered that the research on that topic was scarce. My interest was piqued by this deficiency of information on the evolution of our largest organ.
Then, I went to a seminar where I saw a lecture by a colleague on skin that gave me incredible insight. The insight was sufficiently important that I decided it was time to run with it, despite my lack of experience in this research area. The next step was that I wrote a paper to propose my new hypothesis. That was 17 years ago, in 1992. I just put it out there, and I thought if anything ever arises, at least I’ve written it. In the meantime, I kept my antennae twitching for new research.

Then, in 1995 to ’96, new data on UV radiation at the Earth’s surface was released from NASA. This allowed me to investigate my hypothesis rigorously. With my husband’s help, he’s a geographer and statistician, that’s when the project really started. We began developing data on why UV levels and skin color correlated. Then, in 2003, the University of California press said, “You really should write a book on skin in general.” So, I said, “OK.” One thing led to another. It was the prompting of my editor that got me to think about including the evolution of skin, not just skin and the sun. It’s a very broad topic.

Speaking of which, in your book you talk about skin decoration and how humans are unique in decorating our skin by tattoos, make-up and more. What do you think this means?

We do have an awareness of ourselves that allows us to engage in willful decoration that other animals do not engage in. These dramatically change our appearance and how we are perceived. You can put on a particular set of clothes and make-up or body paint and have a completely different perception.

We can make ourselves appear more sexually appealing to members of a particular group, or more threatening. At football games, people wear all sorts of face paint because they want to look fierce and war-like. These are very specific visual signals that are meant to get particular responses. These things have real evolutionary value. There’s an advantage to being good at putting on make-up and sending the correct signal. You don’t have to look very far. Open up any women’s magazine and you’ll see tips on applying make-up. But all those tips are geared to creating a particular appearance that we know from evolutionary biology makes one appear more sexually attractive.

All the ways of decorating skin make statements that impact how people treat you. Knowing how to decorate can even make one more successful at attracting certain groups of friends.

One of the most obvious factors in our skin’s appearance is its color, and you talk about the origins of color in your talk. But, what about how skin color has historically affected our behavior towards each other?

Skin color is the story of pigment in the skin, having been determined by UV radiation. If your ancestors were closer to the equator, you are dark and if further away, you are lighter. The biology is very straightforward. But, history is much more complicated and hard to comprehend.

People have placed values in skin color based on who interacted with who. The most insidious of these interactions is the Trans-Atlantic slave trade in the 1500s. A lightly-pigmented people in a position of power and mobility went by ship to a different part of the world where they found a darkly-pigmented people. As we know, they created slaves of these people on the African continent, in the equatorial area. Many of the problems with color we face today came to be because of interactions started by the slave trade.

The easiest way to establish the dominance needed for the system of slavery to function is to establish visual mechanisms, which in this case was the color of these slaves. What you then see is the literary development of black as bad, negative, as mentally and spiritually inefficient. This is the toxin that created created much of the race debate.

People are color-coded in very visible ways. We are very visually-oriented as primates and color makes a big difference to us. We notice subtle differences in color and these can be perceived as social value if given the right narrative. These values exist in India, Japan, China and elsewhere. In most places where you find a gradation of color, you get this phenomenon of colorism. There’s a general prejudice against darkly pigmented skin and a bias toward lightly pigmented skin.

Even within African-American, Caribbean and Latin American communities you can find this prejudice and it’s a derivative of the slave trade. Light brown versus dark brown. And it can be very subtle, this color difference, but it’s just enough for us to distinguish. And this really concerns me, because -- what happens to that dark-colored child? They feel that they have limited prospects or possibilities. This to me is the most poisonous aspect. This is one of the most injurious things we can do to a child. Stopping this is part of my life’s work now. I’ll tell you more about that a little later on.

20 July 2009

Onsite in Oxford: Monday in the theater

It's lunch break in Oxford after a morning of speaker rehearsals. While Jonathan Zittrain (above), Stefan Sagmeister, Beau Lotto and other TED speakers were testing slides and lighting, the crew of the Oxford Playhouse has been running around tweaking the stage set behind them. A snapshot below -- and see more shots from TED setup in our Flickr set.

18 July 2009

The week in comments

This week's theme for comments all over the Internet is experience. There are personal accounts from those who've witnessed Olafur Eliasson's work (presented in his talk on playing with space and light) and recollections of good times at TED@Palm Springs (now upgraded to TEDActive!) or testimonials from volunteers of our Open Translation Project.

On Olafur Eliasson's talk: Playing with space and light:
His work has created a drug-like experience for me each time I've been to one of his shows. He's a genius. -- Lilith via Facebook

This fellow makes the important work of becoming aware of ourselves as subjective perceivers very enjoyable. his installations are amazing. -- Martha via Facebook

... Personally for me, TED is about thinking about the world and considering things I haven't done before, it's about pushing boundaries. And this talk achieves that for me. Therefore it's time well spent. -- Paul

On Daniel Kraft's talk: A better way to harvest bone marrow:
... Back in the 1970's my friend's brother was one of the first Canadians to have a bone marrow transplant. He defeated his "six weeks to live" prognosis and lived for 12 more years, participating in ongoing clinical trials. YAY research and innovation! -- Allison Hunt

as a registered marrow donor, I feel I can finally come out from under my duvet because of this development. Great stuff. If it encourages more people to register as donors, that's a victory in itself. -- Nik via Facebook

On the news about TEDPalm Springs being upgraded to TEDActive:
Vive transparency!! Knowledge is power and through I.T. the knowledge is shared effectively and efficiently enabling a more intimate, mutually supportive and effective global community. x -- Mandy via Facebook

This brings so many TED memories that it makes me cry. Hope I'll be there again TEDActive 2010 http://www.ted.com/pages/view/id/220 -- pipegm via Twitter

On TED's Open Translation Project reaching 1000 Translations:

I got so excited about this I just signed up to be a translator. I love the talks anyway; they're a great way to expand my knowledge about oh so many fascinating things. And I think the fact that the translation project is all volunteer, and so openly structured, totally ROCKS! -- Jakki via Facebook

Proud to be a TED translator!!! -- Francisco via Facebook

The feelings are mutual.

17 July 2009

Breaking the illusion of skin color: Nina Jablonski on TED.com

Nina Jablonski says that differing skin colors are simply our bodies' adaptation to varied climates and levels of UV exposure. Charles Darwin disagreed with this theory, but she explains, that's because he did not have access to NASA. (Recorded at TED2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, CA. Duration: 14:32)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1h

Watch Nina Jablonski's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

16 July 2009

Over 1,000 translations of TEDTalks

As of today, TEDTalks have been translated over 1,000 times, with more than twice that many translations in progress. The TED Open Translation Project has seen great success since its launch in May, recruiting almost 1,500 new volunteer translators and constantly adding new languages. Thanks to the efforts of translators around the world, TEDTalks can now be viewed in over 50 languages.

Picture%201.png

Today, we'd like to highlight the voices of our dedicated volunteer translators. Here are a few excerpts from their emails to us:

For me, TED is a inspirational tool which fuels me with new ideas and inspiration. I wanted to share all the inspiration and thoughts with the world in my native language. I used to write inspirational posts in Tamil in my blog too. By translating TED talks, I can enable my native people get to know all these great ideas and it is an idea worth spreading, I reckon. -- Tharique

I KNOW that TED is the media support of the 21st century. The contents of your segments are essential for humankind to progress towards peace. It is vital for humankind growth of consciousness and it is aligned with my vision of the world I wish to live in. Allowing more people to have access to your programs makes me an active element to build a better world, a better humankind, a better life. -- Aline

Under my perspective, Brazil suffers from a great lack of knowledge sources in its educational system. I believe that translating TED will provide a new teaching and research tool that might inspire a educational revolution around the country. Bold thinking, I know, but if there is something that I learned from TED Talks is that you can't be afraid to aim high. -- Henrique

I believe that access to knowledge is important. Some TED talks have changed my perspective on social and environmental issues, and I hope to help spread the word in Romania as well. I truly believe TED can have an influence in what the world will look like tomorrow, and I am willing to help as much as I can. -- Carmen

Ideas are the most valuable things we have, and I think that making them accessible to as many people as possible is very important. -- Martin

An enormous thank you to all the translators who have contributed and continue to contribute, driven only by their passion for spreading ideas.

To see their hard work in action, watch Hans Rosling's talk on the best stats you've ever seen, our most translated talk to date. To become a volunteer translator, visit the Open Translation Project homepage.

16 July 2009

Exploring the mind of a killer: Jim Fallon on TED.com

Psychopathic killers are the basis for some must-watch TV, but what really makes them tick? Neuroscientist Jim Fallon talks about brain scans and genetic analysis that may uncover the rotten wiring in the nature (and nurture) of murderers. In a too-strange-for-fiction twist, he shares a fascinating family history that makes his work chillingly personal. (Recorded at TED@PalmSprings 2009, February 2009 in Palm Springs, CA. Duration: 06:32)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1f

Watch Jim Fallon's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

16 July 2009

Apollo 11: The 40th Anniversary

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 launch. Above, watch President John F. Kennedy’s speech about the necessity of space exploration, given at Rice University in 1962 (and clocking in at a TED-friendly 18 minutes). He says: “There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet. Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation may never come again.”

Inspired? Check out Bill Stone’s TEDTalk, on his ambitious plans to return humankind to the moon. Start at around 10:50 to hear Stone's astonishing vision.

Also worth checking out today (and within the next few minutes especially) is the interactive re-creation of the lunar mission, We Choose the Moon. Commissioned by the JFK Presidential Library and designed and conceived by The Martin Agency with Domani Studios, the site gives visitors minute-by-minute updates of Apollo 11’s lunar mission, with more than 100 hours of archival audio, 44 videos, 400 NASA photographs and “real-time” mission transmissions on the site and via Twitter. The event continues for the next four days. You can follow along starting with the launch at 9:32 AM EDT.

For those of you who can’t wait four days to get to the moon, head on over to Google Moon to see and read about the physical place where each Apollo mission landed.

Enjoy these links on this memorable day.

15 July 2009

Algae: a genomic-driven solution for sustainable energy

Genomicist Craig Venter and his company Synthetic Genomics Incorporated (SGI) have entered into a $600m strategic alliance with Exxon Mobil to develop a next-generation biofuel from photosynthetic algae. Algae absorb carbon dioxide and sunlight in aqueous environments, producing an oil of similar molecular structure to contemporary petroleum products. Algal fuel can be refined, transported and distributed using existing refineries, pipelines and service stations and can run the engines of today’s automobiles and airplanes.

Venter, who is best known for his role in sequencing the human genome, said the new partnership was the largest single investment in trying to produce biofuels from algae but said the challenge to creating a viable next-generation fuel was the ability to produce it in large volumes. "This would not happen without the oil industry stepping up and taking part," he said.

Several advantages of algae over traditional biofuels are that algae produce significantly higher amounts of oil and biomass, aid environmental remediation through the absorption of atmospheric carbon dioxide and do not force the polemical tradeoff of food for fuel by occupying agricultural lands. For more on Craig Venter’s genomic projects, check out his talks on DNA and the sea and creating synthetic life on TED.com.

15 July 2009

Go behind the scenes of a TEDTalk

It's our third anniversary of posting TEDTalks free to the world! We started in June 2006 with our first six talks -- including Sir Ken Robinson, Al Gore, Majora Carter ... Three years and 486 talks later, we hope you'll enjoy this mini-documentary, "Behind the TEDTalk." It stars TED Curator Chris Anderson and the TED team, and a roster of speakers you love: Elizabeth Gilbert, Hans Rosling, Seth Godin and more, in a 6-minute look behind the scenes:

Download the "Behind the TEDTalk" documentary:

+ Zipped MP4
+ Unzipped MP4
+ Unzipped high-def (480p)

Our thanks to the m ss ng p eces team, and to the speakers, thinkers and doers whose interviews tell this story.

15 July 2009

A better way to harvest bone marrow: Daniel Kraft on TED.com

The stem cells found in bone marrow are one of the most valuable resources your body produces (they can help treat terminal diseases such as Alzheimer's and leukemia), but normally the process of retrieving that marrow is a many-injection procedure that takes time, money ... and pain. Physician and innovator Daniel Kraft has revolutionized this process with his minimally-invasive Marrow Miner, which requires only one puncture and accumulates ten times as much marrow compared to the old manner. (Recorded at TED2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, CA. Duration: 4:14)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1b

Watch Daniel Kraft's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

14 July 2009

Playing with space and light: Olafur Eliasson on TED.com

In the spectacular large-scale projects he's famous for (such as "Waterfalls" in New York harbor), Olafur Eliasson creates art from a palette of space, distance, color and light. This idea-packed talk begins with an experiment in the nature of perception. (Recorded at TED2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, CA. Duration: 09:37)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1a

Watch Olafur Eliasson's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

13 July 2009

IDEO's guide to designing for social impact

HCD%20Photo%201.jpg The recent collaboration of IDEO with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, IDE, Heifer International and ICRW has inspired a new application of Human-Centered Design (HCD) -- a system used by multi-national corporations to develop design solutions at the intersection of desirability, feasibility and viability. IDEO’s new open-source toolkit is a methodical approach for NGOs and social enterprises to design and implement innovative, customer-centric solutions to specific design challenges for global communities in need via three simple steps: Hear, Create, Deliver.

This process has been specially-adapted for organizations like yours that work with people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Human-Centered Design (HCD) will help you hear people's needs in new ways, create innovative solutions to meet these needs, and deliver solutions with financial sustainability in mind.

Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO, will be a speaker at TEDGlobal 2009 on July 23. His talk on creativity and play from the 2008 Serious Play conference is available on TED.com.

13 July 2009

Stewart Brand proclaims 4 environmental 'heresies' on TED.com

The man who helped usher in the environmental movement in the 1960s and '70s has been rethinking his positions on cities, nuclear power, genetic modification and geo-engineering. This talk at the US State Department is a foretaste of his major new book, sure to provoke widespread debate. (Recorded at TED@State, June 2009 at the US State Department in Washington, D.C.. Duration: 16:42)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1Y

Watch Sophal Ear's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

12 July 2009

Registration is open for TEDGlobal 2010

TEDGlobal, our annual conference held in Oxford, UK, each summer, has opened registration for next year. TEDGlobal 2010's theme is "And Now the Good News" -- and it'll be a bracing look at the future we will (and must) create.

Headlines remind us daily of the political, economic and environmental woes facing the planet. But behind the scenes lie an amazing array of new ideas, new science, new technology, new social and political thinking, new art and a new understanding of who we are. When you put it all together, an entirely more hopeful view of the future emerges.

Find out more about TEDGlobal 2010 >>

TEDGlobal 2009 (happening next week) has sold out. You can still sign up for the TEDGlobal Associates membership, which includes a live feed to your home or office as well as lots of extra benefits.

Find out more about TEDGlobal Associates membership and the live web feed >>

11 July 2009

The week in comments

This week featured strong talks and we've found some equally strong comments to go with them. From touching reactions on Sophal Ear's escape with his family from the Khmer Rouge to amazement at Kary Mullis' strikingly deft cure for killer infections and appreciation for Eames Demetrios' sentimental portrait of his legendary designer grandparents. Here they are:

On Tom Wujec's talk: 3 ways the brain creates meaning:
awesome!..what's not to like?..this is breakthrough education with a soul!..and it's cool! BRAVO -- Chand via facebook

On Sophal Ear's talk: Escaping the Khmer Rouge:
didn't really grip me until the end - then tears actually came to my eyes. Great talk. -- Howard via facebook

A very moving personal story told with much sincerity and honesty. -- Somboun via facebook

On Kary Mullis' talk: A next-gen cure for killer infections:
A brilliant idea, well explained in less than 5 minutes. -- Rick

Medical students' ears should be ringing with excitement and new opportunities now, thanks to Mullis' discovery. This is too cool! -- Jason

On Eames Demetrios' talk: The design genius of Charles and Ray Eames:
Eames Demetrios is a great evangelist for his grandparents as well as for today's design process. He's right that design is no longer only for designers. Watch this vid if you can. -- Nate via facebook

I just had a designorgasm! -- minusfive via Twitter

Powerful stuff people, keep it coming.

10 July 2009

Watch TEDTalks from speakers at the upcoming TEDGlobal 2009

From TEDGlobal's speaker list of more than 90 -- including 18-minute talks, demos and TED U courses -- 13 of our scheduled speakers already have TEDTalks online from previous TEDs and partners. To find them, check out our new theme, Speaking at TEDGlobal 2009, and watch archive gems from these returning speakers. All of these speakers are bringing something new to TEDGlobal 2009, exploring the theme of the conference, "The Substance of Things Not Seen."

Browse the new theme Speaking at TEDGlobal 2009 >>

See the full conference schedule for TEDGlobal 2009, July 21-24 in Oxford >>

09 July 2009

Q&A with Sophal Ear: From refugee stories to international policies

In yesterday's TEDTalk, development economist and political scientist Sophal Ear shared the deeply personal story of his family's escape from the Khmer Rouge. In today's interview with the TED Blog, he continues that story and gives us details on his current path in international aid policy.

Your mother cleverly pretended to be Vietnamese to escape the Khmer Rouge, but how did your family continue to survive after reaching Vietnam?

Yes, you see, just getting to Vietnam we weren’t off the hook. The Vietnamese required that people who had returned from Cambodia be picked up by their relatives, or they would be sent to “kinh tế mới” (New Economic Life) -- which was essentially hard-labor, working in agriculture.

My aunt, my mother’s sister, was married to a Vietnamese man and living in Vietnam. Somehow, my mother got to the market and managed to meet a friend who then got word to her sister that we had arrived in Vietnam. It was a completely random occurrence. Her sister’s husband managed -- I think he must have bribed his way through -- to get us in the middle of the night from where we were detained. Then we went to Saigon, now known as Ho Chi Minh City, where we spent one and a half years before we got out.

There was no way to get to the US, where my mother had another sister living in California. We redeclared ourselves as Cambodian, and as we were not Vietnamese there was suddenly no problem with letting us leave. They wanted us out! My mother had a nephew in France who was a university student. He was really poor, just a starving student. And, he had to somehow figure out a way to get us all there. My aunt in the US sent him some money. Then, he happened to meet a French gentleman who, for some unknown reason, decided that he wanted to help. This gentleman went to the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to find out what could be done. He then found a lady whose last name was the same as my mother’s, and convinced her to sign paperwork claiming familial ties.

Now, keep in my mind that through all of this my mother has five kids with her, and two of them she hadn’t given birth to. One was my half-sibling and another is an adopted daughter. When this opportunity came about, people offered her money left and right to switch their children with hers. She could have compromised her principles, she needed the money. But, she didn’t.

We all managed to make it to France by ’78. We were only supposed to be staying there temporarily. But, for some reason, my mother just decides that she’s had enough and we’re going to stay put indefinitely. It ended up being seven years before we moved to the US, to California. That’s when I started seventh grade as an American kid.

My mother struggled so much, sacrificed so much, and by doing so she allowed all the kids to pursue their dreams. And our story, it’s about the kindness of strangers, about people taking critical actions at critical points. It’s not Schindler’s List, but just five siblings who were able to succeed despite difficult circumstances.

Can you speak a little more to the value of civil complaints like the one you filed about your father?

I feel that the tribunal as it’s currently set up at least allows for civil complaints, which I think is important, but I’ve been a skeptic. It’s deeply troubled. I’m not trying to be an advocate for the tribunal itself. I don’t want to lend credibility to a process by sanctifying the tribunal in some way. I have to accept that it’s deeply troubled -- with corruption and such. In 2002, I wrote to The New York Times and praised the UN for pulling out of discussions with the authorities, as the UN was clearly being manipulated.

For me, the complaint is really about justice for the past accountability for the future. If you have a situation where nearly two million people die and no-one is held to account, then it can happen again. Impunity is a problem in Cambodia. If you’ve got power and money, then nothing can happen to you. As a victim -- and I hate to call myself that -- but, this could be a step towards holding those who are responsible to account.

Also, although some in the international community consider the state of affairs in Cambodia to be disagreeable, they don’t see what’s happening now as unacceptable because if you’re better than the Khmer Rouge, then you’re OK. Many current political leaders are, let’s face it, former Khmer Rouge lower-ranking cadres. Obviously, there are issues of reconciliation and governance when some of your own people caused this.

But, at least, I can put it on record that my father passed away and that it was as a result of the conditions he was subjected to.

Today you work on post-conflict reconstruction and development. How much of what you do today has been influenced by the events of your childhood and your experiences? Did you always want to do this?

I grew up as a refugee. My experience has been very different from that of people who haven’t. I’ve traveled and lived around the world. It’s shaped my view of my responsibility to others. I feel like I have a responsibility to help other people in conflict situations.

I went back to Cambodia in 1996. I was riding around in a cyclo, which is essentially a rickshaw, and being led by this young boy who was about my age at the time. I couldn’t help thinking, “If I had stayed here, if my family hadn’t been able to escape, I would have been him.” I’ve been very lucky.

And, because I was a refugee in France, I speak fluent French. People think that I’ve had a privileged childhood because of my languages and my traveling. But, no, I haven’t. And as a result of all this, I was able to work for The World Bank as my first job coming out of Princeton. There, because of my French, I ended-up working on Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.

You’ve spoken to your family’s achievements, but you’ve achieved quite a lot in your own right. Could you tell us about your personal journey as a young man?

I think I was very lucky. Just as we talked about those refugee stories and how random those things can be, that’s how my life continued. As a kid, I was going to school in the Bay Area and so I knew, of the universities around, I needed to go to Berkeley. Now, when I came to the US, I was placed in seventh grade at 10, so that I was at Berkeley at 16. And the opportunities were all very rich.

I got to Princeton because I saw a flyer on the Berkeley campus for a public policy program at Princeton. I decided to apply because, naively, I wanted to see New York. I had this idea that Princeton was much nearer the city than it is! Anyway, I was accepted and I went.

Then, I ended up at Princeton doing my Masters, and while I was there I remember being asked what I wanted to do. I said that I wanted to be a governor at the World Bank, and I didn’t realize then that I would first have to be the Finance Minister of a country in order to be a governor. And then, my first day out of Princeton, I did a phone interview for a job with the World Bank and I became a consultant for something called social protection -- I didn’t even know what that was at the time. I do now!

On July 1, 1997, I was in DC and started work at the World Bank. Social protection turned out to be, essentially, international welfare policy. I had grown up on welfare, so now to be working on these policies was simply amazing.

But then, what do I do next? I was 25, I had all this experience, but I really looked like I was still a kid. I decided to do a PhD. I ended up working on a dissertation that explored aid dependence and governance. You see, I discovered at the World Bank that things were not working quite the way they were supposed to. It was at the point where religious organizations were promoting debt forgiveness because countries simply could not repay their debts.

I’ve really been lucky. It’s been a series of random occurrences. I could not have imagined all that has happened to me. To work at the World Bank, to get to work on Cambodia, to think that my country of origin could benefit from what I’m doing is amazing. Now, I feel that I’ve had some impact on the issues around Cambodian development. I’m glad that at a critical point I could make a difference.

09 July 2009

UK/Eire readers: Win a pass to TEDGlobal 2009 from Wired UK

How are technology, entertainment and design creating a smarter planet?

Answer this question in no more than 100 words, and you could win a pass to TEDGlobal, happening July 21-24 in Oxford, UK. TEDGlobal 2009 sponsor IBM is offering the pass to one lucky Wired UK reader. From the offer:

For inspiration, visit www.ibm.com/think/uk, then mail your entry, along with your name, address and phone number to wiredcompetitions@gmail.com, with the word TED in the subject line. The competition closes at 9am BST on July 15, 2009.

Get full details >>

See the full program lineup for TEDGlobal 2009 >>

Please note: this competition is only open to residents of the UK and Eire. Terms and conditions >>

09 July 2009

A next-gen cure for killer infection: Kary Mullis on TED.com

Drug-resistant bacteria kills, even in top hospitals. But now tough infections like staph and anthrax may be in for a surprise. Nobel-winning chemist Kary Mullis, who watched a friend die when powerful antibiotics failed, unveils a radical new cure that shows extraordinary promise. (Recorded at TED 2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, California. Duration: 4:35)

Short URL: http://on.ted.com/1S

Watch Kary Mullis' 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

08 July 2009

Escaping the Khmer Rouge: Sophal Ear on TED.com

TED Fellow Sophal Ear shares the compelling story of his family's escape from Cambodia under the rule of the Khmer Rouge. He recounts his mother's cunning and determination to save her children. (Recorded at TED U 2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, California. Duration: 5:58)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1R

Watch Sophal Ear's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

07 July 2009

3 ways the brain creates meaning: Tom Wujec on TED.com

Information designer Tom Wujec talks through three areas of the brain that help us understand words, images, feelings, connections. In this short talk from TEDU, he asks: How can we best engage our brains to help us better understand big ideas? (Recorded at TED U 2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, California. Duration: 6:26)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1P

Watch Tom Wujec's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

06 July 2009

The design genius of Charles + Ray Eames: Eames Demetrios on TED.com

The legendary design team Charles and Ray Eames made films, houses and classic midcentury modern furniture. Eames Demetrios, their grandson, shows rarely seen films and archival footage in a lively, loving tribute to their creative process. Demetrios also talks about how his own work has been influenced by his grandparents' legacy. (Recorded at TED2007, February 2007 in Monterey, California. Duration: 15:09)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1O

Watch Eames Demetrios' 2007 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

02 July 2009

How to watch TEDGlobal 2009 live from home with friends or family

Later this month, you can watch the TEDGlobal 2009 conference live from the UK through an Associate membership -- offering a virtual front-row seat at the conference via a private, live web stream of the main-stage events.

TEDGlobal Associate membership costs $995 and includes a password-protected, single-computer, live web stream of TEDGlobal 2009 as it unfolds in Oxford, and the right to watch with up to 10 other people. Most talks from TEDGlobal 2009 will eventually become TEDTalks, available free on TED.com. But Associate members will be able to watch the full main-stage sessions live as they happen, including introductions, short talks, musical performances, video interstitials and audience interactions that are not shown on the website. Associate membership groups who watched the last TED conference live from Long Beach gave us enthusiastic feedback, persuading us to repeat this service. We learned that people who carve out the time and gather with friends for a multi-day virtual TED experience can gain as much inspiration as those attending live.

TEDGlobal 2009 will explore "The Substance of Things Not Seen." Speakers this year include world-renowned philosophers, scientists, religious leaders, entertainers, artists, musicians and technologists -- see the lineup here. The event will take place July 21-24 in Oxford, UK.

TEDGlobal Associate members will be issued a noncommercial license that allows them to share their webcast with up to 10 viewers in the same room. Also included with each Associates membership: a full year of the legendary TED Media Club, with 5 shipments of books, DVDs and other media throughout the year; enhanced social networking on TED.com; and an exclusive welcome kit that's not available to any other TEDsters, with a viewing diary, postcards and other keepsakes.

Learn more about TEDGlobal Associates membership >>

02 July 2009

Happy anniversary, T.G.I.M.B.O.E.J.

T.G.I.M.B.O.E.J. stands for The Great Internet Migratory Box Of Electronic Junk, and it's celebrating its first anniversary this week. Do think of it as partly a social experiment, but more so a free-range parcel service-based electronics grab bag that circulates among hardware hackers who are eager to discover useful, cool, old, or even rare treasures from the world of circuits old and new. According to their own description:

[It] is a progressive lending library of electronic components. An internet meme in physical form halfway between P2P zip-archive sharing and a flea market. It arrives full of wonderful (and possibly useless) components, but you will surely find some treasures to keep. You will be inspired look through your own piles, such as they are, and find more mysterious components that clearly need to be donated to the box before it is passed on again.

If you're a tinkerer, a smart hardware geek, a fab-lab fan or aspiring aeronaut who wants to put that dusty old pile of circuit boards, switches, magnets, transistors, transformers, LCDs, CRTs and LEDs to a greater use (and perhaps find some interesting or useful new treasures to fiddle with), T.G.I.M.B.O.E.J. has a useful wiki that will tell you how you can get started.

01 July 2009

Atheist summer camp, funded by Richard Dawkins' foundation

Via Boing Boing via The First Post, we learn that Richard Dawkins' foundation is funding a summer camp to teach children reason, skepticism and science. From the article:

Alongside the more traditional activities of tug-of-war, swimming and canoeing, children at the five-day camp in Somerset will learn about rational scepticism, moral philosophy, ethics and evolution.

Camp-goers aged eight to 17 will also be taught how to disprove phenomena such as crop circles and telepathy. In the Invisible Unicorn Challenge, any child who can prove that unicorns do not exist will win a £10 note -- which features an image of Charles Darwin, the father of evolutionary theory -- signed by Dawkins, Britain's most prominent atheist.

Or visit the TED.com theme Is There a God?

01 July 2009

17 words of architectural inspiration: Daniel Libeskind on TED.com

Daniel Libeskind builds on very big ideas. Here, he shares 17 words that underlie his vision for architecture -- raw, risky, emotional, radical -- and that offer inspiration for any bold creative pursuit. (Recorded at TED2009, February 2009 in Long Beach, California. Duration: 18:37)

Twitter URL: http://on.ted.com/1M

Watch Daniel Libeskind's 2009 talk on TED.com where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 475+ TEDTalks.

Get TED delivered:
Subscribe to the TEDTalks video podcast via RSS >>
Subscribe to the iTunes video podcast
Subscribe to the iTunes audio podcast
Get updates via Twitter >>
Join our Facebook fan page >>

Subscribe to the TED Blog >>

TEDBlog July 2009 Archive

31 July 2009

31 July 2009

31 July 2009

31 July 2009

30 July 2009

29 July 2009

28 July 2009

27 July 2009

27 July 2009

26 July 2009

25 July 2009

25 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

24 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

23 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009

22 July 2009