TED-Ed

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/free-falling-in-outer-space-matt-j-carlsonIf you were to orbit the Earth, you'd experience the feeling of free fall, not unlike what your stomach feels before a big dive on a roller coaster. With a little help from Sir Isaac Newton, Matt J. Carlson explains the basic forces acting on an astronaut and why you probably shouldn't try this one at home. Lesso...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-hidden-beauty-of-pollination-louie-schwartzbergPollination: it's vital to life on Earth but largely unseen by the human eye. Filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg shows us the intricate world of pollen and pollinators with gorgeous high-speed images from his film "Wings of Life," inspired by the vanishing of one of nature's primary pollinators, the honeybee....

Pharaoh Ramesses II presided over a golden age of Egyptian prosperity— but was he a model leader or a master of propaganda?--Pharaoh Ramesses II reigned for almost 70 years in the 13th century BCE. He presided over a golden age of Egyptian prosperity, power, and wealth. But was he a model leader or a shameless egomaniac and master of propaganda? Jessica Tomkins puts this controversial figure on tr...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/beware-online-filter-bubbles-eli-pariserAs web companies strive to tailor their services (including news and search results) to our personal tastes, there's a dangerous unintended consequence: We get trapped in a "filter bubble" and don't get exposed to information that could challenge or broaden our worldview. Eli Pariser argues powerfully that this wil...

Explore a classic philosophical debate and decide: is it human nature to be selfish? And if so, is it possible to overcome it?--The question of whether or not humans are inherently selfish is one of philosophy’s oldest debates. The idea that we only act out of self-interest is an extreme stance that few philosophers would endorse. However, the idea that all humans have a deep selfish streak is som...

Dig into the slippery slope fallacy, which assumes that one step will lead to a series of events that lead to an extreme— often bad— scenario.--It’s 1954. Vietnamese nationalists are on the verge of securing an independent Vietnam under communist leader Ho Chi Minh. U.S. President Eisenhower claims that by virtue of the "falling domino principle," communist control of Vietnam would lead to the glo...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/your-elusive-creative-genius-elizabeth-gilbertElizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses -- and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person "being" a genius, all of us "have" a genius. It's a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk. Talk by Elizabeth Gilbert. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...

Explore how the offspring of parasitic butterflies trick their way into ant colonies for food and protection.--You might not guess it, but Alcon blue butterflies are just one of over 200 parasitic butterfly species, all of which target ants. And their offspring live highly unusual lives, tricking their way into ant colonies using mimicry. So, how do these butterflies do it— and why? Francesa Barbe...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-farming-planted-seeds-for-the-internet-patricia-russacWhat does farming have to do with invention and innovation? Permanent residences, division of labor, central government, and complex technologies--all essential for advancing civilizations--could not have been developed without the move from hunting-gathering to farming. Patricia Russac explores h...

Uncover the most common misperceptions about dodos, and find out the truth of how the flightless birds actually went extinct.--Dodos are commonly considered brainless, blundering birds that were poorly adapted and doomed to die off, making their human-mediated extinction effortless and inevitable. But that’s not the case. So, what were dodos actually like? And what really caused their downfall? Le...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/malcolm-gladwell-on-spaghetti-sauceTipping Point author Malcolm Gladwell gets inside the food industry's pursuit of the perfect spaghetti sauce -- and makes a larger argument about the nature of choice and happiness. Talk by Malcolm Gladwell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-do-we-see-illusions-mark-changiziWhy can't our extremely complex eyes render simple optical illusions? Surprise, surprise -- it comes back to the brain, which has only evolved to encounter natural stimuli. At TEDYouth 2012, Mark Changizi explains how the brain reckons with optical illusions. Talk by Mark Changizi. Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...

Explore how alcohol interacts with your brain, and how it can interrupt the brain’s memory networks, leading to blackouts.--Alcohol has been shown to have strange and selective effects on the brain. Many intoxicated people can perform complex tasks like holding a detailed conversation or navigating a walk home. Yet for those experiencing a blackout, the memory of these events is quickly forgotten....

Explore how scientists use environmental DNA (eDNA) in a technique called DNA metabarcoding to find and track species.--Scientists have been staking out a forest in Montana for an animal that’s notoriously tricky to find. Camera traps haven’t offered definitive evidence, and experts can’t identify its tracks with certainty. But within the past decades, researchers have developed methods that can d...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/martin-seligman-on-positive-psychologyMartin Seligman talks about psychology -- as a field of study and as it works one-on-one with each patient and each practitioner. As it moves beyond a focus on disease, what can modern psychology help us to become? Talk by Martin Seligman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The TED-Ed website allows you to engage in or create dynamic lessons around the hundreds of thousands of educational videos on YouTube. In this video, the familiar illustration assembled at the beginning of each TED-Ed video finds his [computer generated] voice and gives viewers a tour of ed.ted.com. The features explored include the ability to add multiple choice questions, open answer questions,...

Explore how the Rafflesia plant uses parasitic strategies to grow the world’s largest flower, and find out why it smells so bad.--Deep inside the Sumatran rainforest, a carrion fly descends, guided by the scent of its favorite place to lay eggs: rotting animal carcasses. But when it lands, it isn’t on liquifying flesh, but instead on the world’s biggest, and perhaps strangest, flower— Rafflesia ar...

Discover what led American colonists in 1773 to toss tea into the Boston Harbor in what became known as the Boston Tea Party.--Before the Revolutionary War, American colonists were taxed heavily for importing tea from Britain. The colonists, not fans of "taxation without representation", reacted by dumping tea into the Boston Harbor, a night now known as the Boston Tea Party. Ben Labaree gets into...

Explore the construction of the futurist city Chandigarh, a project of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and planned by Le Corbusier.--In 1947, India achieved independence from British rule — but this freedom came at a tremendous cost. Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, was eager to usher his country towards a brighter, united future. And one of the projects that would prove most essent...

Discover the creatures known as trilobites, one of Earth’s most successful early animals, and find out what led to their extinction.--Prevailing for around 270 million years and encompassing more than 20,000 distinct species, trilobites are some of the most successful lifeforms in Earth’s history. When they sprung into existence, they were among the most diverse and sophisticated organisms on the...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/social-animal-david-brooksTapping into the findings of his latest book, NYTimes columnist David Brooks unpacks new insights into human nature from the cognitive sciences -- insights with massive implications for economics and politics as well as our own self-knowledge. In a talk full of humor, he shows how you can't hope to understand humans as separate...

Dig into the Fijian myth of Dakuwaqa, the shape-shifting shark god who is determined to take over all of Fiji's islands.--Long ago, the ancestral gods of Fiji settled on the Pacific archipelago. They eventually metamorphosed into various forms, with the god Dakuwaqa transforming into a shark. But he was unsatisfied. He became proud and greedy and wanted to establish himself as the mightiest god, a...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/let-s-use-video-to-reinvent-education-salman-khanSalman Khan talks about how and why he created the remarkable Khan Academy, a carefully structured series of educational videos offering complete curricula in math and, now, other subjects. He shows the power of interactive exercises and calls for teachers to consider flipping the traditional classroom scr...

Dig into the science of how microwave ovens use electromagnetic waves to heat your food, and what you should avoid cooking in them.--In 1945, engineer Percy Spencer was standing near a RADAR device that produced high-intensity microwaves and noticed that his candy bar had melted. He then exposed popcorn kernels to the magnetron device, and sure enough, they popped. Soon after, the first microwave...

The world needs clean water, and more and more, we're pulling it from the oceans, desalinating it, and drinking it. But what to do with the salty brine left behind? In this intriguing short talk, TED Fellow Damian Palin proposes an idea: Mine it for other minerals we need, with the help of some collaborative metal-munching bacteria. Talk by Damian Palin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit meg...