TED Talks
Munir Virani: Why I love vultures
As natural garbage collectors, vultures are vital to our ecosystem -- so why all the bad press? Why are so many in danger of extinction? Raptor biologist Munir Virani says we need to pay more attention to these unique and misunderstood...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The myth of Jason and the Argonauts - Iseult Gillespie
Hercules, the strongest man alive with a mighty heart to match. Orpheus, charmer of nature and master of music. Castor and Pollux, the twin tricksters. The Boreads, sons of the North Wind who could hurtle through the air. Brought...
TED Talks
Stuart Firestein: The pursuit of ignorance
What does real scientific work look like? As neuroscientist Stuart Firestein jokes: It looks a lot less like the scientific method and a lot more like "farting around ... in the dark." In this witty talk, Firestein gets to the heart of...
TED Talks
Nick Bostrom: A philosophical quest for our biggest problems
Oxford philosopher and transhumanist Nick Bostrom examines the future of humankind and asks whether we might alter the fundamental nature of humanity to solve our most intrinsic problems.
TED Talks
TED: How to find a wonderful idea | OK Go
Where does OK Go come up with ideas like dancing in zero gravity, performing in ultra slow motion or constructing a warehouse-sized Rube Goldberg machine for their music videos? In between live performances of "This Too Shall Pass" and...
TED Talks
Oliver Sacks: What hallucination reveals about our minds
Neurologist and author Oliver Sacks brings our attention to Charles Bonnet syndrome -- when visually impaired people experience lucid hallucinations. He describes the experiences of his patients in heartwarming detail and walks us...
TED Talks
Antonio Damasio: The quest to understand consciousness
Every morning we wake up and regain consciousness -- that is a marvelous fact -- but what exactly is it that we regain? Neuroscientist Antonio Damasio uses this simple question to give us a glimpse into how our brains create our sense of...
TED Talks
TED: What you can do to prevent Alzheimer's | Lisa Genova
Alzheimer's doesn't have to be your brain's destiny, says neuroscientist and author of "Still Alice," Lisa Genova. She shares the latest science investigating the disease -- and some promising research on what each of us can do to build...
TED Talks
TED: Can we build AI without losing control over it? | Sam Harris
Scared of superintelligent AI? You should be, says neuroscientist and philosopher Sam Harris -- and not just in some theoretical way. We're going to build superhuman machines, says Harris, but we haven't yet grappled with the problems...
TED Talks
TED: The story of Ezra | Newton Aduaka
Filmmaker Newton Aduaka shows clips from his powerful, lyrical feature film "Ezra," about a child soldier in Sierra Leone.
SciShow
Now We Can Turn Your Thoughts Into Reality
How is it that you can be looking at a distinct object in front of you, yet picture something entirely different in your mind? The inner workings of what’s happening in our brains to allow this is a puzzle that scientists are now...
TED Talks
Sandrine Thuret: You can grow new brain cells. Here's how
Can we, as adults, grow new neurons? Neuroscientist Sandrine Thuret says that we can, and she offers research and practical advice on how we can help our brains better perform neurogenesis—improving mood, increasing memory formation and...
TED Talks
Derren Brown: Mentalism, mind reading and the art of getting inside your head
"Magic is a great analogy for how we edit reality and form a story -- and then mistake that story for the truth," says psychological illusionist Derren Brown. In a clever talk wrapped around a dazzling mind-reading performance, Brown...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: The many meanings of Michelangelo's Statue of David - James Earle
We typically experience classic works of art in a museum, stripped of their original contexts, but that serene setting can belie a tumultuous history. Take Michelangelo's statue of David: devised as a religious symbol, adopted as a...
TED Talks
Peter Molyneux: Meet Milo, the virtual boy
Peter Molyneux demos Milo, a hotly anticipated video game for Microsoft's Kinect controller. Perceptive and impressionable like a real 11-year-old, the virtual boy watches, listens and learns -- recognizing and responding to you.
TED Talks
Martin Villeneuve: How I made an impossible film
Canadian filmmaker Martin Villeneuve talks about "Mars et Avril," the sci-fi spectacular he made with virtually no money over a seven-year stretch. In this charming talk, he explains the various ways he overcame financial and logistical...
TED Talks
Henry Markram: A brain in a supercomputer
Henry Markram says the mysteries of the mind can be solved -- soon. Mental illness, memory, perception: they're made of neurons and electric signals, and he plans to find them with a supercomputer that models all the brain's...
TED Talks
Scott Fraser: Why eyewitnesses get it wrong
Scott Fraser studies how humans remember crimes -- and bear witness to them. In this powerful talk, which focuses on a deadly shooting at sunset, he suggests that even close-up eyewitnesses to a crime can create "memories" they could not...
TED Talks
TED: A one-woman global village | Sarah Jones
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.
SciShow
How Does Space Change Your Brain?
We've been sending people to space since the '60s, and we're just now starting to learn what that does to their brains.
SciShow
Boeing's Sweet New Spacesuits
Boeing has developed a snazzy new spacesuit and a couple studies give us clues about the history of Earth and the moon!
TED Talks
Martin Pistorius: How my mind came back to life — and no one knew
Imagine being unable to say, "I am hungry," "I am in pain," "thank you," or "I love you,” -- losing your ability to communicate, being trapped inside your body, surrounded by people yet utterly alone. For 13 long years, that was Martin...
Be Smart
What is Deja Vu?!
Most of us have felt it before, that strange sensation that you've been somewhere or seen something before, as if you already remembered what's happening. Are you psychic? Nope, that's just deja vu. Why does deja vu happen? Well,...
TED Talks
Milton Glaser: Using design to make ideas new
From the TED archives: The legendary graphic designer Milton Glaser dives deep into a new painting inspired by Piero della Francesca. From here, he muses on what makes a convincing poster, by breaking down an idea and making it new.