Reviewing TED

Reviewing TED http://reviewingted.posterous.com Most recent posts at Reviewing TED posterous.com Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:19:44 -0700 Tom Wujec on 3 ways the brain creates meaning http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/1UsL60O3Sbc/tom-wujec-on-3-ways-the-brain-creates-meaning-9 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-on-3-ways-the-brain-creates-meaning-9 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/TomWujec_2009U-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/TomWujec-2009U.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=591" /> <embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/TomWujec_2009U-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/TomWujec-2009U.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=591" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_on_3_ways_the_brain_creates_meaning.html">ted.com</a> </div> <p>I really enjoyed Tom Wujec's <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe">earlier talk on the astrolabe</a>, so I came into this one with high hopes. Wujec's summary of cognitive science leaves a good bit to be desired, however. The visuals are pretty good (though the visualization of 2008's TED horrifies me just a teensy bit), but his interpretation of the science doesn't really match up with what I've learned over the past decade – or at least, it only matches up in a very elementary (and relatively uninteresting) way.</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-on-3-ways-the-brain-creates-meaning-9">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-on-3-ways-the-brain-creates-meaning-9#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/1UsL60O3Sbc" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-on-3-ways-the-brain-creates-meaning-9 Tue, 06 Apr 2010 18:42:51 -0700 Arthur Benjamin's formula for changing math education http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/3hK7_jVGEmY/arthur-benjamins-formula-for-changing-math-ed http://reviewingted.posterous.com/arthur-benjamins-formula-for-changing-math-ed <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/ArthurBenjamin_2009-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/ArthurBenjamin-2009.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=587" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/ArthurBenjamin_2009-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/ArthurBenjamin-2009.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=587" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/arthur_benjamin_s_formula_for_changing_math_education.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Wow, almost forgot today. So much for that 30-days-to-ingrain-a-habit business, I guess. </p><p>Arthur Benjamin strikes me as the best sort of math professor – he's engaged and passionate about his topic, and he's just a little geeky. He's also got the advantage of supporting a trendy (though no less important) position: that statistics is more important to most people than calculus is. </p><p>The one other thing that stands out for me in this video is that Benjamin talks almost entirely with his hands.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/arthur-benjamins-formula-for-changing-math-ed">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/arthur-benjamins-formula-for-changing-math-ed#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/3hK7_jVGEmY" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/arthur-benjamins-formula-for-changing-math-ed Mon, 05 Apr 2010 15:12:00 -0700 Jill Sobule sings to Al Gore http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/tqBctL88jEs/jill-sobule-sings-to-al-gore http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jill-sobule-sings-to-al-gore <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JillSobule_ManhattaninJanuary_2006-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JillSobule-ManhattaninJanuary-2006.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=99" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JillSobule_ManhattaninJanuary_2006-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JillSobule-ManhattaninJanuary-2006.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=99" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_sobule_sings_to_al_gore.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>An old one, this time - Jill Sobule's song for Al Gore is a cute ode, but it's another one of those that I just don't see as being TEDish. Actually, I preferred Sobule's <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/the-jill-and-julia-show">joint performance</a> with Julia Sweeney the following year.</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jill-sobule-sings-to-al-gore">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jill-sobule-sings-to-al-gore#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/tqBctL88jEs" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jill-sobule-sings-to-al-gore Fri, 02 Apr 2010 17:18:49 -0700 Kirk Citron: And now, the real news http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/hh5qzG0di5I/kirk-citron-and-now-the-real-news http://reviewingted.posterous.com/kirk-citron-and-now-the-real-news <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/KirkCitron_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/KirkCitron-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=811" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/KirkCitron_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/KirkCitron-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=811" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/kirk_citron_and_now_the_real_news.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>The Long Now Foundation does some fascinating work, but I kind of think the Long News project (as presented by Kirck Citron) is fundamentally mistaken. The general idea is that of all the news stories reported in a given year, only some will be important 10, 50, or 100 years in the future. I see two problems with this: </p><p>1) This seems like a slippery slope; Citron appears to be advocating an approach that eliminates the personal aspect of news in favor of the long view. Frankly, the birth of my daughter in 2008 was one of the biggest stories for me, but the chances are pretty slim that it'll be important any time in the future to the majority of humanity (and even if she does, say, cure cancer, her birth itself still won't be the news story) </p><p>2) This is an attempt to predict the future impact of current events, which is notoriously, and inevitably, I think, unreliable. Citron can discount the death of an entertainer all he likes, but there are entirely possible futures where that has repercussions felt much more strongly in the future than this or that medical technique.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/kirk-citron-and-now-the-real-news">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/kirk-citron-and-now-the-real-news#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/hh5qzG0di5I" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/kirk-citron-and-now-the-real-news Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:20:50 -0700 Jennifer 8. Lee hunts for General Tso http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/ZUaFaG4DkMc/jennifer-8-lee-hunts-for-general-tso-2 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jennifer-8-lee-hunts-for-general-tso-2 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/Jenny8Lee_2008P-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/Jenny8Lee-2008P.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=424" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/Jenny8Lee_2008P-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/Jenny8Lee-2008P.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=424" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/jennifer_8_lee_looks_for_general_tso.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>I've wanted to review this talk for a while – I saw it a while ago, but I've been repeatedly distracted. I love Chinese(-American) food, so this one's of special interest to me. </p><p>(sidenote, continuing my interest in presenter names: where does the "8" in Jennifer 8. Lee come from?) </p><p>The fortune cookie story is interesting; it's a great start to Lee's talk in that it points explicitly to the lack of interest in authentic food – we don't care that fortune cookies are actually Japanese in origin and are unknown in China, because they're part of Chinese food culture in America. So this might be controversial, but I think that's perfectly OK. </p><p>Perfectly OK, that is, as long as we don't project those attitudes back onto the supposed source culture. As Lee points out, food gets modified wherever it ends up – Italian Chinese food is different from American, Japanese, Brazilian, and every other sort of Chinese food. We need to understand that, and the power of every culture to acquire and modify the products of other cultures to fit into the local ecosystem. </p><p>This is a great talk, filled with humor and insight, and it's one more that makes me sad Taste3 appears to be defunct.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jennifer-8-lee-hunts-for-general-tso-2">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jennifer-8-lee-hunts-for-general-tso-2#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/ZUaFaG4DkMc" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/jennifer-8-lee-hunts-for-general-tso-2 Wed, 31 Mar 2010 18:42:34 -0700 Hod Lipson builds "self-aware" robots http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/UnhdUv6NXig/hod-lipson-builds-self-aware-robots http://reviewingted.posterous.com/hod-lipson-builds-self-aware-robots <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/HodLipson_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/HodLipson-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=165" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/HodLipson_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/HodLipson-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=165" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/hod_lipson_builds_self_aware_robots.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>First off, "Hod Lipson" is a very cool name. </p><p>That aside, I love the opening question Lipson poses: where are the robots that we've been promised for the past forty years? (I'd also ask that about hovercars and jetpacks, by the way). I also like the conjunction of simulated evolved organisms and physical recreations of them; once you get the physical constraints encoded into your simulation, this seems like it'd be a great way to design any sort of complex machine. </p><p>On the other hand, the physical device with multiple, trainable brains seems like it's putting the cart before the horse. Certainly, the device as a whole can learn how to move forward, but it seems much less efficient to settle on the physical design before the software is written when doing it the other way 'round is possible.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/hod-lipson-builds-self-aware-robots">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/hod-lipson-builds-self-aware-robots#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/UnhdUv6NXig" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/hod-lipson-builds-self-aware-robots Tue, 30 Mar 2010 17:44:11 -0700 Marc Koska: 1.3m reasons to re-invent the syringe http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/XkTxV2iSI3w/marc-koska-13m-reasons-to-re-invent-the-syrin-0 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/marc-koska-13m-reasons-to-re-invent-the-syrin-0 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/MarcKoska_2009G-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/MarcKoska-2009G.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=664" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/MarcKoska_2009G-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/MarcKoska-2009G.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=664" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/marc_koska_the_devastating_toll_of_syringe_reuse.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Malaria kills 1 million people a year? Reused syringes kill 1.3 million a year? Holy crap. Those are the sort of numbers that remind me in no uncertain terms that I live in a privileged world. </p><p>OK, a few minutes in and I'm convinced this is one of the most terrifying TED talks I've seen. </p><p>Sometimes we joke about planned obsolescence, or about items breaking just as they come out of warranty. Marc Koska's one-time-use (enforced) syringes are that, but for the best of reasons. This is the kind of thing that will save lives.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/marc-koska-13m-reasons-to-re-invent-the-syrin-0">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/marc-koska-13m-reasons-to-re-invent-the-syrin-0#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/XkTxV2iSI3w" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/marc-koska-13m-reasons-to-re-invent-the-syrin-0 Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:28:48 -0700 Alan Siegel: Let's simplify legal jargon! http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/X4MJghGrT4Q/alan-siegel-lets-simplify-legal-jargon-2 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alan-siegel-lets-simplify-legal-jargon-2 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/AlanSiegel_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/AlanSiegel-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=803" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/AlanSiegel_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/AlanSiegel-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=803" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/alan_siegel_let_s_simplify_legal_jargon.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>There's a horrifying slide in the background of this talk when it starts – and upon the close-up, it's still bad. (Side note: the length of the health-care bill has been on my mind lately, what with people complaining about it being 2000+ pages. I'm sorry, how long should the rules governing a reform of such massive scope be? Is there a cheat sheet somewhere? Tax code: 1,000 pages; capital punishment: 23 pages; health care reform: 162 pages) </p><p>Alan Siegel comes from an advertising and design background, which provides an interesting point of view; his one-pager on credit card policies is nice, but I think it's a bit of a cheat – it's a very dense single page, and the interactions he mentions for the web-enabled version make it clear that not everything we might want it to capture appears on the page itself. </p><p>Siegel's pretty dry, but I think between the content and the effectiveness of his work saves the talk.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alan-siegel-lets-simplify-legal-jargon-2">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alan-siegel-lets-simplify-legal-jargon-2#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/X4MJghGrT4Q" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alan-siegel-lets-simplify-legal-jargon-2 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:33:00 -0700 David Gallo shows underwater astonishments http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/ruMFu5V0ibM/david-gallo-shows-underwater-astonishments-4 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-shows-underwater-astonishments-4 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidGallo_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidGallo-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=206" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidGallo_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidGallo-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=206" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/david_gallo_shows_underwater_astonishments.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>This talk follows on <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans">David Gallo's earlier talk</a>. Interestingly, some of the deep-dive video seems more primitive the earlier visuals, but it's still just astounding.</p> <p>On the shallow videos, I'm always fascinated with the visual communication abilities of octopi and squids. Forget robots and zombies – cephalopods seem much closer to being our new overlords than anything else.</p> <p>Still, I'm excited that there's a huge part of our world that still allows for "classical" exploration and discovery. Deepest, darkest Africa might be wholly mapped, but the oceans of the world remain "Here Be Dragons" territory, and that's inspiring.</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-shows-underwater-astonishments-4">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-shows-underwater-astonishments-4#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/ruMFu5V0ibM" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-shows-underwater-astonishments-4 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 03:33:00 -0700 David Gallo on life in the deep oceans http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/2eDS6YStb0o/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidGallo_1998-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidGallo-1998.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=343" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidGallo_1998-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidGallo-1998.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=343" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/david_gallo_on_life_in_the_deep_oceans.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>I'm going to watch two David Gallo talks back to back - this first one is from 1998. First off, I'm inclined to like him because he mocks Titanic (yay!). He's a very practiced, relaxed speaker, which is nice. Less compelling voices might be overwhelmed by the remarkable images onscreen, but he weaves in and out of them (as in his descriptions of the 150-foot long and X-wing death jellies).</p> <p>I think the biggest lesson to take from Gallo's talk here is that the ocean was, back in 1998, the least known habitat on Earth – which, considering that the oceans are more than two-thirds the Earth's surface, means that we knew much less about our planet than we typically think we did.</p> <p>Now I want to go watch <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BR9SA0?ie=UTF8&tag=culanncom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000BR9SA0">SeaQuest DSV</a>.</p> <p>(Spoiler: we still don't know nearly enough about the oceans.)</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/2eDS6YStb0o" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/david-gallo-on-life-in-the-deep-oceans Wed, 24 Mar 2010 18:31:24 -0700 James Burchfield plays (invisible) turntables http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/Sm8Rsgq2g7M/james-burchfield-plays-invisible-turntables-0 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/james-burchfield-plays-invisible-turntables-0 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JamesBurchfield_2003-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JamesBurchfield-2003.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=364" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/JamesBurchfield_2003-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/JamesBurchfield-2003.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=364" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/james_burchfield_plays_invisible_turntables.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>How important is mime to beatbox? Does it help sell the auditory illusion to see James Burchfield playing with invisible nobs, switches, and turntables? I'd think it would be more impressive to hear those sounds without any sort of reference to non-voice devices that might make them. </p><p>Like I've wondered sometimes before, though, I can't help but ponder why Burchfield in particular was invited to perform at TED. Is there something I'm just not getting that makes him significantly better than other beatboxers around the world?</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/james-burchfield-plays-invisible-turntables-0">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/james-burchfield-plays-invisible-turntables-0#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/Sm8Rsgq2g7M" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/james-burchfield-plays-invisible-turntables-0 Tue, 23 Mar 2010 07:00:00 -0700 Natalie MacMaster fiddles in reel time http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/3P9Um1l6-dk/natalie-macmaster-fiddles-in-reel-time http://reviewingted.posterous.com/natalie-macmaster-fiddles-in-reel-time <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/NatalieMacMaster_2002-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/NatalieMacMaster-2002.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=117" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/NatalieMacMaster_2002-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/NatalieMacMaster-2002.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=117" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/natalie_macmaster_fiddles_in_reel_time.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Most of the talks I review here, I pull from the TED video feed – it's a video podcast of TED talks. For whatever reason, there are a ton of talks that are available online that aren't in the feed, though, and this is one of those. Natalie MacMaster and Thomas Dolby's performance from 2002 is a lovely short piece.</p> <p>My only complaint is that Dolby's keyboard and vocals were balanced heavyily through a lot of it. More fiddle, I say!</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/natalie-macmaster-fiddles-in-reel-time">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/natalie-macmaster-fiddles-in-reel-time#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/3P9Um1l6-dk" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/natalie-macmaster-fiddles-in-reel-time Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:42:56 -0700 Siegfried Woldhek shows how he found the true face of Leonardo http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/gmhCplziTyE/siegfried-woldhek-shows-how-he-found-the-true http://reviewingted.posterous.com/siegfried-woldhek-shows-how-he-found-the-true <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/SiegfriedWoldhek_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/SiegfriedWoldhek-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=235" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/SiegfriedWoldhek_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/SiegfriedWoldhek-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=235" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/siegfried_woldhek_shows_how_he_found_the_true_face_of_leonardo.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>I'm curious: why is it important that we know Leonardo's face? We don't know what most historical figures look like, really – even sculptures are of dubious veracity, I'd think. </p><p>That aside, Siegfied Woldhek is making a pretty big assumption that Leonardo would've made self-portraits, and that we'd have any that he did in Leonardo's surviving works. Woldhek does have an interesting point in the similarities among the three images (the musician, the Virtuvian man, and the old man), but I dunno – I'm not sure that I'm convinced. (And that's to say nothing of my skepticism that this belongs at TED.)</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/siegfried-woldhek-shows-how-he-found-the-true">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/siegfried-woldhek-shows-how-he-found-the-true#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/gmhCplziTyE" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/siegfried-woldhek-shows-how-he-found-the-true Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:14:13 -0700 Dean Kamen previews a new prosthetic arm http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/ByA4LhZPqUU/dean-kamen-previews-a-new-prosthetic-arm http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dean-kamen-previews-a-new-prosthetic-arm <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DeanKamen_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DeanKamen-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=82" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DeanKamen_2007-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DeanKamen-2007.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=82" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/dean_kamen_previews_a_new_prosthetic_arm.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>There's just something about Dean Kamen's presence that strikes me as terribly awkward. He and his people do amazing work, but it's almost painful for me to watch him.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dean-kamen-previews-a-new-prosthetic-arm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dean-kamen-previews-a-new-prosthetic-arm#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/ByA4LhZPqUU" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dean-kamen-previews-a-new-prosthetic-arm Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:14:00 -0700 TED Blog: Parallel universes and you: a short Q&A with David Deutsch http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/hEYWJnFsBkY/ted-blog-parallel-universes-and-you-a-short-q http://reviewingted.posterous.com/ted-blog-parallel-universes-and-you-a-short-q <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidDeutsch_QA_2009G-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidDeutsch-QA-2009G.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=707&introDuration=16500&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=2000&adKeys=talk=david_deutsch_parallel_universes_and_you;year=2009;theme=numbers_at_play;theme=speaking_at_tedglobal2009;theme=unconventional_explanations;event=TEDGlobal+2009;&preAdTag=tconf.ted/embed;tile=1;sz=512x288;" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DavidDeutsch_QA_2009G-medium.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DavidDeutsch-QA-2009G.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=707&introDuration=16500&adDuration=4000&postAdDuration=2000&adKeys=talk=david_deutsch_parallel_universes_and_you;year=2009;theme=numbers_at_play;theme=speaking_at_tedglobal2009;theme=unconventional_explanations;event=TEDGlobal+2009;" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://blog.ted.com/2009/12/parallel_univer.php">blog.ted.com</a></div> <p>I love a good parallel universe talk (ask me about my views on fictional world metaphysics sometime), so I'm predisposed to like David Deutsch's conversation here.</p> <p>On the free will issue, is there anyone who is actually satisfied by the parallel universes theory? It's not like that buys you any sort of agency – <strong>you</strong> still exist in only one universe (though there are an infinite number of versions of you in other universes), and your actions in that universe are still subject to the determinate principles of physics given the quantum fluctuations that brought your universe into being....</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/ted-blog-parallel-universes-and-you-a-short-q">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/ted-blog-parallel-universes-and-you-a-short-q#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/hEYWJnFsBkY" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/ted-blog-parallel-universes-and-you-a-short-q Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:12:00 -0700 Richard St. John's 8 secrets of success http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/9gbNo-uCKAM/richard-st-johns-8-secrets-of-success-13 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/richard-st-johns-8-secrets-of-success-13 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"> <param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /> <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /> <param name="wmode" value="transparent" /> <param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/RichardSt.John_2005-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/RichardSt.John-2005.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=70" /><embed src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/RichardSt.John_2005-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/RichardSt.John-2005.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=70" width="446"></embed> </object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/richard_st_john_s_8_secrets_of_success.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Richard St. John is a pretty good storyteller, and he's certainly passionate about his topic. I'm not convinced by his taxonomy of success, however, which is:</p> <ul> <li>Passion </li> <li>Work </li> <li>Good (Expertise) </li> <li>Focus </li> <li>Push </li> <li>Serve </li> <li>Ideas </li> <li>Persist</li> </ul> <p>OK, I should clarify that. I think all of these are necessary for success, but I don't think they're usefully independent of each other in many cases. Persist and Push, for instance, are clearly related; I'm also inclined to link up Passion, Work, Good, and Focus. Sure, they can come apart, but Good in particular requires the other three.</p> <p>A practical note: this is one of the best examples I've seen of how having to manually advance your slides detracts from a talk. Buy a remote, St. John! (Hopefully, he has done so at some point in the last five years.)</p> </div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/richard-st-johns-8-secrets-of-success-13">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/richard-st-johns-8-secrets-of-success-13#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/9gbNo-uCKAM" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/richard-st-johns-8-secrets-of-success-13 Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:39:06 -0700 Roy Gould and Curtis Wong preview the WorldWide Telescope http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/dOv1fLEUNdk/roy-gould-and-curtis-wong-preview-the-worldwi http://reviewingted.posterous.com/roy-gould-and-curtis-wong-preview-the-worldwi <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/RoyGould_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/RoyGould-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=224" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/RoyGould_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/RoyGould-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=224" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/roy_gould_and_curtis_wong_preview_the_worldwide_telescope.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Roy Gould's demonstration of the Worldwide Telescope project a few years ago (2008, to be precise) is curious. It feels like a planetarium show – soft music playing behind stunning visuals, while a somewhat dry narrator tells his story in the background, and is inevitably overshadowed by the starscapes on screen. </p><p>The project itself looks very cool (and like yet another application of Microsoft's Seadragon technology – is there anything Seadragon can't do?), but I have to wonder why I haven't heard anything about it over the past two years. I might not immerse myself in astronomy news, but I'm generally at least a little aware when something makes a huge splash, which this apparently didn't.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/roy-gould-and-curtis-wong-preview-the-worldwi">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/roy-gould-and-curtis-wong-preview-the-worldwi#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/dOv1fLEUNdk" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/roy-gould-and-curtis-wong-preview-the-worldwi Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:55:27 -0700 Dan Barber: How I fell in love with a fish http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/sXUV-VT8E1g/dan-barber-how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-4 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dan-barber-how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-4 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DanBarber_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DanBarber-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=790" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/DanBarber_2010-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/DanBarber-2010.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=790" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/dan_barber_how_i_fell_in_love_with_a_fish.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>It seems like a lot of the presentations from the last couple of TEDs have been excellent - like there's been a higher standard for the presenters. Dan Barber's storytelling about fish, aquaculture, and ecology is a perfect example of this. </p><p>Barber has a great rhythm and feel for his audience, and he's honestly funny. He's also got a compelling story to tell, about sustainable farming and the vision of a possible, better future for it. In his loving descriptions of the fish farm in Spain, I was reminded of Michael Pollan's description of Joel Salatin's farm in Virginia. Both rely on a holistic approach; both reject the unnatural specificity of factory farming (cattle, lots of cattle, and nothing else) in favor of creating a local, self-sufficient ecosystem. It's a beautiful vision, and one that I hope spreads. </p><p>I wonder, could this same approach to aquaculture take off elsewhere? In the Everglades or the Mississippi delta, for instance?</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dan-barber-how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-4">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dan-barber-how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-4#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/sXUV-VT8E1g" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/dan-barber-how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-fish-4 Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:48:14 -0800 Tom Wujec demos the 13th-century astrolabe http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/4D1OXMbL1Pg/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/TomWujec_2009GU-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/TomWujec-2009GU.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=694" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/TomWujec_2009GU-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/TomWujec-2009GU.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=694" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/tom_wujec_demos_the_13th_century_astrolabe.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>There's something about beautiful technology that just gets me every time, and Tom Wujec's demonstration of the astrolabe falls directly into that category. Wujec is a good storyteller, and his passion for the subject comes through clearly. (He made an astrolabe out of paper for his thesis? What sort of program was he in, and how can I get in it?) His main point is that technology and progress don't always result in betterment across the board; we may be able to tell time faster and more accurately nowadays, but we've lost something important along the way. </p><p>The astrolabe, as it turns out, is a stereographic projection of the sky onto a flat disc (well, a couple of nested flat discs). You tell time by sighting a star, measuring its altitude, moving one disc to reflect that measurement, and reading the time off a dateline - which means you tell time by reading the sky. Understanding how an astrolabe works, then, means you know a fair bit about how the world around you works. Telling time with your watch, on the other hand, divorces you from that same world. </p><p>I think Wujec's overall point works nicely, but I'm not sure about some of the side points he makes. I'm curious as to what portion of the population ever possessed or knew how to work an astrolabe, for instance – technology has democratized the ability to tell time. I'm also a little curious how latitude-bound astrolabes are, since the sky looks pretty different as you move north and south. All that said, (and Wujec's misuse of the term "affordance" aside) this is a lovely talk, and it's got some beautiful artifacts in it. I can totally sympathize with his desire to own one despite the price.</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/4D1OXMbL1Pg" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/tom-wujec-demos-the-13th-century-astrolabe Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:53:23 -0800 Alisa Miller shares the news about the news http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~3/94NCDW9RNug/alisa-miller-shares-the-news-about-the-news-1 http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alisa-miller-shares-the-news-about-the-news-1 <p> <div class="posterous_bookmarklet_entry"> <object height="326" width="446"><param name="movie" value="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><param name="bgColor" value="#ffffff" /> <param name="flashvars" value="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/AlisaMiller_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/AlisaMiller-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=248" /><embed allowfullscreen="true" src="http://video.ted.com/assets/player/swf/EmbedPlayer.swf" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="326" flashvars="vu=http://video.ted.com/talks/dynamic/AlisaMiller_2008-high.flv&su=http://images.ted.com/images/ted/tedindex/embed-posters/AlisaMiller-2008.embed_thumbnail.jpg&vw=432&vh=240&ap=0&ti=248" width="446"></embed></object> <div class="posterous_quote_citation">via <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/alisa_miller_shares_the_news_about_the_news.html">ted.com</a></div> <p>Alisa Miller's talk on the news seems really rehearsed (in a bad way) from the get-go. A few second in, though, it's obvious why: she's reading. That aside, I'd love to see how her map projections were created. In fact, a lot of her visuals are very nice. The slides have a clear, unifying theme, and aside from some distracting transitions are quite well done. </p><p>I'm finding it hard to judge the content itself, because Miller's reading voice just isn't very engaging. I find it difficult to follow what she's saying, because the rhythm is just ... off. She pulls it out a little at the end, but even her plea is lackluster. If it is essential that we do better on reporting news globally, and she knows that we can do better, why doesn't she just tell us how?</p></div> </p> <p><a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alisa-miller-shares-the-news-about-the-news-1">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alisa-miller-shares-the-news-about-the-news-1#comment">Leave a comment  »</a> </p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ReviewingTED/~4/94NCDW9RNug" height="1" width="1"/> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/21967/marmalade.png http://posterous.com/users/KESzKKtucV Ben Scofield Ben Ben Scofield http://reviewingted.posterous.com/alisa-miller-shares-the-news-about-the-news-1