TED-Ed

Ada imagines what an AI librarian system could be capable of. What are the consequences of creating superintelligent AI systems?--This is episode 4 of the animated series, “Ada.” This 5-episode narrative follows the young library assistant Ada as she juggles two worlds: her daily mundane reality and the future she vividly imagines for all humanity. Traveling through her visions of potential future...

Explore the paradox of welfare programs, and learn how they inadvertently reinforce generational poverty, and what we can do to fix them.--Imagine that you’ve been unemployed for months. Government benefit programs have helped you cover your expenses, but you’re barely getting by. Finally, you receive a paycheck— but there’s a catch. Your new job pays enough to disqualify you from benefit programs...

Inspired by cell division, Michael Hansmeyer writes algorithms that design outrageously fascinating shapes and forms with millions of facets. No person could draft them by hand, but they're buildable -- and they could revolutionize the way we think of architectural form. Talk by Michael Hansmeyer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/chip-conley-measuring-what-makes-life-worthwhileWhen the dot-com bubble burst, hotelier Chip Conley went in search of a business model based on happiness. In an old friendship with an employee and in the wisdom of a Buddhist king, he learned that success comes from what you count. Chip Conley creates joyful hotels, where he hopes his employees, customers...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-we-see-color-colm-kelleherThere are three types of color receptors in your eye: red, green and blue. But how do we see the amazing kaleidoscope of other colors that make up our world? Colm Kelleher explains how humans can see everything from auburn to aquamarine. Talk by Colm Kelleher, animation by TED-Ed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...

Damon Horowitz reviews the enormous new powers that technology gives us: to know more -- and more about each other -- than ever before. Drawing the audience into a philosophical discussion, Horowitz invites us to pay new attention to the basic philosophy -- the ethical principles -- behind the burst of invention remaking our world. Where's the moral operating system that allows us to make sense of...

Travel into a computer chip to explore how these devices are manufactured and what can be done about their environmental impact.--Globally, we produce more than a trillion computer chips every year. Which means about 20 trillion transistors are built every second— and this process is done in fewer than 500 fabrication plants. How do we build so many tiny, intricately-connected devices, so incredib...

Dig into Moore’s Law and explore its 4 main limitations and how they could change how we are able to make progress in computing.--Moore’s Law states that every 1 to 2 years the number of transistors that can fit on a given size computer chip will double. Thanks to this law, chips have gotten smaller, faster, more efficient, and cheaper. But today, there are four key problems that trip up this tren...

Practice more problem-solving at https://brilliant.org/TedEd--Your friend’s birthday is tomorrow, and he’s turning… well… you’ve forgotten. A ginormous cake has been prepared and your job is to sculpt his age as the chocolate centerpiece. The birthday boy is a giant, and you’re afraid that if your forgetfulness becomes known, you’ll become part of the feast. Can you figure out your friend’s age be...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/medicine-s-future-there-s-an-app-for-that-daniel-kraftDaniel Kraft offers a fast-paced look at the next few years of innovations in medicine, powered by new tools, tests and apps that bring diagnostic information right to the patient's bedside. (Filmed at TEDxMaastricht.)Talk by Daniel Kraft. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/nadia-al-sakkaf-see-yemen-through-my-eyesAs political turmoil in Yemen continues, the editor-in-chief of the Yemen Times, Nadia Al-Sakkaf, talks at TEDGlobal with host Pat Mitchell. Al-Sakkaf's independent, English-language paper is vital for sharing news -- and for sharing a new vision of Yemen and of that country's women as equal partners in work and c...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/you-are-your-microbes-jessica-green-and-karen-guilleminFrom the microbes in our stomachs to the ones on our teeth, we are homes to millions of unique and diverse communities which help our bodies function. Jessica Green and Karen Guillemin emphasize the importance of understanding the many organisms that make up each and every organism. Lesson by Jessica...

Ada imagines how eradicating invasive species would impact our ecosystems. Who decides which species, and how many are too many?--This is episode 5 of the animated series, “Ada.” This 5-episode narrative follows the young library assistant Ada as she juggles two worlds: her daily mundane reality and the future she vividly imagines for all humanity. Traveling through her visions of potential future...

Explore the relationship between the Amazon rainforest and the rest of the planet, and what would happen if it disappeared.--As of 2022, humans have deforested 17% of the Amazon, and scientists warn that we may be approaching a tipping point. It’s like removing bricks from a house: take a few and the house remains standing; remove too many and the whole thing will collapse. So, what would happen i...

Explore the relationship between viruses and their hosts, and find out how the evolutionary adaptations of bats keep them safe from viruses. --Consider a bat that is infected with several deadly viruses, including ones that cause rabies, SARS, and Ebola. While this diagnosis would be lethal for other mammals, the winged wonder is totally unfazed, and may even spend the next 30 years living as if t...

Ramesh Raskar presents femto-photography, a new type of imaging so fast it visualizes the world one trillion frames per second, so detailed it shows light itself in motion. This technology may someday be used to build cameras that can look "around" corners or see inside the body without X-rays. Talk by Ramesh Raskar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/tales-of-passion-isabel-allendeAuthor and activist Isabel Allende discusses women, creativity, the definition of feminism, and, of course, passion in this Talk. Talk by Isabel Allende. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Ada’s first day of her new job at the library, she imagines a post-apocalyptic future. Are we equipped to survive in such a world?--This is episode 1 of the animated series, “Ada.” This 5-episode narrative follows the young library assistant Ada as she juggles two worlds: her daily mundane reality and the future she vividly imagines for all humanity. Traveling through her visions of potential f...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/susan-cain-the-power-of-introvertsIn a culture where being social and outgoing are prized above all else, it can be difficult, even shameful, to be an introvert. But, as Susan Cain argues in this passionate talk, introverts bring extraordinary talents and abilities to the world, and they should be encouraged and celebrated. Susan Cain makes a case for th...

Dive into the incredible diversity of animal pupils, and how the different shapes indicate the animal’s role in an ecosystem.--Peering into the eyes of different animals, you’ll see some extraordinarily shaped pupils. House cats, for one, are twilight hunters with vertically elongated pupils. Many grazing animals, like goats, have rectangular pupils. Other animals have crescent- or heart-shaped pu...

Dig into the Bengali tale of brothers Neelkamal and Lalkamal, two princes seeking to end the reign of demons in their kingdom.--Achinpur was on the precipice of demonic takeover. A mysterious woman beguiled the king and infiltrated the royal family. But she wasn’t human; under her beautiful façade lurked an insatiable appetite for flesh. One night, the demon queen devoured the king's sons — but th...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/on-exploring-the-oceans-robert-ballardOcean explorer Robert Ballard takes us on a mindbending trip to hidden worlds underwater, where he and other researchers are finding unexpected life, resources, and even new mountains. He makes a case for serious exploration and mapping. Google Ocean, anyone? Talk by Robert Ballard. Learn more about your ad choices....

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/nina-jablonski-breaks-the-illusion-of-skin-colorNina Jablonski says that differing skin colors are simply our bodies' adaptation to varied climates and levels of UV exposure. Charles Darwin disagreed with this theory, however, as Jablonski explains, Darwin did not have access to NASA. Nina Jablonski is author of Skin: A Natural History, a close look at h...

Journalist Mustafa Akyol talks about the way that some local cultural practices (such as wearing a headscarf) have become linked, in the popular mind, to the articles of faith of Islam. Has the world's general idea of the Islamic faith focused too much on tradition, and not enough on core beliefs? (Filmed at TEDxWarwick.)Talk by Mustafa Akyol. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/a...

Meet the microscopic arachnids that live on your face, and find out why Demodex mites are part of the human microbiome.--Two species of Demodex mites specifically inhabit human follicles. And not just some people’s— nearly everyone is thought to host mites. One person’s face might harbor hundreds or even thousands of individual mites. On any given day, these microscopic arachnids are probably eati...