Sample Ted Talks

As I mentioned in class, one of our class projects will be to complete a really good, compelling oral presentation that connects meaningfully with the audience on a topic related to science and engineering.  I mentioned that our gold standard--if primarily in terms of style, not content--is the TED Talk.

TED Talks are ubiquitous now, so it may be hard to believe that they are only six years old.  That's old in new media terms, but barely newborn in the grand scheme of things.  We talked in class about how not all of you will leave the course being able to deliver in the style of the TED talk, but that we would all try to move along the presentation spectrum toward that more relaxed style, which is not just about dumping information on the audience, but connecting with them.

Ripped from Neurobics

So, let's get comfortable with the TED format, and then as the semester goes on, we'll discuss its strengths and weaknesses as a form of science communication.

Here is one of my favorite TEDs, and (in my opinion) on of the TEDs that put TEDs on the map:  a talk by Jill Bolte Taylor, a brain research who talks famously here about her own stroke:

This is a longer TED (around 20 minutes) but well worth the view.  I'll post others that you send me over the course of the semester.  Here's one from Connor by Kirk Thorensen, on thorium as a nuclear fuel (around 10 minutes):

Here is Ali's pick, Ron Gutman's "The Hidden Power of Smiling"