TED-Ed

Can electric cars reclaim their place on the road? Discover how developments in battery technology are making these cars more efficient and powerful.--By the end of the 19th century, nearly 40% of American cars were electric. But these vehicles had a few major problems — early car batteries were expensive and inefficient, and the vehicles were twice the price of a gas-powered car. And so for the n...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/distorting-madonna-in-medieval-art-james-earleAfter Rome was destroyed, people were wary of attachment to physical beauty. As Christianity gained traction, Romans instead began to focus on the metaphysical beauty of virtue, and art began to follow suit. James Earle discusses how Medieval paintings of Madonna were affected by this shift. Lesson by James E...

Imagine it's late 1990, and you've just met a nice young man named Tim Berners-Lee, who starts telling you about his proposed system called the World Wide Web. Ian Ritchie was there. And ... he didn't buy it. A short story about information, connectivity and learning from mistakes. Talk by Ian Ritchie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more at https://brilliant.org/TedEd--Within the periodic table loom many potential hazardous elements. Some elements are dangerous due to their toxicity. Others are dangerous because of how they respond, react, or even explode in the outside environment. And perhaps the most threatening elements are those that silently emit energy. So, which substances on the periodic table are the most dang...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/inventing-the-american-presidency-kenneth-c-davisWhen the founders of the United States gathered to create the foundations of the country, they decided on three branches of government, with a president central to the executive branch. Kenneth C. Davis explains why this decision was not necessarily inevitable and what variables were up for debate. Lesson...

Explore the science of how certain HPVs can cause warts, and what you should do if you get one of these bumpy skin growths.--Throughout history, people have attributed warts to contact with things like sea foam, boiled egg water, and, of course, toads. Fortunately, we now know that warts are not caused by toads, but are actually caused by human papillomaviruses, or HPVs. So, how exactly do HPVs le...

Download a free audiobook version of “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring“ and support TED-Ed's nonprofit mission: https://www.audible.com/ted-ed--The dwarves were master craftspeople. One dwarf, Andvari, forged marvelous creations. He often took the form of a fish and, one day, he swam to the land of the water nymphs, who guarded mounds of gold. When the nymphs laughed at his appear...

Dive into Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” and explore life’s greatest mystery: what happens when you die?--Death, a kindly gentleman riding in a horse carriage, comes to collect a woman for her journey to the afterlife. So begins Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death,” an exploration of both the uncertainties of death and its inevitability. Dive into one...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/let-s-simplify-legal-jargon-alan-siegelTax forms, credit agreements, healthcare legislation: They're crammed with gobbledygook, says Alan Siegel, and incomprehensibly long. He calls for a simple, sensible redesign -- and plain English -- to make legal paperwork intelligible to the rest of us. Talk by Alan Siegel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...

Explore how a toxin-producing bacterium causes tetanus, and how to identify its common symptoms and best prevention practices.--In the 5th century, a ship master was suffering from a nasty infection that caused his jaws to press together, his teeth to lock up, and the muscles in his neck and spine to spasm. Today we know this account to be one the first recorded cases of tetanus. So, what causes t...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/science-can-answer-moral-questions-sam-harrisQuestions of good and evil, right and wrong are commonly thought unanswerable by science. But Sam Harris argues that science can -- and should -- be an authority on moral issues, shaping human values and setting out what constitutes a good life. Talk by Sam Harris. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megap...

Explore the chemistry behind what makes kevlar so strong, and how this essential synthetic fiber was invented.--By 1975, Richard Davis had been shot at close range 192 times. But not only was he completely healthy, each of those bullets were part of a demonstration to sell his new product: the bulletproof vest. So, how does such a light, flexible piece of clothing stop a bullet? The secret was a s...

"Babies and young children are like the R&D division of the human species," says psychologist Alison Gopnik. Her research explores the sophisticated intelligence-gathering and decision-making that babies are really doing when they play. Talk by Alison Gopnik. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For decades, researcher Mina Bissell pursued a revolutionary idea -- that a cancer cell doesn't automatically become a tumor, but rather, depends on surrounding cells (its microenvironment) for cues on how to develop. She shares the two key experiments that proved the prevailing wisdom about cancer growth was wrong. Talk by Mina Bissell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-dan-barberChef Dan Barber squares off with a dilemma facing many chefs today: how to keep fish on the menu. With impeccable research and deadpan humor, he chronicles his pursuit of a sustainable fish he could love and the foodie's honeymoon he's enjoyed since discovering an outrageously delicious fish raised using a revolut...

Dig into what makes whale poop so vitally important to ocean health, and how it helps support countless other marine life forms.--Whales frequently surface to take in air and let out massive plumes of waste. And while this slurry might seem disgusting, whale poop is much more desirable than it may seem. In fact, it may be one of the most important substances in the ocean — and the world. So, what...

Explore what happened when the AI system Deep Q Networks (DQN) attempted to beat the Atari game Montezuma’s Revenge.--In 2013, a group of researchers wanted to create an AI system that could beat every Atari game. They developed a system called Deep Q Networks (DQN) and less than two years later, it was superhuman. But there was one notable exception. When playing Montezuma’s Revenge, DQN couldn’t...

Explore ridiculous ancient theories of bird migration and discover how scientists finally solved one of the field's oldest mysteries.--In 1822, Count von Bothmer shot down a stork in Germany. However, the bird had already been impaled by a yard-long wooden spear. The stork had been speared in Africa and then flew over 2,500 km. This astonishing flight proved to be an essential clue in a mystery th...

In 2000, the UN laid out 8 goals to make the world better by reducing poverty and disease -- with a deadline of 2015. As that deadline approaches, Jamie Drummond of ONE.org runs down the surprising successes of the 8 Millennium Development Goals, and suggests a crowdsourced reboot for the next 15 years. Talk by Jamie Drummond. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover what causes desert locusts to transform into crop-consuming plagues and how they directly endanger humanity.--A ravenous swarm stretches as far as the eye can see. It has no leader or strategic plan; its only goals are to eat, breed, and move on. These are desert locusts— infamous for their capacity for destruction. But most of the time desert locusts are no more dangerous than grasshoppe...

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/if-superpowers-were-real-super-strength-joy-linWhat if super strength wasn't just the stuff of epic comic book stories? Is it scientifically possible to be super strong? In this series, Joy Lin tackles six superpowers and reveals just how scientifically realistic they can be to us mere mortals. Lesson by Joy Lin, animation by Cognitive Media. Learn more...

Dig into the science of what causes snoring, and how chronic snoring can be a sign of sleep disorders such as sleep apnea.--A leather mask that clamps the mouth shut. A cannonball sewn into a soldier’s uniform. A machine that delivers sudden electrical pulses. These were all treatments for a problem that has haunted humanity for millennia: snoring. It might seem harmless, but snoring can be a sign...

Conductor Charles Hazlewood talks about the role of trust in musical leadership -- then shows how it works, as he conducts the Scottish Ensemble onstage. He also shares clips from two musical projects: the opera "U-Carmen eKhayelitsha" and the ParaOrchestra. Talk by Charles Hazlewood. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/if-superpowers-were-real-super-speed-joy-linWhat if super speed wasn't just the stuff of epic comic book stories? Is it scientifically possible to be super speedy? In this series, Joy Lin tackles six superpowers and reveals just how scientifically realistic they can be to us mere mortals. Lesson by Joy Lin, animation by Cognitive Media. Learn more about...

Dive into the Maya myth of twins Junajpu and Ixb’alanke as they descend into the underworld to play the gods in a ballgame.--One day, twin brothers Junajpu and Ixb’alanke discovered their father’s hidden ballgame equipment and began to play. Hearing their vigorous game, the lords of the underworld sent a messenger to challenge the boys to a match. Despite the danger, the twins nevertheless answere...