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 ...

In this overscheduled, overstimulating world, it’s no surprise that many of us feel like introverts at some point during our days. In an excerpt from The TED Interview podcast, writer Susan Cain talks about how workplaces can better support people's quieter side and what helped her conquer her fear of public speaking. In 2012, Susan Cain kicked...

When TED Radio Hour premieres on Friday, March 1st, a new -- but familiar -- voice will be manning the mic. Guy Raz, the former host of Weekend All Things Considered and the creator of Three-Minute Fiction, is the new host of the show, which is returning for its second season after being named Best New Audio Podcast of 2012 by iTunes the first t...

Courage comes in many forms. In the face of fear, it’s the conviction to dream, dare, innovate, create and transform. It’s the ability to try and try again, to admit when we’re wrong and stand up for what’s right. TED and Tommy Hilfiger both believe in the power of courageous ideas to break conventions and celebrate individuality -- it’s ...

Pastor Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose-Driven Life," reflects on his own crisis of purpose in the wake of his book's wild success. He explains his belief that God's intention is for each of us to use our talents and influence to do good.

Earlier this month, Merriam-Webster announced that 2017's word of the year is feminism. Searches for the word on the dictionary website spiked throughout the year, beginning in January around the Women's March, again after Kellyanne Conway said in an interview that she didn't consider herself a feminist, and during some of feminism's many po...

Being lucky in love isn't like being struck by lightning -- it’s a lot less random (and painful). Psychologist Barry Schwartz and biological anthropologist Helen Fisher share their opinions on the subject. “A lucky relationship is created, not discovered,” Barry Schwartz said when Barnaby and I called him one morning. A longtime professor at...

By far the most viewed talk from TED2012 was given by an introvert who doesn't like talking. Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, quietly and powerfully delivered a call to action: take introverts seriously and understand what they can do in the right environment. There is, of course, mu...

In 2013, TED published more than 250 talks, each with an idea worth spreading. And yet, certain ideas seemed to resonate throughout the year, as if speakers at different events were singing parts of the same choral symphony. As 2013 draws to a close, here is a look at some of the big ideas we parsed this year. Consider it the rousing finale ...

Over the past five days, the TED2017 conference has explored the theme “The Future You.” This has spanned an incredible number of ideas on a huge array of topics. Below, a tour through some of the key themes that emerged -- through the week and in the double-stuffed session of day 5. All eyes on AI. How will artificial intelligence reshap...

Want to prevent yawns and glazed-over eyes? Before you deliver your next speech, pitch or address, learn how to create exceptional slides by following these rules (with real before-and-afters). Slides are an expected and crucial part of most speeches, presentations, pitches and addresses. They can simplify complex information or messages, showc...

TED science curator David Biello exposes the odd couple behind the de-extinction movement: scientists and hunters. What does this say about our ambivalent attitude toward animals? Our world is the setting of a great murder mystery: Where did all the big animals go? Although Earth is the scene of the crime for many deaths -- it is estimated that...

The stars of your favorite TED Talks have been busy over the past week. Below, a few newsy highlights. Inside the mind of a murderer. What makes murderers do what they do? A BBC piece revealed that some murderers have reduced activity in their prefrontal cortex, which controls emotional impulses, and over-activity in their amygdala, which gen...

Many companies have made strides when it comes to prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), but one group remains largely left out: people who have been involved in the criminal justice system. Social impact investor Nyra Jordan introduces us to "fair chance hiring" -- the practice of hiring people with criminal justice records -- and...

Legacy is a delightfully complex concept, and it's one that the TED@Westpac curators took on with gusto for the daylong event held in Sydney, Australia, on Monday December 11th. Themed around the idea of "The Future Legacy," the day was packed with 15 speakers and two performers and hosted by TED's Cyndi Stivers and TED speaker and monster p...

Becoming an Old Person in Training allows us to choose purpose and intent over dread and denial and connects us empathically with our future selves, says author and activist Ashton Applewhite. What’s the best answer to “How old are you?” Tell your questioner the truth -- and then ask why it matters. Ask what shifted in their mind once they had ...

Day 3 of TED2019 featured three sessions of talks, a live podcast taping -- and some world-changing ideas. First, some news: You could give the next best TED Talk. If you have an idea the world needs to hear, put your name forward to speak at next year’s TED conference! We’ve just opened applications in our TED2020 Idea Search, a world...

Thursday marked the first-ever TED en Español speaker event hosted by TED in its New York City office. The all-Spanish daytime event featured eight speakers, a musical performance, five short films and fifteen one-minute talks given by members of the audience. The New York event is just the latest addition to TED’s sweeping new Spanish-la...

In this hilariously lively performance, actress Sarah Jones channels an opinionated elderly Jewish woman, a fast-talking Dominican college student and more, giving TED2009 just a sample of her spectacular character range.

With days to go until TED2015, our speakers are putting the final touches on their talks. But that’s hardly all they’ve been up to. Check out which speaker is investing $52 million in cutting-edge vaccine technology, which speaker will have a Ken Burns moment at the end of the month, and which speaker created a fashion show inspired by Agath...

Jim Crupi is a management consultant with a long, brilliant resume. (Heard of CNN? He helped set the strategic stage that led to its creation.) Here, he distills some of his best leadership advice into one memorable metaphor. Music is all-consuming. Our reaction to a great song can be so visceral that we are forever connected to it. Hearing tha...

It’s voting day in the United States. As Americans line up at the polls to vote for Barack Obama or Mitt Romney, eyes around the world are fixed on the contest, which predictions say will come down to a few key issues. So what has mattered most to Americans in this election? The TED Blog read this Gallup poll, which reveals the issues citize...

At TED2019, as we explored concepts, research findings and insights bigger than us (you see what we did there?), these conference shorts cleansed our mental palettes between TED Talks and helped playfully introduce sessions throughout the week. Enjoy these hand-picked videos from curators CC Hutten and Jonathan Wells that capture the kaleidos...

The advance toward a more connected, united, compassionate world is in peril. Some voices are demanding a retreat, back to a world where insular nations battle for their own interests. But most of the big problems we face are collective in nature and global in scope. What can we do, together, about it? In a night of talks curated and host...

Using examples from vacations to colonoscopies, Nobel laureate and founder of behavioral economics Daniel Kahneman reveals how our "experiencing selves" and our "remembering selves" perceive happiness differently. This new insight has profound implications for economics, public policy -- and our own self-awareness.

What happens when the technology for manipulation on the neural level becomes possible? Could there be a future therapy for people with depression or PTSD -- or heartbreak? Do people really want to have their memories manipulated? Elizabeth Loftus, Steve Ramirez and Xu Liu grapple with some big questions. In late 2013, MIT neuroscientists Xu ...

Countdown is a global initiative to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis. Watch the talks, interviews and performances from the Countdown Global Launch at ted.com/countdown. The world around us is mainly made of two things: nature and the materials that we extract from it. To fight climate change, we need to protect and regenerate n...

For babies and toddlers Quantum Entanglement for Babies by Chris Ferrie This book is a wonderfully simple, visual explanation of one of the most complex and counterintuitive scientific ideas of our time. It’s fun for little ones but equally delightful for non-babies. -- Vikram Sharma (TED Talk: How quantum physics can make encryption stronger...

All over the world, land is turning into desert at an alarming rate. Biologist Allan Savory has dedicated a lifetime to figuring out what’s causing this “desertification.” Finally, after decades of work in the field, Savory discovered a radical solution—one that went against everything scientists had always thought. He used huge herds of liv...

Outside.in's Steven Johnson says the Web is like a city: built by many people, completely controlled by no one, intricately interconnected and yet functioning as many independent parts. While disaster strikes in one place, elsewhere, life goes on.