How often do you think about the air you're breathing? Probably not enough, says entrepreneur and TED Fellow Romain Lacombe. He introduces Flow: a personal air-quality tracker that fits in your hand and monitors pollution levels in real...

All around the world, millions of people are flipping a switch, plugging in, and pressing an 'on' button every second. So how much electricity does humanity use? And how much will we need in the future? Discover how much energy it takes...

An essential part of engineering is engineering design. Today we’ll see how design synthesis helps you put together the components of a process and decide what techniques are needed to solve your problem. We’ll explain the need test...

David Thouless, Duncan Haldane, and Michael Kosterlitz won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2016 for discovering that even microscopic matter at the smallest scale can exhibit macroscopic properties and phases that are topological. But -...

Sending rockets into space requires sacrificing expensive equipment, burning massive amounts of fuel, and risking potential catastrophe. So in the space race of the 21st century, some engineers are abandoning rockets for something more...

The big blue buildings of Ikea have sprouted solar panels and wind turbines; inside, shelves are stocked with LED lighting and recycled cotton. Why? Because as Steve Howard puts it: “Sustainability has gone from a nice-to-do to a...

Today, we're going to talk about the gaming devices that combine the screen, speakers, controls, and computer into one neat little package - that's right we're talking about handheld game consoles. Handhelds have actually been around...

Perpetual motion machines - devices that can do work indefinitely without any external energy source - have captured many inventors' imaginations because they could totally transform our relationship with energy. There's just one...

When radium was first discovered, its luminous green color inspired people to add it into beauty products and jewelry. It wasn't until much later that we realized that radium's harmful effects outweighed its visual benefits....

Every 24 hours, wind generates enough kinetic energy to produce roughly 35 times more electricity than humanity uses each day. And unlike coal or oil, this resource is totally renewed each day. So how can we harness this incredible...

Cities designed like families can last for generations. Skeptical? Look to master architect Liu Thai Ker, who transformed Singapore into a modern marvel with his unique approach to sustainable urban design. Liu shares creative wisdom and...

Cities are becoming increasingly privatized: commercial real estate dominates the streets, carving up open space that once belonged to the public and selling it as a commodity to the highest bidder. Architect Elizabeth Diller explores...

Designer and architect Neri Oxman is leading the search for ways in which digital fabrication technologies can interact with the biological world. Working at the intersection of computational design, additive manufacturing, materials...

Investigate the theories surrounding cosmic dust bunnies and discover how the tiny particles could hold the key to the formation of life on Earth. -- Consider the spot where you’re sitting. Travel backwards in time and it might’ve...

Margaret Wertheim leads a project to re-create the creatures of the coral reefs using a crochet technique invented by a mathematician -- celebrating the amazements of the reef, and deep-diving into the hyperbolic geometry underlying...

From London to Tokyo, climate change is causing cities to sink -- and our modern concrete infrastructure is making us even more vulnerable to severe flooding, says landscape architect and TED Fellow Kotchakorn Voraakhom. But what if we...

Biodesigner Natsai Audrey Chieza prototypes the future, imagining a world where people and nature can thrive together. In this wildly imaginative talk, she shares the vision behind her innovation lab, which works at the intersection of...

What if robots could build and optimize themselves -- with little to no help from humans? Computer scientist Emma Hart is working on a new technology that could make "artificial evolution" possible. She explains how the three ingredients...

In elections, your vote may be influenced by design of the ballot itself, especially when you don’t have strong feelings about which candidate to elect.

In January 1953, a tidal surge shook the North Sea. The titanic waves flooded the Dutch coastline, killing almost 2,000 people. 54 years later, a similar storm threatened the region. But this time, they were ready. This was thanks to a...

* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. Theaster Gates, a potter by training and a social activist by calling, wanted to do something about the sorry state...

Designer Ross Lovegrove expounds his philosophy of "fat-free" design and offers insight into several of his extraordinary products, including the Ty Nant water bottle and the Go chair.

Joel Jackson wants to reimagine transportation around the needs of the African consumer. He's designed an SuV that's rugged enough for long stretches of uneven terrain and affordable enough to be within reach of those who need it most....

* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences.

What is a border? It's a line on a map, a place where cultures mix and merge in beautiful, sometimes violent...