TED Community » Greg McWhorter

More About Me

I'm passionate about

The history of mass communications: radio, televison, and film. The preservation of historical and cultural artifacts. Archeology. History. Writing. Vinyl records. Silent films. Radio shows.

An idea worth spreading

"Only a dead fish flows with the stream." -unknown

Talk to me about

History, music, literature, writing, preservation, films, ephemera, antiques, art, drama...

People don't know that I'm good at

Putting together events like TEDx & rock concerts. I am a spatial engineer. I conceptualize things and make them work out. I am equally good at art and writing. I am a good public speaker.

Comments

• TEDCred score: +1302.60 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.

• A comment on Conversation: If you could choose any comic hero to give a TED Talk, who would it be and why?

  Apr 17 2013: The Watcher from the Fantastic Four comics. Think of all the history of the cosmos that he could impart to us!
• +2

  A comment on Conversation: When to write a book?

  Apr 17 2013: When you feel the urge to...

• A comment on Conversation: Games that teach and make you learn new things.

  Apr 17 2013: The guy who created the Atari 2600 has a new educational system of learning games that he is developing. He believes that if we can tie concepts across the disciplines to video games, students will be engaged to learn. I don't have the link, but his site is called BrainRush.

• A comment on Conversation: Is there a link between insanity and genius?

  Aug 29 2012: I think that sometimes they are one and the same...at least to a degree. I'm sure that many people thought Einstein was crazy, but we look to him as a pure genius now.

• A comment on Conversation: Which is your Favourite book????... Why do you want to remember that????

  Aug 29 2012: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler. Gripping intrigue, girls, and guns. Snappy dialogue. I love a lot of books though. Almost anything by Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Jim Thompson, Fredric Brown, HP Lovecraft....those are the BIGGIES for me!

• A comment on Conversation: Your favorite line or Quote to motivate and encourage others??????

  Aug 29 2012: "Only a dead fish flows with the stream." -unknown
• +2

  A comment on Conversation: Do you find it difficult to engage in intellectual conversations with people in general?

  Aug 29 2012: With "general" people, yes!
• +2

  A comment on Conversation: What is the most painful lesson you experienced and you wish other people to avoid your experience

  Apr 27 2012: Yes. I never listened to figures of authority growing up. I rebelled against the world. I thought I had all the answers.
  
  I try to tell my students about my personal experience in a way that I try to relate to them and explain how I was not much different than they are. I share my ups and downs with them about growing up and remind them not to fall into the traps that I did. I guess the main difference with me is that I don't simply tell them "Stay in school.", I also use my own life as an example of the reasons why. My students seem to get it so I hope that I make a difference. Do I actually? Only time will tell....

• A reply on Conversation: If you have chance to perform a TED talk , what topic you will choose?

  Apr 27 2012: Yes. At least that is true for the collections that have been turned into museums and somewhat with my own collections. I think people often find a unique way to make their collections "pay off" in some way. My interest in records has certainly gotten me some great benefits and some commercial gain (not that much in actual dollars though...yet).

• A comment on Conversation: If you have chance to perform a TED talk , what topic you will choose?

  Apr 26 2012: I would probably talk about the art of collecting things and that hoarding certain things can lead other things. Most museums started from the basis of one person's collection of antiquities. It took someone who cared, to preserve the past for others to enjoy and learn from. We stigmatize hoarding through crazy TV shows, but my own obsessions with books and records have led me to writing about the subjects of my collections and have led me to meeting some of my cultural heroes and even helped me in TV and movie appearances taht woudl never have happened if it had not been for my collecting passions. I would share with others that collecting can be beneficial if done with purpose and passion.