Dec 4 2012: I think that many people have already given their ideas away with open source hardware and software. Personally I would gladly give away ideas. The problem is connecting with people who are knowledgeable enough to make an idea into a reality. You might have a great idea for an app, but unless you know how to code, your idea would just collect dust. I think that people with ideas are attracted to TED, because we think of it as an ear for our voices where there hasn't been one before. I love that TED showcases new ideas, but I think they are in a great position to jump start new ideas also. I wonder how many ideas never made it past the minds of their creators, because people just didn't know what to do with them.
Dec 4 2012: The biggest turn off for me is that several of the "ideas" should have been posted under questions. Even this topic is not one I would call an idea.
I also dislike that the topics expire. I am sure this is meant to keep fresh topics rising to the top. There are some really interesting ideas that just fade away. It would be nice if people could like the topic, and the more likes the topic receives, the longer the topic has its expiration date extended.
TED has three different vodcast. Yet here social and scientific topics are muddled together. I enjoy the scientific discussions, but have to wade my way through topics that are not as interesting to me. Subforums would be nice.
Do any of the more interesting ideas ever get brought to the attention of anyone that can actually make them happen? Having the people at TED bring some of these great ideas into reality would be great. Maybe a vote for your favorite topic from the forums once a year, and TED takes on making the winning topic a reality. Of course within reason.
Nov 11 2012: Yes but currently most people are provided with shelter by taking from nature. I would prefer a more symbiotic relationship. Not many people are living in caves, igloos, or dung huts anymore. The world population and economy is growing by leaps and bounds. People who go from third to first world status will put a higher demand on the environment. However crude this idea may start out, there are clever people who could refine the methods used for construction. Technology is not just about nanobots and such anymore. Today there are several biohacker hacker spaces. Biohackers are thinking of a future where living cells are a part of our everyday lives. From bio-luminescent lighting to the fusion of the living and the electronic. There are already many species that coexist with nature in such a way that they could not live without each other. A relationship built on nurturing each other. Imagine a house that would grow leaves in the summer allowing the house to stay cooler. A house capable of providing shelter for several hundred years with little maintenance. Nature has provided us with so much, but will we eventually outpace nature?
Nov 10 2012: Thank you for sharing. I wonder if that is as far as they will take it? Still I am looking at a one piece structure. While that does seem fun and interesting, I don't think it is efficient enough. I have also seen people using mushrooms as blocks for construction. They claim it is stronger than concrete. You might find that interesting. http://inhabitat.com/phillip-ross-molds-fast-growing-fungi-into-mushroom-building-bricks-that-are-stronger-than-concrete/mushroom-furniture-10/#
Nov 9 2012: Krisztián, I agree with your philosophy completely. Slavery might still exist today in the United States if the many outweighed the few. I do not believe your scenarios were fallacious at all. There was a recent TED Talk about prisoners in Asia being forced to give their organs away. http://www.ted.com/talks/susan_lim.html However how many countries have been brain washed by their leaders? Kim Jong Il springs to mind. Take for example the fact that the Congress of the United States makes the budget. If you look at debt to GDP, and how the Stock Market is effected under different parties there definitely seems to be a bigger correlation than who we elect for our President. http://thegreatrecession.info/blog/wp-content/uploads/Federal_Debt_1901-2010.png
http://sagamorejournal.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/job-creation-graph.jpg
http://massrad.com/2010/09/17/lets-take-a-look-at-your-chart/
However the mass media would have people believe that Bush ruined the economy. Looking at these graphs I would say it is clear that the problems started in 2006 when Congress was controlled by Democrats. I hate to say it, but most of the poorest people vote Democrat. Often poverty goes hand in hand with a lack of education. In Europe their educational system out paces ours. Republicans have fought to have school vouchers implemented just as the schools of Europe use.The voice of Teacher's Unions has derailed that idea. Even though most children are doing poorly in school. Sometimes greed and sloth overrule common sense.
I watched the news weeks after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The reporter interviewed several African Americans at the airport. His first question was do you think people who look like they are from the Middle East should be detained. Everyone said "Yes". His next question was "So you believe in racial profiling?". The people being interviewed had been so brainwashed by those words that their common sense was overridden, and they changed their answer to no.
Nov 9 2012: I would say that people who do not take the time to inform themselves should not vote. It would be great if people had to fill out a basic questionnaire in order to vote. If you pass go right ahead and vote. I get sick every time a television show ask people on the street basic questions, and they can not answer them. I once watched a teacher who was unable to answer basic history questions. It would be great if fact checking were mandatory, and networks were fined for every falsehood they utter. I do not think this would hinder anybody's freedom of speech anymore than not being able to scream fire in a movie theater does. I think Orson Welles proved that freedom of speech should be used responsibly. That being said, many people listen to networks that I think lie a lot. Remember Dan Rather's fake documents. I am sure plenty of people still watch CBS News. As long as the owners think that the truth is not important to us then they sell us scandals. Compare annual sales of the National Inquire to news magazines sometime. People making uninformed decisions are dangerous not to just themselves, but to all of us. Personally I think that the only reason some people vote for a candidate is because that politician promised to get them something for nothing. Basically buying their vote. If this did not effect me then I would say it was a personal matter, but it does. There are schools in Mexico that teach that Thomas Alva Edison was Mexican, simply because his middle name sounds Hispanic. Lies are very hard to erase once they are ingrained. How many dictatorships control their people with fear and lies? Then you have to consider the "shouters". Those would be the people who you try to have an intellectual exchange with, but can not defend their beliefs. They believe that the louder ruder person wins.
I would mix both of your opinions together. I do not mind seeing a fight just as long as I am being presented with the whole truth. Halve truths are just as good as lies to me
Nov 9 2012: I do often ask myself what we as a society are working towards. I hope that at some point we free up some or all of the very limited time we have in life. I am hoping that automation will be a big break through in that area as well. I would hate to think that in 300 years people would still have to perform menial mind numbing task in order to survive. That does not mean that our time can not be filled with meaningful task as a substitute for work. On the other hand they do say "Idle hands are the devil's playground.". I see myself as an individual who contributes to the whole. I accepted a long time ago that I am where I am because of the decisions I made. People who blame others for their lot in life are usually in self denial about their own contributions towards that life. Take for instance, here in the United States immigrants often raise themselves up from poverty much quicker than those who were born here.
The internet provides a great way to explore the world now, and talk to people from those countries. I can not imagine the damage that would be done to the planet if billions of people just started exploring all at once. I do have a shower and I can buy what I need at the grocery store. I often hear about countries where people have less than I do. Rarely do I hear what happened in their part of the world to create that situation. Many times, no matter how much people assist those countries, it just continues to be a dreadful place to live. Many people sent food to North Korea as an example. Sometimes the people of those countries have to want a change bad enough to rise up against oppressors.
Another point to consider is a possible population explosion. Come on, that much free time. What do you think people will do. That would strain our resources even more. I think that one day we may be ready for that step, but we have not reached that point. People who get off the grid are the closest to that dream, if you exclude the very wealthy, in my opinion
Nov 8 2012: Hard to build an igloo in South Africa too. Who knows, maybe trees could one day be genetically modified to tolerate extreme temperatures. There has been a lot of research into extremophiles. Perhaps the solution lies within their genes.
I think it should be taken into consideration the number of pollutants that are created manufacturing the items to build a house. Manufacturing, transportation, deforestation, work related accidents, coal burned to produce electricity, strip mining for the coal, oil needed to run all of these machines, and the actual construction with large machinery could all be reduced. As a society we are breaking a lot of ground on energy conservation. Imagine how much energy would be saved by producing a home this way. I would love to see a cost analysis on this. Maybe this would make the dream of owning a home attainable by everyone. Imagine driving through a neighborhood that looks like a forest.
Nov 5 2012: It would be great if the government promoted off the grid housing more than they do. You would think that they would experiment more with public housing. Save the taxpayers money, and help the environment at the same time. I wonder how many public houses there are in the United States?
Nov 5 2012: From Prison Break? Yes, I have a tattoo of everything described in this post on my arms and back. :) Really I just enjoy when people punch holes in my ideas. It allows me to look at things from a different perspective, and reevaluate those ideas. I enjoy finding solutions to problems. A forum like TED allows me to bounce those ideas off of other geeks. I hit the jackpot when someone with real resources finds an idea interesting enough to pursue. I have seen several TED talks that were ideas that I had thought of in the past. Enough that I thought I would start posting them as I had them. When I was a child I came up with the idea of trapping light with mirrors. All of my science teachers said that it was impossible. Later in life I came upon an article were students at MIT were trapping light. http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/1998/mirror.html I had envisioned this as a way to provide solar energy at night. I never stopped asking every single science teacher about this idea. I do not believe you have to be a scientist to come up with ideas. An imagination and a love for science can go a long way. Unfortunately there aren't many places for people like that to vent their ideas.
TEDCred score: +0.70 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.
A comment on Conversation: A zone for simple first handed , 0 kilometer ideas.
A comment on Conversation: I've grown tired of TED Conversations in just one month. Why?
I also dislike that the topics expire. I am sure this is meant to keep fresh topics rising to the top. There are some really interesting ideas that just fade away. It would be nice if people could like the topic, and the more likes the topic receives, the longer the topic has its expiration date extended.
TED has three different vodcast. Yet here social and scientific topics are muddled together. I enjoy the scientific discussions, but have to wade my way through topics that are not as interesting to me. Subforums would be nice.
Do any of the more interesting ideas ever get brought to the attention of anyone that can actually make them happen? Having the people at TED bring some of these great ideas into reality would be great. Maybe a vote for your favorite topic from the forums once a year, and TED takes on making the winning topic a reality. Of course within reason.
A reply on Conversation: Could you grow a house?
A reply on Conversation: Could you grow a house?
A reply on Conversation: Do not allow paid political advertising on radio, tv, and internet.
http://sagamorejournal.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/job-creation-graph.jpg
http://massrad.com/2010/09/17/lets-take-a-look-at-your-chart/
However the mass media would have people believe that Bush ruined the economy. Looking at these graphs I would say it is clear that the problems started in 2006 when Congress was controlled by Democrats. I hate to say it, but most of the poorest people vote Democrat. Often poverty goes hand in hand with a lack of education. In Europe their educational system out paces ours. Republicans have fought to have school vouchers implemented just as the schools of Europe use.The voice of Teacher's Unions has derailed that idea. Even though most children are doing poorly in school. Sometimes greed and sloth overrule common sense.
I watched the news weeks after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The reporter interviewed several African Americans at the airport. His first question was do you think people who look like they are from the Middle East should be detained. Everyone said "Yes". His next question was "So you believe in racial profiling?". The people being interviewed had been so brainwashed by those words that their common sense was overridden, and they changed their answer to no.
A reply on Conversation: Do not allow paid political advertising on radio, tv, and internet.
I would mix both of your opinions together. I do not mind seeing a fight just as long as I am being presented with the whole truth. Halve truths are just as good as lies to me
A comment on Conversation: Redefining Individuality
The internet provides a great way to explore the world now, and talk to people from those countries. I can not imagine the damage that would be done to the planet if billions of people just started exploring all at once. I do have a shower and I can buy what I need at the grocery store. I often hear about countries where people have less than I do. Rarely do I hear what happened in their part of the world to create that situation. Many times, no matter how much people assist those countries, it just continues to be a dreadful place to live. Many people sent food to North Korea as an example. Sometimes the people of those countries have to want a change bad enough to rise up against oppressors.
Another point to consider is a possible population explosion. Come on, that much free time. What do you think people will do. That would strain our resources even more. I think that one day we may be ready for that step, but we have not reached that point. People who get off the grid are the closest to that dream, if you exclude the very wealthy, in my opinion
A reply on Conversation: Could you grow a house?
I think it should be taken into consideration the number of pollutants that are created manufacturing the items to build a house. Manufacturing, transportation, deforestation, work related accidents, coal burned to produce electricity, strip mining for the coal, oil needed to run all of these machines, and the actual construction with large machinery could all be reduced. As a society we are breaking a lot of ground on energy conservation. Imagine how much energy would be saved by producing a home this way. I would love to see a cost analysis on this. Maybe this would make the dream of owning a home attainable by everyone. Imagine driving through a neighborhood that looks like a forest.
A comment on Conversation: Could you grow a house?
A reply on Conversation: Could you grow a house?