We can make our government work: A Q&A with TED Books author Lawrence LessigWhen it comes to US politics, many are frustrated that gridlock and grandstanding so often substitute for the hard job of getting things done. Just 14% of Americans say they approve of the work that Congress is doing, according to a recent Gallup poll. (Which, as a recent TED speaker notes, is lower than the […]
Remembering Margaret ThatcherMargaret Thatcher, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990, passed away today after suffering from a stroke. The longest-serving Prime Minister of the 20th century, Thatcher also holds the distinction of being the only woman to hold the post. She has died at 87-years-old. Below, some TED Talks that examine Thatcher’s […]
5 great stories with double lives as allegories“Once upon a time, there was a place called Lesterland,” Lawrence Lessig begins today’s talk. “Of its 311 million people, it turns out 144,000 are called Lester,” Lessig says. In Lesterland, this .05% of the population is granted extraordinary power. Each election cycle, there’s a general election, in which the people get to vote, and […]
How we can make elections about the people, not just funders: An excerpt of Lawrence Lessig’s new TED Book, “Lesterland”Before we can tackle climate change, financial reform, education reform or, well, anything, there is a single issue that we in the United States must confront. As legal activist Lawrence Lessig says in today’s talk, before we can bring about change on any of the thousands of issues that matter to us, we must change […]
6 talks about incredible escapesNorth Korea is one of the most isolated countries in the world. So it’s exceptionally rare to hear a first-hand account of life there — in English, no less. In today’s brave talk, given at TED2013, Hyenseo Lee gives a riveting account of what it was like to grow up in North Korea. “I thought […]
X marks the spot: This week’s TEDx TalksEach week, TEDx chooses four of our favorite talks, highlighting just a few of the enlightening speakers from the TEDx community, and its diverse constellation of ideas worth spreading. Below, give this week’s talks a listen. Why you hate math: Laura Overdeck at TEDxWestVillageWomen When dining out, how often do you slide your check across […]
Voter suppression, pandemics, fish, curing Alzheimer’s: Session 2 of TED U at TED2013TED’s Bruno Giussani is back on the TED stage to invite up this morning’s cadre of audience talks. No long preamble … we’re straight into it: Jason Pontin, editor and publisher of MIT Technology Review, wants us to think about why we can’t (or think we can’t) solve big problems anymore — what is our generation’s […]
8 views of Tirana, Albania — with its bright, multicolored buildingsEdi Rama — the mayor of Tirana, Albania, for 11 years — was an artist before a politician. “I still paint. I love the joy that color can give to our lives and to our communities,” says Rama in today’s talk, filmed at TEDxThessaloniki. “I try to bring something of the artist in me to […]
Defusing political conflicts: A Q&A with Jonathan Haidt about how liberals and conservatives can band togetherIn the final days of 2012, as Congress worked to hammer out a last-minute deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, it was difficult to turn on any American news source and not see political finger-pointing. Words like “extremist,” “angry” and “sharply divided” floated in the ether. Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt has long been interested in […]
Can we overcome partisanship? TED@250 explores the economy, political gridlock and the fiscal cliffThe term “fiscal cliff” has gained traction in the U.S. news in the past few months, at least in part because it paints a vivid metaphorical picture. Popularized by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, the term refers to the ill economic consequences that could occur if Congress does not change its course on several policies […]
Jeff Smith: The rest of his political incarceration storyJeff Smith was blown away by some of the brilliant business ideas he heard while spending 366 days in prison between 2009 and 2010. “[Prison] was teeming with smart, ambitious men whose business instincts were in many cases as sharp as those of the CEOs who had wined and dined me six months earlier when […]
You can start referring to TED Fellow Kyrsten Sinema as Congresswoman. In a race that took nearly a week to call, Sinema has been elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Arizona’s 9th congressional district, which wraps around Phoenix. Though the race remained close through midday Monday, Sinema — a Democrat — was declared […]
Blog exclusive: A miniature TED all about votingLast night at the TED offices, we held a special event: a miniature TED all about voting. Three amazing speakers took the stage to present ideas and stories related to our electoral process. First up, was TED’s own Lisa Bu, our Content Distribution Manager, who spoke about her experience traveling from China in 1995 to […]
An Election Day playlist: 9 talks on making healthcare affordableIt’s voting day in the United States. As Americans line up at the polls to vote for Barack Obama or Mitt Romney, eyes around the world are fixed on the contest, which predictions say will come down to a few key issues. So what has mattered most to Americans in this election? The TED Blog […]
10 TEDxTalks to watch before election dayAs a New York Times article put it this morning, “The presidential campaign entered a delicate phase on Tuesday, suddenly becoming a sideshow to the hurricane.” In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, it’s hard to remember that in just a week, Americans will be heading to the polls and, with their presidential selection, answering big questions […]
