Where do ideas come from? (5 talks)

People often credit their ideas to individual "Eureka!" moments. But Steven Johnson shows how history tells a different story. His fascinating tour takes us from the "liquid networks" of London's coffee houses to Charles Darwin's long, slow hunch to today's high-velocity web.

TEDGlobal 2010, Filmed Jul 2010, Posted Sep 2010

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Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses -- and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It's a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.

TED2009, Filmed Feb 2009, Posted Feb 2009

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With help from some surprising footage, Derek Sivers explains how movements really get started. (Hint: it takes two.)

TED2010, Filmed Feb 2010, Posted Apr 2010

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At TEDGlobal 2010, author Matt Ridley shows how, throughout history, the engine of human progress has been the meeting and mating of ideas to make new ideas. It's not important how clever individuals are, he says; what really matters is how smart the collective brain is.

TEDGlobal 2010, Filmed Jul 2010, Posted Jul 2010

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In a world of too many options and too little time, our obvious choice is to just ignore the ordinary stuff. Marketing guru Seth Godin spells out why, when it comes to getting our attention, bad or bizarre ideas are more successful than boring ones.

TED2003, Filmed Feb 2003, Posted Apr 2007

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