Sparkline (n.) A small, data-rich, word-sized graphic that can be inserted into text, and understood at a glance. Named by Edward Tufte, and explained in a chapter of his upcoming book, Beautiful Evidence. Further reading: Great examples at the Information Aesthetics blog, where sparklines are used to visualize site stats, like daily visitors and even […]
In one of the most bizarre science breakthroughs in recent memory, British and South African doctors have reported three cases of semi-comatose patients who were roused to a waking, interactive state by … a sleeping pill. The effect was discovered by accident: Doctors had administered the sleeping pill, Zolpidem (better known in the US by […]
When architect and stage designer David Rockport (TED ‘97, ‘99, ‘02) was asked to design the interior of the new JetBlue terminal at JFK, he brought in a rather unlikely partner: Broadway choreographer Jerry Mitchell. The pair had collaborated before (on shows like Hairspray, Rocky Horror, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels). Now, they’re re-imagining airport foot traffic […]
Are fossil records a thing of the past? Evolutionary biologist Olivia Judson (TED2005) thinks they may be. In Sunday’s New York Times, she made a case (aimed at the general public) that DNA sequencing and analysis now provides more detailed proof of evolution than fossils ever could. True to form, Judson — who is known […]
If you liked the Sony Bouncy Balls ad, you’ll love this homage, filmed in Wales for the soft drink, Tango.
When Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” premiered at Cannes this weekend, TED2006 photographer Robert Leslie was on hand to capture some behind-the-scenes pics. Below: Pay no attention to those name placards … Director David Guggenheim, movie star Al Gore and producer Lawrence Bender answer questions at the press conference for “An Inconvenient Truth”; Gore at […]
At TED2006, we devoted an unusual amount of our “interstitial” time to a single advertiser, showing three different ads from Honda, all brilliant in their own way. Mind you, Honda has no affiliation with TED. We just like their ads. And we’re not the only ones. Two of the Honda spots — Choir and Impossible […]
We were pleased to see that several of the ads we highlighted at TED2006 and TEDGlobal were awarded Clios last night, in Miami. The Honda ads, Choir and Impossible Dream, took the Grand Clio, and gold awards went to Guinness noitulovE (that’s “evolution,” backwards), Sony Bouncy Balls, and Sony PSP A Day in the Life. […]
In perhaps the most surprising collaboration to come out of TED, string quartet Ethel has recorded a lively little number with … Einstein the talking parrot. We give to you: Also Spracht Einstein. Delightful.
At TED2006, and again at our TED screening of “An Inconvenient Truth,” we witnessed the reinvention of Al Gore as global warming warrior and … stand-up comic? The former VP, not known previously for his stage presence, was surprisingly hilarious in both his rehearsed bits and off-the-cuff comments (to say nothing of the Melissa Etheridge […]
TEDPrize winner Cameron Sinclair is having a very good year. Fresh on the heels of both the TEDPrize and the RISD/Target Emerging Designer Award, tonight he’ll receive a WIRED Rave Award, recognizing him and his wife/Architecture for Humanity co-founder Kate Stohr for innovation in architecture. WIRED is also raving about other TED speakers, who’ll be […]
At TED2006, architect Joshua Prince-Ramus held our rapt attention as he deconstructed the process of building the Seattle Library, peeling back the collaborative “hyper-rational” process layer by layer. It was clear to us then that Prince-Ramus — U.S. director of Rem Koolhaas’ architecture firm, OMA — was poised to make a name for himself, independent […]
Last summer at TEDGlobal, Sasa Vucinic explained in quiet tones his maverick idea: He wanted to sell “free-press bonds.”. “If investors are willing to fund the US deficit, why wouldn’t investors want to fund the press freedom deficit?” Vucinic asked. (BBC article on that talk) Yesterday, he put that thought to the test. As TEDGlobal […]
This week, TIME Magazine puts their annual stake in the ground, naming the 100 most influential people of the moment. As usual, a number of TED veterans among them: Al Gore, Bill (and Melinda) Gates, Bono, Freakonomics author Steven Levitt, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, the “Flickr founders” and the “Skype guys.”
Banal, yet eye-grabbing science story of the day: U.S. physicists have demonstrated that water droplets can run uphill, propelled by their own steam.
From today’s New York Times: Thomas Dolby entered pop eternity in the guise of a bespectacled, wild-haired mad scientist, with the 1983 novelty hit “She Blinded Me With Science.” He returns after a long absence — in his other life he has been an innovative creator of ring tones — with a tour that finds […]