Researchers and academics around the world are in the crosshairs of an assault on the worth of the scientific method. Here’s how to stand up for science. We’re living in anti-science times. Donald Trump has denied climate change, spread unfounded claims about the links between vaccines and autism, and vociferously defended his false beliefs abo...

Today, Nov. 19, 1-5pm Eastern: TEDYouth's speaker lineup includes a MythBuster, an oceanographer turned viral video star, the "Science Babe," and a roboticist who studies flying geckos -- plus poets, musicmakers, geeks and writers -- all giving short TED-style talks for young people. And you can watch it live for free online -- in English...

With the non-profit Chirag, VK Madhavan tackles development issues in the Himalayas by helping recharge springs, attracting IT business, setting up cooperatives, and more. True to TED’s interdisciplinary nature, this Senior Fellow integrates interests as broad as traditional weather forecasting and mobile phone technology into his perspectives...

Musician Gotye posted this video over the weekend, titled “Somebodies: A YouTube Orchestra.” It’s a remix of his song “Somebody That I Used To Know” crafted by bringing together the many individuals who’ve posted themselves playing the song. [YouTube] Perhaps Gotye took a note from Erik Whitacre, who gave the amazing TEDTalk “A virtual choir...

Can students learn better by sharing what they know? TED Fellow Nina Tandon believes in the power of sharing ideas and using TED Talks in her classroom. In addition to that, she is now using the TED Conversation platform in the Bioelectricity course that she's currently teaching at Cooper Union in New York City. After hosting her own convers...

The stars of your favorite TED Talks have been busy over the past week. Below, a few newsy highlights. Postcards from Ferguson. A woman flushing pepper spray out of her eyes, a young black man against a fence with both hands in the air, a police car shrouded in tear gas. These are images from TED Fellow Jon Lowenstein’s “Postcards from Ferguson...

Just announced: TEDYouth's speaker lineup (so far) includes a MythBuster, an oceanographer turned viral video star, the "Science Babe," and a roboticist who studies flying geckos -- plus poets, musicmakers, geeks and writers -- among the 20+ speakers who'll join us November 19, 2011, at the Times Center in New York City. The theme for TED...

Prince William, His Holiness Pope Francis, Yemi Alade, Monica Araya, Xiye Bastida, Jesper Brodin, Don Cheadle, Dave Clark, Christiana Figueres, Al Gore, António Guterres, Chris Hemsworth, Kara Hurst, Lisa Jackson, Rose Mutiso, Johan Rockström, Prince Royce, Mark Ruffalo, Sigrid, Jaden Smith, Nigel Topping and Ursula von der Leyen join scientis...

Each week, TEDx chooses four of our favorite talks, highlighting just a few of the enlightening speakers from the TEDx community, and its diverse constellation of ideas worth spreading. Below, give this week’s talks a listen. Why you hate math: Laura Overdeck at TEDxWestVillageWomen When dining out, how often do you slide your check acros...

In his classic Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain wrote one of his most famous lines: "Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things can not be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime." TED is anchored by the belief that brilliance is a public good -- that inspiration, intellectualism, passion and the wond...

TEDGlobal 2013: Think Again is right around the corner -- and the program is packed with illustrious speakers addressing some of the most challenging and fascinating questions we face today. So how should you prepare for this influx of ideas from politics, science, the arts and beyond? To familiarize you with our speakers’ past work and poin...

The stage is set. The lights are on. The audience of more than 600 people who have traveled from all over the world to be inspired is ready. And ready or not, the speakers are thrust onto the stage, one by one. This is the first session of TEDGlobal 2017, themed “a new map,” a phrase that suggests that in these first talks, we will catch ...

As usual, the TED community has lots of news to share this week. Below, some highlights. Surface-level brain stimulation. The delivery of an electric current to the part of the brain involved in movement control, known as deep brain stimulation, is sometimes used to treat people with Parkinson’s disease, depression, epilepsy and obsessive...

Beliefs run deep, influencing not just whether we follow a religion but also the choices we make about every aspect of our lives. Belief is something we at TED think a lot about, and last night we held a session in our office dedicated to exploring what we believe and why we believe it. The evening was hosted by TEDx Talks manager David Webb...

So, you might know me. I ran the digital side of The Onion for a long time; I’m the author of How to Be Black. People call me to do things like host White House events on innovation, do the wrap-up at TED salons, join semi-secret cabals at MIT, and comment on the teevee. The underlying constant in my multi-hyphenate life is running my creative c...

Can’t wait for TEDGlobal 2014? We’re here to help! Spend the next two weeks curling up with these books by the wonderful speakers who will grace the stage in Rio. Memoir American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood, by Marie Arana. The writer's classic, in which she shares her own experience growing up between Peru and the United States, whic...

Architecture and microbiology may seem like an odd couple, but TED Senior Fellow Jessica Green would beg to differ. In today’s talk, she reveals what’s teeming all over the surfaces around us, and how it can help us build smarter, healthier buildings. As the founding director of the Biology in the Built Environment Center at the University of...

Please enjoy your roundup of TED-related news: Prosthetics that feel more natural. A study in Science Robotics lays out a surgical technique developed by Shriya Srinivasan, Hugh Herr and others that may help prosthetics feel more like natural limbs. During an amputation, the muscle pairs that allow our brains to sense how much force is ap...

Counting down the final hours of the workweek is a Friday afternoon tradition. And today, you have extra incentive to watch the clock -- TEDxWomen kicks off at 6pm in Washington, DC. While one session of the event -- “Poverty and Plenty,” hosted by Pat Mitchell of The Paley Center for Media -- is taking place tonight, five more sessions of t...

After three days of astonishing speakers and bold ideas, you may be asking yourself: Where do we go now? The answer: forward. The final session of TEDWomen 2018, hosted by TEDWomen curator Pat Mitchell, featured a dynamic lineup of forward thinkers: Ariana Curtis, Galit Ariel, Majd Mashharawi, Soraya Chemaly, Katharine Hayhoe, Cecile Rich...

Once you've watched John Bohannon's talk and dance performance from TEDxBrussels (watch it on TED.com), you may have the same question the TED Blog had: How in the world did you do that? So we asked, and here's what he sent us in reply: A Modest Proposal For Preventing the Artists of the United States of America From Being a Burden to Th...

  Two years ago, a chance discussion with a group of Gulf of Mexico fishermen changed the course of Cesar Harada’s life. The TED Senior Fellow had landed his dream job at MIT in Boston, but after hearing first-hand accounts of the conditions in the Gulf following the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill of 2010, Harada tendered his resignation and...

Nigerian-American Nnedi Okorafor writes the kind of drop-everything, Africa-based fantasy and sci-fi that she never saw on bookshelves growing up. Here, she talks about the authors that shaped her, her inspirations (traffic! jellyfish!) and her collaboration with Marvel. Nnedi Okorafor is obsessed with bugs. More specifically grasshoppers, but ...

The theme of TED2019 is "Bigger than us," and day 1 did not disappoint. Even though it had just three sessions, they were chock full of compelling ideas and calls for action. Here are seven takeaways:  We're shining light into some really dark places. Sheperd Doeleman, head of the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration, takes us inside the...

As usual, the TED community has lots of news to share this week. Below, some highlights. Man vs. machine? It took Danit Peleg just 100 hours to print the dress worn by fellow TEDster Amy Purdy in the opening ceremony of the Paralympics in Rio (if that sounds slow, consider that it took her 300 hours to print a dress a year ago). Peleg had ...

Who says homes need to be built out of bricks and mortar? Or that blimps can't be used for public transport? Architect Mitchell Joachim shares his remarkable concepts for creating earth-friendly next-gen urban human habitats. Imagine a future in which dismantled Navy ships create hurricane-proof coastlines for cities; airborne buses collect com...

By Baratunde Thurston So, you might know me. I ran the digital side of The Onion for a long time; I’m the author of How To Be Black. People call me to do things like host White House events on innovation, do the wrap-up at TED salons, join semi-secret cabals at MIT, and comment on the teevee. The underlying constant in my multi-hyphenate ...

How should we start to tackle the Zika virus? MIT's José Gómez-Márquez and Lee Gehrke share their bright idea. Not enough is known about the Zika virus, but with links to brain inflammation and microcephaly, it’s clear that it has devastating effects -- and it isn’t going away any time soon. And there’s another issue: The medical community isn’...

In 2009, political scientist P.W. Singer gave a TED Talk in which he predicted that the growing use of robots in war would change the realities of combat. Four years, and thousands of US drone strikes later, he talks to journalist Matthew Power; an edited version of their conversation follows. Matthew Power: In a recent article you discussed ...

As usual, the TED community has lots of news to share this week. Below, some highlights. A new civic gathering. To cope with political anxiety after the 2016 elections, Eric Liu has started a gathering called Civic Saturday. He explained the event in The Atlantic as “a civic analogue to church: a gathering of friends and strangers in a co...