TED Talks Daily

Who are you, really? In conversation with TED science curator David Biello, neuroscientist Anil Seth lays out his fascinating new theory of consciousness and self, centered on the notion that we "predict" the world into existence. From sleep to memory and everything in between, he explores the reality we experience in our brains -- versus the world as it objectively might be. After the talk, stick around for a conversation between Elise and Anil about his new book "Being You: A New Science of Consciousness." This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"From populist demagogues, we will learn the indispensability of democracy," says novelist Elif Shafak. "From isolationists, we will learn the need for global solidarity. And from tribalists, we will learn the beauty of cosmopolitanism." A native of Turkey, she has experienced firsthand the devastation that a loss of diversity can bring -- and she knows the revolutionary power of plurality in response to authoritarianism. In this passionate, personal talk, she reminds us that there are no binaries, in politics, emotions and our identities. After the talk, stick around to hear a conversation between Elise and Elif about her new novel, "The Island of Missing Trees," an intergenerational story about forbidden love. Elise and Elif discuss how fiction creates empathy and how to avoid "falling into the trap of tribalism," even when the world might push us that way. This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, an episode of Far Flung with Saleem Reshamwala, another podcast from the TED Audio Collective. Icelandic is an ancient and iconic language that inspired J.R.R. Tolkien when he wrote "The Lord of the Rings." But with the digital age, and the strict rules surrounding its grammar, Icelandic is losing ground all over the country -- specifically to English. Now Icelanders are split -- using English for social and online interactions, and Icelandic for more formal conversations. Listen to why some Icelanders are concerned about this linguistic tug-of-war and why others are celebrating this new, multi-language way of communicating. Saleem also sits down with Elise to give us a book recommendation that dives deeper into these ideas: "Gold Diggers" by Sanjena Sathian. This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks, interviews and podcast episodes to inspire your next great read. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are only two mammals who have evolved to survive after their childbearing years: toothed whales and humans. This stage of life is called menopause, and it makes humans an evolutionary wonder! Dr. Jen Gunter, host of the podcast Body Stuff, talks to Elise about her book "The Menopause Manifesto." Afterwards, listen to an excerpt from Dr. Jen's podcast, where she reviews the history of this process many of us will go through, shares tips on managing hot flashes and talks about why menopause shouldn't be viewed as the end of the race -- but rather as a victory lap. This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks, interviews and podcast episodes to inspire your next great read. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jacqueline Woodson writes books to be savored. She is best known for her memoir "Brown Girl Dreaming" along with her works "After Tupac and D Foster," "Feathers" and "Show Way." Her accolades include the MacArthur "Genius Grant" and the National Book Award. In this excerpt of a conversation she had with Debbie Millman on the podcast Design Matters, Woodson talks about how she discovered her deep love of reading and writing and how she went from struggling with words as a child to becoming an illustrious writer as an adult. This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With passion and wry humor, the former Dean of Freshmen at Stanford makes the case for parents to stop defining their children's success via grades and test scores. Instead, she says, they should focus on providing the oldest idea of all: unconditional love. After the talk, stick around for a discussion on how you can be a grown-up, too, as Elise and Julie discuss her new book, "Your Turn: How to Be an Adult." This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read. And if you'd like to learn more from Julie, you can enroll in her new TED Course, which builds off the ideas from her book. Whether you're just launching your adult life or finally giving yourself permission to question what adulthood even is, you'll learn practical strategies to build a future that fits you. Enroll at tedtalks.social/bestself. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exposing what life looks like in Afghanistan after a 20-year US occupation and the Taliban's stunning and rapid takeover, TED Fellow and documentary photographer Kiana Hayeri captures harrowing glimpses and multifaceted realities of a war-torn country. Through the lens of her camera, she documents devastation and deferred dreams -- but also resilient hope and spirit. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read. Up first, a meditation on the meaning of home, the joy of traveling and the serenity of standing still from writer Pico Iyer. After the talk, Pico shares a book that has stayed with him: "Letter to a Stranger" by Colleen Kinder. If you'd like to hear more from Pico, you can take his upcoming TED Course "How to take a life-changing journey." You'll learn how to set an intention and choose a destination, be fully present while you travel, navigate cultural differences, and live differently when you return home. Enroll at tedtalks.social/journey Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The pandemic brought into sharp focus the crisis in caregiving in the United States, which woefully under provides support for parents. Activist and Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani has a proposal to address that -- something she calls the Marshall Plan for Moms -- and she unpacks how it aims to build radically different systems in order to empower working parents. (This conversation, hosted by TED current affairs curator Whitney Pennington Rodgers, was part of an exclusive TED Membership event on March 23, 2022. Visit ted.com/membership to become a TED Member.) Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine seeking safety abroad and instead being detained and forced to defend yourself in a high-stakes legal battle — alone. Law professor César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández explains how the asylum process in the US became warped into what we know today and poses a question that could lead the country out of its labyrinthian policies: In place of investing in more steel doors and barbed wire, what if immigration law was infused with support and justice? Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.