Science, technology, engineering, art and math talks that will make school classes feel a little fresher.

These women are trailblazers inspiring a new generation of girls to follow their lead and change the ratio in STEM (science, math, engineering and tech).

In the quest to map the brain, many scientists have attempted the incredibly daunting task of recording the activity of each neuron. Gero Miesenboeck works backward -- manipulating specific neurons to figure out exactly what they do, through a series of stunning experiments that reengineer the way fruit flies percieve light.

From string theory to geopolitics, neuroscience to tissue engineering, watch these talks that make complex topics more understandable.

While it may not be simple or easy, these fascinating talks make aerospace engineering a little more accessible to the average person.

At the BIF innovation summit, Cat Laine draws on the Greek myth of Tantalus to explain the frustration developing countries face. She shows how we might help communities rich in human capital, but poor in resources and infrastructure, with cleverly engineered solutions.

Glowing dogs ... mice that grow human ears ... bioethicist Paul Root Wolpe describes an astonishing series of recent bio-engineering experiments, and asks: Isn't it time to set some ground rules?

In a single year, there are 200-300 million cases of malaria and 50-100 million cases of dengue fever worldwide. So: Why haven't we found a way to effectively kill mosquitos yet? Hadyn Parry presents a fascinating solution: genetically engineering male mosquitos to make them sterile, and releasing the insects into the wild, to cut down on diseas...

In the mid-19th century, suspension bridges were collapsing all across Europe. Their industrial cables frayed and snapped under the weight of their decks. So when German American engineer John Roebling proposed building the largest and most expensive suspension bridge ever conceived, New York City officials were understandably skeptical. Alex Ge...

Pamela Ronald studies the genes that make plants more resistant to disease and stress. In an eye-opening talk, she describes her decade-long quest to isolate a gene that allows rice to survive prolonged flooding. She shows how the genetic improvement of seeds saved the Hawaiian papaya crop in the 1990s — and makes the case that modern genetics i...

Each of our bodies is utterly unique, which is a lovely thought until it comes to treating an illness -- when every body reacts differently, often unpredictably, to standard treatment. Tissue engineer Nina Tandon talks about a possible solution: Using pluripotent stem cells to make personalized models of organs on which to test new drugs and tre...

Katherine Kuchenbecker works on incorporating the sense of touch directly into virtual objects. Imagine being able to feel textures on your digital screens.

Nestled in the forests of Canada sits the world's longest beaver dam. This 850-meter-long structure is large enough to be seen in satellite imagery and has dramatically transformed the region, creating a pond containing 70 million liters of water. But dams of any size can have huge impacts on their environment. So how exactly do beavers build th...

What did the world learn from the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010? That shoddy buildings and bad planning can make a terrible situation even worse. "Haiti was not a natural disaster," says TED Fellow Peter Haas. "It was a disaster of engineering." The solution: Help builders on the ground get trained in modern engineering practi...

Joachim Horn wants engineering to feel more like cooking -- so he developed simple "ingredients" that can be easily mixed to make smart technology. By reinfusing technological engineering with joy and ease, anyone can be an inventor. SAM Labs powers K-12 educators with no frills, pedagogically sound solutions created by educators and researchers...

When Bran Ferren was just 9, his parents took him to see the Pantheon in Rome — and it changed everything. In that moment, he began to understand how the tools of science and engineering become more powerful when combined with art, with design and beauty. Ever since, he's been searching for a convincing modern-day equivalent to Rome's masterpiec...

Neuroscientist Sergiu P. Pasca has made it his life's work to understand how the human brain builds itself -- and what makes it susceptible to disease. In a mind-blowing talk laden with breakthrough science, he shows how his team figured out how to grow "organoids" and what they call brain "assembloids" -- self-organizing clumps of neural tissu...

Once known for entertaining millions by creating special effects for Hollywood, theme parks and Broadway, Applied Minds cofounder Bran Ferren now solves impossible tech challenges with previously unimaginable inventions.

These speakers weave together some of our most interesting talks on the fine arts of knitting, crocheting and fabrics in general.

As we move through the world, we have an innate sense of how things feel -- the sensations they produce on our skin and how our bodies orient to them. Can technology leverage this? In this fun, fascinating TED-Ed lesson, learn about the field of haptics, and how it could change everything from the way we shop online to how dentists learn the tel...

If you build it, they will come... But what happens when robots, buildings and other marvels can build themselves? These talks explore this (increasingly real) reality.

The age of bioengineering is upon us, with scientists' understanding of how to engineer cells, tissues and organs improving at a rapid pace. Here, how this could affect the future of our physical bodies.

Robert Lang is a pioneer of the newest kind of origami -- using math and engineering principles to fold mind-blowingly intricate designs that are beautiful and, sometimes, very useful.

Tal Golesworthy is an engineer and entrepreneur, working in research and development of combustion and air pollution control -- until he decided to innovate in his own health.

Sarah Bergbreiter packs advanced technologies into tiny robots that can overcome obstacles 80 times their height.

Flanked by two powerful nations, the English Channel has long been one of the world's most important maritime passages. Yet for most of its history, crossing was a dangerous prospect. Engineers proposed numerous plans for spanning the gap, including a design for an underwater passage more than twice the length of any existing tunnel. Alex Gendle...

Scientists and entrepreneurs have been cooking up innovative ways to put food on our tables. What are they serving up next?

International aid groups make the same mistakes over and over again. David Damberger analyzes his own engineering failure in India -- and calls for his friends in the development sector to publicly admit, scrutinize and learn from their missteps.

Integrating disparate national electricity systems into a smart grid allows us to integrate renewable energy, be more efficient and empower consumers to use power wisely. But as we add intelligence to these systems, we introduce a vulnerability into it as well. Lorie Wigle outlines a new project to protect these complex and vital grids from attack.

What do you do when the nearest market is millions of miles away and delivery isn't an option? In this fun and educational talk, biochemist Sarah Kessans explains how advances in genetic engineering can enable us to synthesize everything we need to eat in space -- and make it taste good.