I'm just a retired high school science teacher. I find many TED talks intriguing. Some of the Talkers that come to mind are Hans Rosling, Steven Pinker, Dan Gilbert, Sheena Lyengar, Jonathan Haidt, Sheryl WuDunn, Gever Tulley, Robin Wright, to name but a few. As more come to mind, I'll expand the list.
I don't do "passionate". However, I like the recognition of Multiple Intelligences. Conversely, Democracy's tenuous health (IMO) worries me. Humor is good, maybe I'm passionate about it as a balm.
Any idea that reduces the prevalence of visceral hatred in America of political opponents.
Recently, in conversation with a neighbor regarding socio-political affairs, the USA came up. My neighbor's first comment concerned the appalling visceral hatred of her young American nieces toward Hillary Clinton. I too have been concerned about this growing bile for some time.
On 9/11 I saw a brief interview with an intelligent, elderly American; one of the many good souls, of which your nation can be proud. She said, with great anguish in her voice,"WHY do THEY hate us so?" This question, critical to the US's future, has reverberated through the intervening years. I refer you to Ron Paul's insights on this issue.
I would argue that there is a question even more urgent to American Democracy. A question I also ask myself, as my own reflex reactions to the likes of Cheney and Rumsfeld are all too vitriolic.
The question is this, "Americans, how have YOU come to hate each other so?"
whatever fascinates you! Also, how can we bridge the gap(s) to work more constructively with our political opposites. Jonathan Haidt's work ?? ('tho, I was dismayed at the polar-ized/ing comments)
tinkering - and neither did I until Gever Tulley's talk had me reflect upon my own five decades of tinkering …
I spend too much time viewing TED lectures. And, simultaneously, not enough.
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A comment on Talk: ShaoLan: Learn to read Chinese ... with ease!
BUT, the (unavoidable) problem I have with this type of method is that you learn characters in an order determined by graphically related characters. In practice, for my purposes I want to learn characters in order of their utility to me as a tourist and in general, communicating with Chinese people. While a woman arguing about adultery is 'cute' (& undeniably easy to learn), I have not had much use for the phrase. Maybe, I should just be thankful.
Now, I am learning Chinese rather casually, for fun, not in a rigorous course. I learn by extension from what I know. A nurse at my father's nursing home taught me "Are you going home now?" And it is simple to answer, "Yes, I am going home now." My extension is "No, I am busy today and have other chores." This required me to learn three new characters and a new meaning for a fourth.
But then I obviously have motivation, a component mentioned by others. In truth, I'm not clear as to what my motivation is - however, it suffices. Idle retired curiosity, I guess.
A reply on Talk: BLACK: My journey to yo-yo mastery
A reply on Talk: BLACK: My journey to yo-yo mastery
In fact, the 'Entertainment' part of TED is not my favorite part in general, tho a few exceptions do come quickly to mind.
In addition to the entertainment value of this piece, I see an amazing example of overcoming low self-esteem - a struggle for many in their early teens. And THAT I see as an idea worth spreading. It might be more accurate to say 'an example worth spreading' in this case.
A comment on Talk: Mitch Resnick: Let's teach kids to code
Probably the most valuable lesson they learned is that complex tasks can be accomplished by repeating and combining simpler tasks - which themselves can be built up from even simpler tasks.
I sure can see that Scratch would be a blast with kids! And starting at a very early age!
A comment on Talk: Mitch Resnick: Let's teach kids to code
Pre-retirement, I taught high school physics. For years I had used Apple's HyperCard to quickly throw together all sorts of demos & animations for physics & other sciencets. I was not thrilled with HyperCard's demise.
I got into other pursuits building physical demos that utilized Vernier & Pasco data acquisition software & hardware. Waist high photogates for a kid running down a hallway, or a commuter train acceleration out of the station and so on. But I still wanted a quick and easy demo software. We all know where this is leading …
One day, some 12(?) years ago, a friend asked me if I had heard of "Scratch" from MIT. I took a look and was immediately pleased as I had been interested in Visual Programming Languages since stumbling on Prograph some years prior. Scratch definitely looked easy enough - targeted at 10 yr olds as it is!
In no time I had some little simulation running - I don't recall which one I did first. I'll admit it - it was fun! There has always been a lot of kid in me. Scratch didn't care if the object being animated was a cute kitty dancing on a stage or a projectile fired from a cannon with simultaneous horizontal and vertical components of the motion show along the edges of the screen.
I ended up coding dozens of simulations and demos from simple 1st, snd & 3rd class levers ot charge particles in electric and magnetic fields, mass specs, CRTs, what have you.
Eventually I tackled projects where Scratch's limited data structures had me using frustrating inefficient kluges. But then I reminded myself of Scratch's real raison d'être 8^). I don't know what happened with Scratch data structures subsequently.
All that ended some 8 years ago when health concerns had me retire a few years early. Regardless, it's good to see that Scratch is still going strong. And it's not necessarily just for kids - kids at heart also can find it useful!
A comment on Talk: Dan Dennett: Cute, sexy, sweet, funny
As to "strange". I was hiking up a canyon, when I happened upon a jumble of rotten logs which I took at first for an old blow-down. However, I noted that SEVERAL of the logs were oriented at angles near 90°. Was this a rotten blow-down or, WAS this the rotten remains of an old trapper's cabin? Was it the product of random processes, or of intelligent design? Well, I had to get going and never did decide which. The degree of order teetered, as it were, on the cusp between the two explanations.
The point is, that much of the structure we see around us we DO explain by intelligent design - even surprisingly low levels of order - like my Schrödinger's cabin. I don't look at this computer monitor and attribute it to being the current state of a series of random processes. I doubt anyone does,
Therein lay Darwin's genius - he saw a counter intuitive explanation for some very high levels of complexity.
It IS a strange inversion of reasoning. As I look around this room, only in that mirror do I see a product of Darwin's strange reasoning - all else I correctly attribute to intelligent design. OK, two exceptions, the wood in the furniture and BLACK buttons on a BLACK DVD player to be used in a DIMLY lit room.
So, I see logical as well as religious hurdles in accepting Darwin's strange reasoning. The transition form non-living to living being a particular challenge for me - and I am not lonely here. But Darwin's strangeness remains after I discount intelligent design for philosophical (not scientific) reasons.
A comment on Talk: Dan Dennett: Cute, sexy, sweet, funny
Another case that baffles me is Music. AND, should I succumb to Alzheimer's, I'll still recognize the Beatles, well, their music, long after I fail to recognize my own kids. I have, somewhere - but have yet to read - a book by Oliver Sachs that may address this conundrum, at least in part.
A reply on Conversation: What can we do, as citizens to promote tolerance in our daily lives ?
( http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/kathryn_schulz_on_being_wrong.html )
A reply on Conversation: What can we do, as citizens to promote tolerance in our daily lives ?
This is why I, as an outsider, am dismayed at the extreme polarization I see in US politics - I, rightly or wrongly, often get the sense of a visceral hatred of the other side. One can argue that it is just rhetoric, but it has been repeatedly observed in this discussion - model what you wish to see in your society.
And yes, I am also concerned by the polarization I see here at home in our politics, and the degree of personal, negative advertising in our recent elections.
A reply on Conversation: What can we do, as citizens to promote tolerance in our daily lives ?
Alas, I have few insights into bullying, as, with one possible exception, I never bullied (as best I know), nor, with 2.5 exceptions, I was never bullied.
The 0.5 was almost sad. Bridge in the middle of the H.S. campus & seniors occasionally extorted lunch money form frosh (35¢ back then). The guy wo stopped me was built like a brick s-house with half the IQ. He stops me. I says, 'Look, Stan, that little weasel is sneaking right behind you!' Stan turns his 300lbs to look & off I run, Maybe I bullied him. Got to know Stan a little bit later on. Doubt his IQ made 70, but he seemed to be a good heart - I figure he may have been put pu to the extortion thing - had his heart been into it, I might not have faired so well …
The pseudo bullying, I do not understand but am ashamed of to this day. There was a gal, say 'Melodie' - this was oh, grade 4-5, I'd guess. Well, Melodie was bad news. I treated her like she had leprosy, like she was below the bottom of the caste system - and as I recall, so did others. In grade 7 math I was once seated next to her (to deal with a talking problem) I was horrified, I had to sit next to Melodie!! Desparate times, desperate measures. I talked with, gulp, Melodie. Nonstop. 2 days. Before I was moved, to my ultimate relief! Let me now tell you about Melodie. She was bright, cute (but she had a very fine dark mustache - yuk!), clever, and friendly, in spite of our treatment of her. Why in the hell did I treat her like that!?!? Was I nuts? As I say, not exactly bullying, but reprehensible none the less. I'm sure she got the last laugh & has done VERY well in life.