Talk:
Ueli Gegenschatz: Fulfilling the dream of flight in a high-tech wingsui
Brief Synopsis:
Ueli talks about his experiences in all sorts of freefall methods--paragliding, skydiving, base-jumping, and his latest--wing-suit diving. He talks briefly about the progression from one method to the next, pushing limits by using physical preparation, developing new equipment, and mental preparation.
There is a 3 minute sequence of video towards the end of some of the events described, and a rather lengthly wing-suit dive, which Ueli calls "probably the closest thing possible to flying"
Ben on Ueli:
I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, it was interesting to see the progression of techniques and the knowledge and skill developed. It was also interesting to see the complete calmness in each one of the base jumps; he has complete comfort from experience, and that's relatable. We all have that for different things.
On the other hand, I thought parts of the talk were very self-congratulatory. I felt like sometimes the goal was simply to create a sense of awe in the viewer, and I never appreciate that. To me, awe is one of the worst emotions to evoke--it creates a distance between the speaker and the listener, and instead of feeling the possibility and probability of how something comes to be, the audience is asked to feel the IMpossibility of it. It all goes against this sense of understanding, progression, and preparation. And I think it happens a lot in many domains.
Lastly, I had to wonder (once again) what it means to be human. This guy has these experiences, and many of us can't have them. We get something from watching a video of someone else doing it. We could get something from a simulation of the same thing. I guess, what makes this guy's endeavor anything interesting to the rest of us? How important is personal experience vs. living "through" others? And as we start to really understand reward systems in the brain and think about taking control of them, what becomes the purpose of hard work and life? Hard questions that scientists surely aren't addressing, and that I don't trust any philosopher to tackle in any meaningful way.
Personally, I think we'll need to start making definitions of what it is to be human, what it is to lead a meaningful life, and incorporate those into our social structure. The way things are now, I feel that technology is integrated tightly with a consumer culture where the status quo is too much individuality, selfishness, and personal greed. It's a dangerous combination--allowing ourselves to take away most avenues of meaning, and in its staid placing a culture of selfish endeavors and ownership. I don't see a happy end if that paths continues.
Takeaway:
Not much!
Rating: ***
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Ben on David Pogue: Cool new things you can do with your mobile phone
Talk:
David Pogue: Cool new things you can do with your mobile phone
Brief Synopsis:
David Pogue is the NY Times editor for technology, and in this end-of-year talk he describes what he sees as the major steps of innovation in techology over the coming year: the further stages of merging the phone with the Internet.
Funny, witty, and sharply opinionated on which technologies and companies are doing right and wrong, it's a fun, light talk about quite a few current technologies that can make our lives easier:
Ben on David:
There was one really funny part towards the end where he pretends to be talking to his grandchildren about our current technology... I thought the talk was worth even that one moment. He ends with a song, which started out a bit cringe-worthy, but rounded into dramatic shape by the end.
Really, just a good time while you get to hear about new technology and see where things are headed. Gotta say, though, the business models behind any of this stuff are really not looking strong. I feel like we're still in the 'dot-com' era...
Takeaway:
Probably worth reading this guy's columns sometimes. He's funny and brutal, but he does seem to get it right.
Rating: ****
David Pogue: Cool new things you can do with your mobile phone
Brief Synopsis:
David Pogue is the NY Times editor for technology, and in this end-of-year talk he describes what he sees as the major steps of innovation in techology over the coming year: the further stages of merging the phone with the Internet.
Funny, witty, and sharply opinionated on which technologies and companies are doing right and wrong, it's a fun, light talk about quite a few current technologies that can make our lives easier:
- Free calls using VOIP... one phone plan from T-Mobile offers this!
- Free 411 via texting or voice recognition
- Free answering of any question at any time
- Free 'call-me' service for times you expect to NE
- Automatic transcription of voice mail
- It broke the old model of cell phone companies holding veto power over every aspect of phone design
- It created the idea of the app store
Ben on David:
There was one really funny part towards the end where he pretends to be talking to his grandchildren about our current technology... I thought the talk was worth even that one moment. He ends with a song, which started out a bit cringe-worthy, but rounded into dramatic shape by the end.
Really, just a good time while you get to hear about new technology and see where things are headed. Gotta say, though, the business models behind any of this stuff are really not looking strong. I feel like we're still in the 'dot-com' era...
Takeaway:
Probably worth reading this guy's columns sometimes. He's funny and brutal, but he does seem to get it right.
Rating: ****
Ben on Jacek Utko: Can design save the newspaper?
Talk:
Jacek Utko: Can design save the newspaper?
Brief Synopsis:
Jacek Utko sees no reason that newspapers need survive. We can delay their demise, but ultimately they offer what other sources offer better, cheaper, faster. So what is the solution to saving the newspaper?
Offer something new: put design into a newspaper. Consider it as an artwork, as a coherent whole, as a symphony. Have form and content, use design to drive not just the layout, but the stories in the paper. He has done it, won numerous awards, and, maybe most surprisingly, seen readership and subscriptions increase after years of stagnation and in times of decline.
Ben on Jacek:
One of the nice, brief talks on TED where you get to see an idea, examples of the idea, and come away with a small inspiration in about 6 minutes. It's not revolutionary, but I think anything can look at these principles and take something away.
For example, Science is presented and published with a lack of good design--and because of it content suffers. There is rarely an attempt to compel the reader with a story. Instead articles are dry, information-driven, and inaccessible to non-experts. In addition, scientists isolate themselves from the general public, leaving interpretation and dissemination of scientific discovery to a select few, and ultimately cultivating a divide between scientists, the highly educated, and the rest of the world.
Takeaway:
Keep design in mind in everything.
Rating: ***
Jacek Utko: Can design save the newspaper?
Brief Synopsis:
Jacek Utko sees no reason that newspapers need survive. We can delay their demise, but ultimately they offer what other sources offer better, cheaper, faster. So what is the solution to saving the newspaper?
Offer something new: put design into a newspaper. Consider it as an artwork, as a coherent whole, as a symphony. Have form and content, use design to drive not just the layout, but the stories in the paper. He has done it, won numerous awards, and, maybe most surprisingly, seen readership and subscriptions increase after years of stagnation and in times of decline.
Ben on Jacek:
One of the nice, brief talks on TED where you get to see an idea, examples of the idea, and come away with a small inspiration in about 6 minutes. It's not revolutionary, but I think anything can look at these principles and take something away.
For example, Science is presented and published with a lack of good design--and because of it content suffers. There is rarely an attempt to compel the reader with a story. Instead articles are dry, information-driven, and inaccessible to non-experts. In addition, scientists isolate themselves from the general public, leaving interpretation and dissemination of scientific discovery to a select few, and ultimately cultivating a divide between scientists, the highly educated, and the rest of the world.
Takeaway:
Keep design in mind in everything.
Rating: ***
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Ben on Adam Savage: My quest for the dodo bird, and other obsessions
Talk:
Adam Savage: My quest for the dodo bird, and other obsessions
Brief Synopsis:
Adam Savage, who seems to have worked on special effects and models in movies, talks about a couple of his personal quests: to own a skeleton of the now-exinct dodo bird, and to own a copy of the Maltese Falcon statue. When he can't obtain them, he decides to make them.
Ben on Adam:
Another talk that seemingly has no other point than to listen to this guy pat himself on the back. The only interesting question that came to my mind is, ... is this guy healthy? He seems happy, but clearly he's got some issues going on. The issues make him, in some ways, extraordinary. But .. they're weird and a little scary.
I didn't come to a solution on that. Some of the details in the talk were a little interesting, and he did a good job on his things, but ... ultimately I didn't really care. I would rate this 2.5 stars, but I gotta make a choice...
Takeaway:
Crazy and obsessed = ... ?
Rating: ** 1/2
Adam Savage: My quest for the dodo bird, and other obsessions
Brief Synopsis:
Adam Savage, who seems to have worked on special effects and models in movies, talks about a couple of his personal quests: to own a skeleton of the now-exinct dodo bird, and to own a copy of the Maltese Falcon statue. When he can't obtain them, he decides to make them.
Ben on Adam:
Another talk that seemingly has no other point than to listen to this guy pat himself on the back. The only interesting question that came to my mind is, ... is this guy healthy? He seems happy, but clearly he's got some issues going on. The issues make him, in some ways, extraordinary. But .. they're weird and a little scary.
I didn't come to a solution on that. Some of the details in the talk were a little interesting, and he did a good job on his things, but ... ultimately I didn't really care. I would rate this 2.5 stars, but I gotta make a choice...
Takeaway:
Crazy and obsessed = ... ?
Rating: ** 1/2
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Ben on Bruce McCall: Nostalgia for a future that never happened
Talk:
Bruce McCall: Nostalgia for a future that never happened
Brief Synopsis:
A kinda stodgy and self-congratulatory talk by an artist/cartoonist. He uses some interesting concepts in his work that he's created words for:
Ben on Bruce:
A kinda stodgy and self-congratulatory talk by an artist/cartoonist that I didn't know before this talk. I didn't really like his work, though the words he used (retrofuturism, tecnoarchaeology, and faux-nostalgia) were fun (but small) concepts. A couple of images made me chuckle; the three-page New Yorker cover and corresponding animation made me cringe.
Takeaway:
Absolutely none.
Rating: **
Bruce McCall: Nostalgia for a future that never happened
Brief Synopsis:
A kinda stodgy and self-congratulatory talk by an artist/cartoonist. He uses some interesting concepts in his work that he's created words for:
- retrofuturism - going into the past to revisit their (crazy) views of the future
- technoarchaeology - digging back to find ideas that never happened--and usually for a good reason
- faux-nostalgia - nostalgic feelings for things that never actually happened (like things that people were wishing would happen)
Ben on Bruce:
A kinda stodgy and self-congratulatory talk by an artist/cartoonist that I didn't know before this talk. I didn't really like his work, though the words he used (retrofuturism, tecnoarchaeology, and faux-nostalgia) were fun (but small) concepts. A couple of images made me chuckle; the three-page New Yorker cover and corresponding animation made me cringe.
Takeaway:
Absolutely none.
Rating: **
Monday, March 23, 2009
Ben on Kamal Meattle: How to grow your own fresh air
Talk:
Kamal Meattle: How to grow your own fresh air
Brief Synopsis:
Kamal says that, with proper maintenance, if you keep about 11-13 commonly available plants in a space (4 "areca palms", 6-8 "mother-of-tongue" plants, and (1?) "money plant"), you can close yourself up in an airtight container and survive indefinitely. This number of plants is per person.
Kamal talks about the statistics of health improvmenets in his office building in Dehli, India, where he implemented this. They are quite compelling.
Ben on Kamal:
The number of plants needed for say, someone in their own apartment (I rent a small studio apt) or office (I have a small office at UCSD) may seem a bit overwhelming, but for larger buildings and communities, it seems doable. It clearly sounds worthwhile.
One concern not addressed in the talk is the amount of water needed to make this happen. As discussed in Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" (among other places, of course), fresh water is going to be an issue in for an increasing number of people. If we implement Kamal's plan on a large-scale basis, seems that this will only increase such pressure. Furthermore, while it is orders of magnitude more energy efficient to drink tap water over bottled water, tap water takes energy to deliver.
Takeaway:
I'll see if it's possible to do this in my apartment. I'm terrible at watering and worse at maintenance, so I'm nervous about the needs of these plants. But I can try.
Rating: ***
Kamal Meattle: How to grow your own fresh air
Brief Synopsis:
Kamal says that, with proper maintenance, if you keep about 11-13 commonly available plants in a space (4 "areca palms", 6-8 "mother-of-tongue" plants, and (1?) "money plant"), you can close yourself up in an airtight container and survive indefinitely. This number of plants is per person.
Kamal talks about the statistics of health improvmenets in his office building in Dehli, India, where he implemented this. They are quite compelling.
Ben on Kamal:
The number of plants needed for say, someone in their own apartment (I rent a small studio apt) or office (I have a small office at UCSD) may seem a bit overwhelming, but for larger buildings and communities, it seems doable. It clearly sounds worthwhile.
One concern not addressed in the talk is the amount of water needed to make this happen. As discussed in Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" (among other places, of course), fresh water is going to be an issue in for an increasing number of people. If we implement Kamal's plan on a large-scale basis, seems that this will only increase such pressure. Furthermore, while it is orders of magnitude more energy efficient to drink tap water over bottled water, tap water takes energy to deliver.
Takeaway:
I'll see if it's possible to do this in my apartment. I'm terrible at watering and worse at maintenance, so I'm nervous about the needs of these plants. But I can try.
Rating: ***
Hello all!
Welcome all. I think it's best to always start a blog with a "hello", regardless of the topic. Thanks for stopping by! This is the first idea for a blog that I actually think is maintainable, so I'm interested to see if any other people wind up viewing and enjoying this blog.
Blog Description:
I've written a blog description, but it is too long for this site to "accept". I will put the full version here, then put an edited version to the site template. Any questions or comments, please comment below!
Blog Format:
For each post, I will try to include each of the following sections:
Blog Description:
I've written a blog description, but it is too long for this site to "accept". I will put the full version here, then put an edited version to the site template. Any questions or comments, please comment below!
I love the TED talks. They are about topics I care about, by people I care about (whether I know it or not!). They are compact but extremely full: dense, concentrated, powerful.
I watch at least two TED talks per week, but usually 4-5. Sometimes I discuss them with a friend, sometimes I write something about them, sometimes I simply file them away in my brain for later use.
I did notice something unexpected: I have begun to have a TED vocabulary. I often use TED talks as a reference point for ideas or emotions during a conversation. I pass the talks on to friends to whom they will be relevant, enjoyable, meaningful.
I hope that by creating this blog, I will be able to do the same for a larger audience.
Blog Format:
For each post, I will try to include each of the following sections:
- Talk: A link to the talk
- Brief Synopsis: Provide a brief synopsis of the talk.
- Ben on TED: Discuss what the impact of the talk was on me.
- Take-away: Conclude with how this talk has changed my actions, thoughts, and/or emotions.
- Rating: A rating from 1-5 stars, on the following scale:
***** : One of the best, ever. Life-alteringI hope that this will make the site easy to use for those who have not heard the talk yet, as well as those who have. It will also give me room to occasionally post follow-ups to TED talks where my take-away had to do with proposed actions.
**** : Truly enjoyable, something I'll look forward to watching again.
*** : Glad I watched it, it added value in some way. Once was enough.
** : It was OK, but I would have been just as happy if I hadn't bothered.
* : This actively irked me. Screw you too!
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