TED-Ed

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...

A flying car -- it's an iconic image of the future. But after 100 years of flight and automotive engineering, no one has really cracked the problem. Pilot Anna Mracek Dietrich and her team flipped the question, asking: Why not build a plane that you can drive? Talk by Anna Mracek Dietrich. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explore the life and works of Simone de Beauvoir, the author of “The Second Sex” and existentialist philosopher who influenced early feminist theory. --At the age of 21, Simone de Beauvoir became the youngest person to take the philosophy exams at France’s most esteemed university. But as soon as she mastered the rules of philosophy, she wanted to break them. Her desire to explore the physical wor...

What drives our desire to behave morally? Neuroeconomist Paul Zak shows why he believes oxytocin (he calls it "the moral molecule") is responsible for trust, empathy and other feelings that help build a stable society. Talk by Paul Zak. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Check out our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/tededView full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-do-we-cry-the-three-types-of-tears-alex-gendlerWhether we cry during a sad movie, while chopping onions, or completely involuntarily, our eyes are constantly producing tears. Alex Gendler tracks a particularly watery day in the life of Iris (the iris) as she cycles through basal, reflex and emo...

Discover the Norse myth of Baldur, the most beloved being in Asgard, and how the trickster god Loki plotted his death. --Baldur was the gentlest and most beloved being in all of Asgard. But lately, he had been plagued by gruesome visions foretelling his own imminent death. Determined to protect her son from these grim prophecies, Queen Frigg travelled across the nine realms, begging all living thi...

We feel instinctively that societies with huge income gaps are somehow going wrong. Richard Wilkinson charts the hard data on economic inequality, and shows what gets worse when rich and poor are too far apart: real effects on health, lifespan, even such basic values as trust. Talk by Richard Wilkinson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Get informed on the causes and risks of human papillomavirus, HPV, and how to protect yourself from the infection.--At some point, most sexually active people will be infected with human papillomavirus, or HPV. There are over 100 types of HPV, and most of the time the body eliminates infections without symptoms— but some strains can pose serious health risks down the line. How can you protect your...

Physiatrist and engineer Todd Kuiken is building a prosthetic arm that connects with the human nervous system -- improving motion, control and even feeling. Onstage, patient Amanda Kitts helps demonstrate this next-gen robotic arm. Talk by Todd Kuiken. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices