TED-Ed

Ancient monuments give us clues to astonishing past civilizations -- but they're under threat from pollution, war, neglect. Ben Kacyra, who invented a groundbreaking 3D scanning system, is using his invention to scan and preserve the world's heritage in archival detail. (Watch to the end for a little demo.) Talk by Ben Kacyra. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How can we begin to understand the way the brain works? The same way we begin to understand a city: by making a map. In this visually stunning talk, Allan Jones shows how his team is mapping which genes are turned on in each tiny region, and how it all connects up. Talk by Allan Jones. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-science-of-spiciness-rose-evelethWhen you take a bite of a hot pepper, your body reacts as if your mouth is on fire -- because that's essentially what you've told your brain! Rose Eveleth details the science and history behind spicy foods, giving insights into why some people continue to pay the painful price for a little spice. Lesson by Rose Evelet...

Discover what happens in your body when you have a fever and why its role in our immune response remains a mystery to scientists. --There are many mysteries around fever, but we do know that all mammals, some birds and even a few invertebrate and plant species feel fever’s heat. It has persisted for over 600 million years of evolution. But it has a significant cost: for every degree increase in te...

Is there extraterrestrial life in our solar system? Or are we alone? Take a journey to the ocean worlds on Jupiter and Saturn to investigate the possibility. --Deep in our solar system, a new era of exploration is unfolding. Beneath the thick ice of Europa; in the vapor plumes on Enceladus; and within the methane lakes of Titan, scientists are hunting for extraterrestrial life. These moons are ‘oc...

What if Andy Warhol had it wrong, and instead of being famous for 15 minutes, we're only anonymous for that long? In this short talk, Juan Enriquez looks at the surprisingly permanent effects of digital sharing on our personal privacy. He shares insight from the ancient Greeks to help us deal with our new "digital tattoos." Talk by Juan Enriquez. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f...

As machines take on more jobs, many find themselves out of work or with raises indefinitely postponed. Is this the end of growth? No, says Erik Brynjolfsson -- it's simply the growing pains of a radically reorganized economy. A riveting case for why big innovations are ahead of us ... if we think of computers as our teammates. Be sure to watch the opposing viewpoint from Robert Gordon. Talk by Eri...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/is-there-a-difference-between-art-and-craft-laura-morelliWas da Vinci an artistic genius? Sure, but he was also born in the right place at the right time -- pre-Renaissance, Western artists got little individual credit for their work. And in many non-Western cultures, traditional forms have always been prized over innovation. So, where do we get our noti...

Dig in to the history of the Roman Empire’s staged gladiatorial naval battles and how they flooded the Colosseum to reenact famous battles.--Starting in 80 CE, residents of Rome and visitors from across the Roman Empire would fill the stands of the Colosseum to see gladiators duel, animals fight and chariots race around the arena. And for the grand finale, water poured into the arena basin, submer...

Practice more problem-solving at https://brilliant.org/TedEd/ --After many adventures in Wonderland, Alice has once again found herself in the court of the temperamental Queen of Hearts. She’s about to pass through the garden undetected, when she overhears the king and queen arguing that 64 is the same as 65. Can Alice prove the queen wrong and escape unscathed? Alex Gendler shows how. Lesson by A...

Practice more problem-solving at https://brilliant.org/TedEd/ --The night before the Death Race across the Wastelands is set to begin, your uncle, the great inventor Slate Kanoli, got kidnapped by the ruthless No-Side gang. The only way to get him back is to race his Coil Runner against the gang yourself. Win and they’ll give back your uncle. Lose and you’ll forfeit the Coil Runner and all his oth...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-motion-of-the-ocean-the-concentration-gradient-sasha-wrightThe constant motion of our oceans represents a vast and complicated system involving many different drivers. Sasha Wright explains the physics behind one of those drivers -- the concentration gradient -- and illustrates how our oceans are continually engaging in a universal struggle for space...

Does texting mean the death of good writing skills? John McWhorter posits that there's much more to texting -- linguistically, culturally -- than it seems, and it's all good news. Talk by John McWhorter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore William Shakespeare’s classic tragedy, “Hamlet,” a play about conspiracy, deception and the tragic consequences of indecision.--“Who’s there?” Whispered in the dark, this question begins a tale of conspiracy, deception and moral ambiguity. And in a play where everyone has something to hide, its answer is far from simple. Written by William Shakespeare, “Hamlet” depicts its titular characte...

Neuroscientist Daniel Wolpert starts from a surprising premise: the brain evolved, not to think or feel, but to control movement. In this entertaining, data-rich talk he gives us a glimpse into how the brain creates the grace and agility of human motion. Talk by Daniel Wolpert. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore how pneumonia attacks the tiny air sacs in your lungs and how your immune system works to fight off the infection.--Every time you breathe, air travels down the trachea, through a series of channels, and then reaches little clusters of air sacs in the lungs. These tiny sacs facilitate a crucial exchange: allowing oxygen from the air we breathe into the bloodstream and clearing out carbon d...

Explore the environmental impact of three types of bags— plastic, paper, and cloth— to find out how they’re made, used and disposed of. --You’ve filled up your cart and made it to the front of the grocery line when you’re confronted with yet another choice: what kind of bag should you use? It might seem obvious that plastic is bad for the environment, and that a paper bag or a cotton tote would be...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/getting-started-as-a-dj-mixing-mashups-and-digital-turntables-cole-planteDJ and producer Cole Plante is only 17 years old, but he's already worked alongside industry superstars Skrillex, Avicii and Major Lazer (to name just a few). In this combination talk and DJ set, Plante shows off his mixing magic and gives tips to aspiring DJs. Talk by Cole Plante....

Learn how Margaret Hamilton and her team of engineers built the software for the Apollo 11 mission that landed mankind on the Moon. --The Apollo 11 moon landing was about the astronauts, mission control, software and hardware all working together as a seamless integrated system. None of which would have been possible without the contributions of one engineer: Margaret Hamilton. Who was this pionee...

Discover the techniques opera singers use to project their voices over the orchestra and the importance of a singer’s squillo. --An orchestra fills an opera house with music, but a singer’s voice soars above the instruments. Its melody rings out across thousands of patrons— all without any assistance from a microphone. How is it possible that a single voice can be heard so clearly? The answer lies...

Learn why tuberculosis, TB, is the world’s most infectious disease and how medical advancements are improving treatment. --In 2008, two 9,000-year old skeletons were found with their bones infected by an all too familiar bacterium. The ancient Greeks knew its effects as phthisis; the Incans called it chaky oncay; and today we call it tuberculosis, or TB. TB is still one of the world’s most infecti...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-we-can-learn-from-galaxies-far-far-away-henry-linIn a fun, excited talk, teenager Henry Lin looks at something unexpected in the sky: galaxy clusters. By studying the properties of the universe's largest pieces, says the Intel Science Fair winner, we can learn quite a lot about our own world and galaxy. Talk by Henry Lin. Learn more about your ad ch...

Kicking off the TED2013 conference, Jennifer Granholm asks a very American question with worldwide implications: How do we make more jobs? Her big idea: Invest in new alternative energy sources. And her big challenge: Can it be done with or without our broken Congress? Talk by Jennifer Granholm. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Don't make people pay for music, says Amanda Palmer: Let them. In a passionate talk that begins in her days as a street performer (drop a dollar in the hat for the Eight-Foot Bride!), she examines the new relationship between artist and fan. Talk by Amanda Palmer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn how trees are able to communicate with each other through a vast root system and symbiotic fungi, called mycorrhizae.--Most of the forest lives in the shadow of the giants that make up the highest canopy. These are the oldest trees, with hundreds of children and grandchildren. They check in with their neighbors, share food, supplies and wisdom gained over their lives, all while rooted in pla...