TED Theme: How the Mind Works
At a conference about ideas, it’s important to step back and consider the engine that creates them: the human mind. How exactly does the brain -- a three-pound snarl of electrochemically frantic nervous tissue -- create inspired inventions, the feeling of hunger, the experience of ...
At a conference about ideas, it’s important to step back and consider the engine that creates them: the human mind. How exactly does the brain -- a three-pound snarl of electrochemically frantic nervous tissue -- create inspired inventions, the feeling of hunger, the experience of beauty, or the sense of self -- and how reliable is it? Dan Dennett contemplates the mind as an ecosystem in which a new class of entities -- memes -- can compete, coexist, reproduce and flourish, and asks what sorts of nefarious things these entities might be up to. An enthusiastic Dan Gilbert presents his new research on the peculiar, counterintuitive -- and perhaps a smidge deflating -- secret to happiness. And Jeff Hawkins explains why a napkin-sized sheaf of cellular matter, wrinkled into a ball, will fundamentally change the direction of the computer industry.
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My stroke of insight | Jill Bolte Taylor
Jill Bolte Taylor got a research opportunity few brain scientists ...
Jill Bolte Taylor got a research opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: She had a massive stroke, and watched as her brain functions -- motion, speech, self-awareness -- shut down one by one. An astonishing story.
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The new power of collaboration | Howard Rheingold
Howard Rheingold talks about the coming world of collaboration, participatory ...
Howard Rheingold talks about the coming world of collaboration, participatory media and collective action -- and how Wikipedia is really an outgrowth of our natural human instinct to work as a group.
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The emergent genius of ant colonies | Deborah Gordon
Deborah Gordon studies ant colonies in the Arizona desert to ...
Deborah Gordon studies ant colonies in the Arizona desert to understand their complex social system. She asks: How do these chitinous creatures get down to business -- and even multitask when they need to -- with no language, memory or visible leadership? Her answers could lead to a better understanding of all complex systems, from the brain to the Web. Thanks, ants.
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Why aren't we more compassionate? | Daniel Goleman
Daniel Goleman, author of "Emotional Intelligence," asks why we aren't ...
Daniel Goleman, author of "Emotional Intelligence," asks why we aren't more compassionate more of the time.
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A performance of "Mathemagic" | Arthur Benjamin
In a lively show, mathemagician Arthur Benjamin races a team ...
In a lively show, mathemagician Arthur Benjamin races a team of calculators to figure out 3-digit squares, solves another massive mental equation and guesses a few birthdays. How does he do it? He’ll tell you.
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Beauty, truth and ... physics? | Murray Gell-Mann
Armed with a sense of humor and laypeople's terms, Nobel ...
Armed with a sense of humor and laypeople's terms, Nobel winner Murray Gell-Mann drops some knowledge on TEDsters about particle physics, asking questions like, Are elegant equations more likely to be right than inelegant ones?
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The fractals at the heart of African designs | Ron Eglash
'I am a mathematician, and I would like to stand ...
'I am a mathematician, and I would like to stand on your roof.' That is how Ron Eglash greeted many African families he met while researching the fractal patterns he’d noticed in villages across the continent.
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The case for optimism | Larry Brilliant
We've known about global warming for 50 years and done ...
We've known about global warming for 50 years and done little about it, says Google.org director Larry Brilliant. In spite of this and other depressing trends, he's optimistic and tells us why. From Skoll World Forum, Oxford, UK, www.skollfoundation.org
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The habits of happiness | Matthieu Ricard
What is happiness, and how can we all get some? ...
What is happiness, and how can we all get some? Biochemist turned Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard says we can train our minds in habits of well-being, to generate a true sense of serenity and fulfillment.
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How electroshock therapy changed me | Sherwin Nuland
Surgeon and author Sherwin Nuland discusses the development of electroshock ...
Surgeon and author Sherwin Nuland discusses the development of electroshock therapy as a cure for severe, life-threatening depression -- including his own. It’s a moving and heartfelt talk about relief, redemption and second chances.
