TED-Ed

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...

Dig into the psychology of how to overcome your motivational obstacles and regain focus when you feel stuck in achieving your goals.--Many of us have experienced feeling stuck. People often report feeling highly motivated at the start and end of a project, but the middle can feel untethered. It can happen when tackling something as simple as a term paper or as monumental as social inequality or th...

Explore the incredible diversity of eyes and vision in the animal kingdom, and find out which creature has the best eyesight.--The animal kingdom boasts an incredible diversity of eyes. Some rotate independently while others have squiggly-shaped pupils. Some have protective lids, others squirt blood. But which creature has the best sight? Which sees best in the darkness? Which sees the most detail...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/sylvia-earle-s-ted-prize-wish-to-protect-our-oceansLegendary ocean researcher Sylvia Earle shares astonishing images of the ocean -- and shocking stats about its rapid decline -- as she makes her TED Prize wish: that we will join her in protecting the vital blue heart of the planet. Sylvia Earle has been at the frontier of deep ocean exploration for four...

Dig into the science of thermal batteries, and how this technology can generate heat more efficiently than fossil fuels.--Industrial manufacturers spend a huge amount of energy generating heat to make everyday materials and objects, like cement, steel, and paper. And since most companies use fossil fuels to reach these high temperatures, industrial heat accounts for 20% of our annual global carbon...

Dig into the complicated history of divorce— from the earliest known divorce laws in ancient Mesopotamia to modern day. --Formally or informally, human societies across place and time have made rules to bind and dissolve couples. The stakes of who can obtain a divorce, and why, have always been high. Divorce is a battlefield for some of society’s most urgent issues, including the roles of church a...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/curiosity-discovery-and-gecko-feet-robert-fullThe scientific method is widely used to make many scientific discoveries, but Robert Full suggests the possibility of finding world-changing results with less formulaic approaches. In his TEDYouth Talk, Full describes the unlikely way he studied gecko's feet and how these beneficial discoveries could eventual...

Dig into what makes head lice so difficult to get rid of, and the effectiveness of our most common treatments.--For as long as humans have had lice, we’ve fought hard to get rid of them. Nit combs, the fine-tooth brushes used to remove lice and their sticky eggs, have been found among the ancient remains of cultures across the globe. Today it’s estimated we spend billions of dollars each year trea...

What kind of data is your cell phone company collecting? Malte Spitz wasn't too worried when he asked his operator in Germany to share information stored about him. Multiple unanswered requests and a lawsuit later, Spitz received 35,830 lines of code -- a detailed, nearly minute-by-minute account of half a year of his life. Talk by Malte Spitz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/a-tap-dancer-s-craft-andrew-nemrTap dance, born out of the marriage of African and European dance traditions, went from extremely popular to barely existent to grand revival, all in under a century. Professional tap dancer and TED Fellow Andrew Nemr taps into the history of this truly American art form. Lesson by Andrew Nemr, produced by TED-Ed. Learn mo...

Cosmologist Sean Carroll attacks -- in an entertaining and thought-provoking tour through the nature of time and the universe -- a deceptively simple question: Why does time exist at all? The potential answers point to a surprising view of the nature of the universe, and our place in it. (Filmed at TEDxCaltech.)Talk by Sean Carroll. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore how seawater desalination methods transform saltwater into potable freshwater, and what drawbacks this technology has.--Humans have been transforming seawater into potable freshwater for millennia. Today, billions of people can’t access clean drinking water, and 87 different countries are projected to be “water-scarce” by 2050. So, how can we use seawater desalination to combat water scarc...

Watch the whole lesson on http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-do-we-see-color-colm-kelleherHave you ever wondered what color is? In this first installment of a series on light, Colm Kelleher describes the physics behind colors-- why the colors we see are related to the period of motion and the frequency of waves. Lesson by Colm Kelleher, animation by Vitreous. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit meg...

Take a turn behind the wheel to discover 5 helpful and simple tips to improve your driving and build confidence in your skills.--As one of the agency’s best employees, you’ve been selected as a finalist to take on a new top-secret mission. You’ve already shown your aptitude for surveillance and disguise, but the agency’s looking to test one last critical skill: how well you can drive. Can you prov...

Follow the spider Anansi on his quest to complete a challenge from the Sky God in order to take ownership of the world’s stories.--Long ago, all stories belonged to Nyame, the all-seeing Sky God. But one creature, Anansi, was determined to bring the stories down to Earth. Anansi went to Nyame and requested to take ownership of the world’s stories. The Sky God told Anansi that he could have all the...

Dive into the bowels of the animal kingdom to explore why animals fart, and find out which creature has the foulest flatulence. --For most humans, farts are a welcome relief, an embarrassing incident, or an opportunity for a gas-based gag. But for many other creatures, farts are no laughing matter. Deep in the bowels of the animal kingdom, farts can serve as tools of intimidation, acts of self-def...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/beyond-the-shadow-of-a-doubt-gina-cookeSay the word "doubt" aloud. What is that "b" doing there? Does it have any purpose? Gina Cooke explains the long and winding history of "doubt" and why the spelling, though it seems random, is a wink to its storied past. Lesson by Gina Cooke, animation by The Leading Sheep Studios. Learn more about your ad choices....

Dig into the science of enhanced rock weathering, a technology which takes carbon dioxide out of the air and stores it in rocks.--Mount Teide is one of the world’s largest active volcanoes, and there may be a way to use the basalt rock inside it to save humanity. Obviously, destroying an ancient volcano would cause catastrophic and unpredictable ecological fallout. But what if we harvested only so...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/philip-zimbardo-the-demise-of-guysPsychologist Philip Zimbardo asks, "Why are boys struggling?" He shares some stats (lower graduation rates, greater worries about intimacy and relationships) and the reasons behind them, while challenging the TED community to think about solutions. Talk by Philip Zimbardo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...