We just wanted to let all our readers out there now that our weekly “Sundays with TED” post will be posted tomorrow night (Sept. 6th). Due to the long weekend,  today isn’t “technically” a regular Sunday and therefore your brain will need its’ jump start tomorrow evening instead of right now. It is for reason that we have pushed back the publishing of the post so don’t worry, you won’t have to go the week without it.

So keep your eyes peeled tomorrow evening for this week’s “Sundays with TED”.

Until then everybody.

For our first ever “Why We Love TEDTalks” blog post, we were able to sit down with travel blogger extraordinaire, Tamy Emma Pepin to find out more about her and why she loves TED. Tamy plays a significant role in the Montreal community as she strives to re-discover our beloved city and share it with the world through Tourisme Montreal.

Tamy’s love for TED talks first started when she was introduced to the site by a friend and although she had never heard of TED before, she was immediately taken by the concept. TED is her favourite online resource and she continues to check back regularly for new videos with new ideas. She typically narrows in on talks with inspiring or courageous messages but she also takes a special interest global issues that affect the world at large.

Tamy is in the unique position to vouch for Montreal as the place for TED conferences. Montreal has the perfect blend of education, finance, and creativity, she says. What’s more, as a multi-cultural and multi-lingual city, Montreal has a very global community and outreach. In other words, TED – please come to us.

Tamy can’t choose just one favourite talk (who could?) but instead gave us two: Eve Ensler’s “Embrace your inner girl” and “Sunitha Krishnan fights sex slavery”. “ça vient me chercher”, she says as she describes the deep rooted passion she has for causes related to feminism and women’s issues, especially commercial sexual exploitation. Tamy spent some time in Honduras working with girls who had been rescued from the sex trade and says that meeting those girls has affected her life in a major way. “When the women of the world are not doing great, then the world is not fine. It is imperative and urgent that ALL girls have the opportunity to become educated, healthy and safe. Without those conditions, it is society at large that will pay the price and suffer”, says Tamy as she tells us that talks like those by Ensler and Krishnan tug on her heart in a way that few others do.

Tamy also mentions that Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture from TED’s Best of the Web series is one she continually returns to when she is in search of guidance and balance. She characterizes Pausch’s lecture as a “wake-up call” and says that it consistently reminds her not to get caught up and to keep perspective on the things that matter. For Tamy, his words make her remember that for her, the only things that matter in life are to do what you love and to be good to others and help them do what they love.

As our time with her came to an end, we couldn’t help but ask her one final question: Is there someone who hasn’t yet given a TED talk who you would love to see present their ideas? After much thought, Tamy decided upon her personal hero, author and poet Khalil Gibran. Gibran wrote The Prophet which Tamy tells us is like her bible and is kept by her bed so she is able to read it all the time. The book discusses great themes, such as justice, friendship, self-knowledge and love. To illustrate how wise the words of Gibran were, Tamy cites one of her favourite passages about love and marriage from a chapter where Gibran writes,

“For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.”

Unfortunately, Khalil Gibran died in 1931 but thankfully, he put his wonderful messages on paper so Tamy, and the rest of us, can at least continue to read them whenever we want. Truth be told, the way she spoke about the book made me go out a few days later and make the purchase myself. Thank-you for the recommendation Tamy and thank you so much for the time you spent with us!

Stay tuned for more “Why We Love TEDTalks” blog posts with other Montrealers who have been bitten by the TED bug.

It is astounding the way that Cobley hits the nail on the head as he relates scientific theory to the world of business. He acquired knowledge in a certain discipline but the discipline’s boundaries in no way confined him. He is living proof that the power of knowledge is all in the way you use it.

I feel like as university students, we can relate to this sentiment all to well. We spend our days attending classes and reading textbooks but I think that there is a huge difference in what each student takes away from the learning experience. You can strive for good grades by memorizing the information to, ultimately, reproduce it on midterms and term papers OR you can really get a grasp on it by sinking your teeth into the material you learn.

The difference, I believe, lies in the way you view knowledge. It is when you treat information with an intrinsic value and not instrumental worth, that the fruits of learning really show themselves.

As a new school year approaches, I wish all of you students out there the best of luck with your studies and I urge you to treat your classes in such a way to expand your understanding of the world and not just as a means to getting that degree.

We invite you to discuss Cobley’s talk in the comment box below but I would also like to dedicate this space to jotting down facts that originate from one field but that are universal in their application to life (eg; Newton’s law and brand positioning in the market).

The first major UK show of Brazilian artist Vik Muniz focuses on his series of portraits.

TEDxMcGill is looking for students artists to help illustrate our campus campaign posters. If you draw, paint, photoshop, or create visually, email jan@tedxmcgill.com

Also, be sure to check out the volunteer section of our website. Currently, we are looking for Ambassadors and the previously mentioned, student artists. There will be more volunteer opportunities to come in the near future so refer back to that same volunteers section over next few months.

We are working really hard to bring you the best TEDxMcGill 2010 possible but we can’t do it alone. If you or anyone you know is interested in becoming a sponsor for the event on November 20th, 2010, please contact david@tedxmcgill.com

After he stepped out of the capitalist sector and into the social sphere of business, he has pioneered phenomenal entrepreneurial ideas that have significantly improved the climate of India. Mather is the founder of Dial 1298 for Ambulance, Education Access for All and Moksha-Yug Access which are all programs that have increased universal access to the basic needs of the Indian population. For instance, Dial 1298 for Ambulance is an organization that provides medical response to those in need, despite whether they are able to supply payment. To top it all off, the program is 100% self-sustaining through its’ own revenue streams with no need to pull from government funding.

Now Shaffi Mather is back at the drawing board once again. His exciting new business idea is to provide a service to help those who are confronted by the threat of bribery. Mather wants to consolidate the tools necessary to deal with the people issuing the bribes and offer those tools to those victimized at an extremely reasonable fee. Mather outlines what the typical bribe is like in India and the monetary difference between the average bribe and his service’s fee is nothing short of astounding.

Shaffi Mather says that the premise behind all of his social projects is to send a message to the enemies of humanity in order to show them that humanity will continue to blossom despite continued attack. Through out each of his projects, he has pledged to never recognize that something may be impossible and has instead kept his focus on the goal at hand.

After watching his proposal for this sort of “Bribe-busters” service, do you think an organization like this will be able to take a stand against a mammoth task like fighting corruption? Is it possible for a business model to be the solution to eradicating bribery? Are you able to do like Mather does and stay away from classifying tasks as impossible?

Let TEDxMcGill know what you think the verdict will be on Shaffi Mather’s social program to fight corruption. What are the roadblocks and what factors could contribute to the success of his idea?

The one thing that I think we can all agree on is that we all hope he succeeds.

We are a culture that loves its’ music and we love to have it at our fingertips. To illustrate that fact, Pogue does a two-part musical number that talks about both the world of iTunes and that also attacks the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

As a personal technology columnist for the New York Times and an Emmy Award winning tech correspondent for CBS news, Pogue’s job is to explore all the new technological avenues of today’s world and break them down so we can get a handle what is the good, the bad and the ugly of technology. He definitely knows his stuff and while letting us know the truth about new techs, he is not shy about revealing his unfeigned opinion of the topics he discusses. His bit on the RIAA confirms that this columnist is not a fan of this organization’s actions. The RIAA is a trade organization that supports and promotes the creative and financial vitality of the major music companies however, Pogue lyrics show that he thinks that the criminal connotation that the RIAA has cast over the act of downloading music is erroneous.

My question to you is what do you personally think of the downloading wars that is going on between the music industry and its’ consumers? Do you think that those that download their music illegally are depriving the artists by stealing or do you think that the consumers aren’t committing any foul by acquiring their music in this fashion?

Let us know what you think by dropping a thought or two in the discussion box below. Tell us how you get your music into your iTunes or what regulations you think should exist for this type of downloading activity.

Happy Sunday to all of our readers out there.

Since the first TED talk all the way to this week’s latest additions, there has been many evolutions to the TED concept, one of which being TEDx – the very reason that we are writing this blog for you today. TEDx allows independent community groups (schools, businesses, neighbourhoods) to design, organize and host their own TED conference. In honour of all the great things that have branched off TED, we thought we would present you with a talk from both 1984 and 2010.

In the first video we see Nicholas Negroponte making 5 predictions about the future of computer-aided design as it applies to both new technologies and how they are associated with entertainment. It is beyond impressive how bang-on he is about so much of the technological devices we have today. Today, Negroponte is the pioneer behind the One Laptop per Child initiative which is a program which strives to bring education to children all over the world. Visit their homepage to learn more about their efforts to give educational opportunities to the world’s poorest children.

After that blast from the past, I would like to introduce the latest videos from TED.com. Every week TED subscribers receive a newsletter to let us know what new videos have been added to the video archives.** This past week, there were several fascinating videos which covered a range of topics from a daring cold-water swim in Mt. Everest’s Lake Imja to underwater sensors that will turn our oceans into a global map.

However, the talk that we would specifically like to highlight is Laurie Santos’ discussion of “Monkeynomics”. Santos is a scholar of human nature who wonders why we are so smart yet make irrational errors when it comes to certain domains such as finances. Through her research with monkeys, she asks whether it is our environments or our minds that are poorly designed. Watch her TED talk and discover what she found through working with our very distance evolutionary relative.

** If you are interested in receiving the TED newsletter on a weekly basis, subscribe by entering your email at the bottom of their homepage. While you at it, you should subscribe to the TEDxMcGill newsletter as well. Simply click here and give us your name and email to start getting monthly updates about what’s going on at TEDxMcGill.

The growth of WikiLeaks has been overwhelming due to the concept behind their organization but also due to the the sheer amount of whistle-blowers that have approached WikiLeaks with their submissions. When asked how the organization goes about the leaking of secret information, Julian Assange says it is based on the level of importance of said information. How does he know what is important and what’s not? If there is a considerable amount of effort to conceal a piece of news then that is pretty telling about the nature of that secret.

Chris Anderson poses a very interesting question to the TED audience – is Julian Assange a hero or a dangerous troublemaker? After seeing the video, you can definitely get an idea of what the TED audience thinks but TEDxMcGill would like to know what YOU think.

Is WikiLeaks a friend or foe to the news industry? Do you think that an organization such as this is a positive force for the democratization of information or do you think the risks are higher than the rewards?

Watch this compelling conversation between Anderson and Assange and let us at TEDxMcGill know your opinion on WikiLeaks and their mission of shining light onto the dark secrets of the world.

The story behind the “girl cell” is that it is the part of us that drives wisdom, balance and ultimately, it is the key to the future of all of us. In Eve Ensler’s inspirational TED talk, she eloquently explains that it is this cell that embodies characteristics such as compassion, intensity, intuition, empathy, openness and the best thing is that it is a cell that is found in both men and women. What a phenomenal part of the human genome huh? The problem is however, that not everyone shares the same view of the girl cell.

Rather than being celebrated as the virtuous trait that it is, the girl cell is often both oppressed and suppressed due to the fact that we have learned that showing the emotions and feelings that stem from the girl cell is frowned upon and even, in many cases, punishable.

The thing I love most about this talk, besides the fact that it leaves its’ listener with goose bumps, is the real-life narratives Eve Ensler brings to the topic. She mentions the names of girls from all over the world and makes these girls and their stories familiar to us and therefore we can identify ourselves within their stories. Ensler’s tales of safe houses and reconciliation programs reminds us of all the great work that the V-day movement has done. However, those specific examples are just a tiny glance into the significant contribution that Eve Ensler and V-Day has made towards eradicating violence towards women and girls around the globe.

Her talk brings to mind a similar organization called The Girl Effect which also fights to stop the mistreatment of women and girls and they too stand behind the idea that the essence of the girl cell is essential to the development and the continuation of the human race.* For instance, there is an article in Business Week that outlines how The Girl Effect could lift the global economy.

The way that Eve Ensler glorifies the “girly” aspects that are so often put to shame is beyond amazing. She could not be more right as she states that being a girl is a powerful thing and that everyone in the world, both men and women should embrace the part of us that makes us cry and makes us, what she calls, an emotional creature.

Through your own experiences, in what way do you feel that the girl cell is being suppressed? Do you agree with the idea that both boys and girls are essentially brought up not to be girls and that girls are trained to follow the verb “to please”? Let us know your thoughts and feel free to tell us a story about someone that you know who is embracing everything it means to be a girl!

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If you liked this video, follow the link to watch Eve Ensler’s take on happiness in body and soul in her 2004 TEDtalk or check out her book I am an Emotional Creature: The Secret Life of Girls Around the World.

* The Girl Effect organization is looking for groups of inspired people to start up their own Girl Effect clubs or community groups or to put on a fundraiser in order to raise money for the Girl Effect fund. If you are interested in becoming a part of this movement check out the toolkit in the What You Can Do tab on The Girl Effect’s page on Facebook.

McGonigal’s dissection of the gaming world reveals numerous variables that do in fact make virtual games profitable in terms of how they can help improve issues such as hunger, poverty, climate change and energy resources by fostering the development of social responsibility and innovation skills.

The conclusion drawn from the research done by McGonigal at the Institute for the Future is that gamers are super empowered individuals. However, the problem is that they need to believe that they can initiate change in the real world just as they do in the virtual world and apparently, the solution to this problem are games like World Without Oil or Urgent Evoke that ultimately give a crash course in changing the world.

The question then remains – how entertaining are these social responsibility games anyways?

One of the main reasons behind the commercial viability of the gaming industry is the massive amount of entertainment it provides for its users. The gaming world has been said to offer the things that the real world does not or in other words, it is a form of escape from the confines of one’s reality. With that being said, it is fair to ask if these games that replicate reality will be able to mimic a similar level of success as games that provide an escape from it?

What do you think? Can socially responsible games be fun?

For more with Jane McGonigal, check out the interview done by Wired Magazine which continues to discuss the relation between game play and changing the world.