TED Talks Daily

While doctors take an oath to do no harm, there's a good chance their unconscious biases can seep into how seriously they take your pain. Physician Sheetal DeCaria explains how perception impacts the medical care and treatment of chronic pain -- and calls for health care professionals to check in with how they do their patient checkups. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"When teachers and families work together, everyone wins," says education technology entrepreneur and TED Fellow Heejae Lim. She shines a light on an underutilized resource in US public education -- a family's love for their children -- and shows that, with the right tools and tech, schools can remove language barriers, foster meaningful connections and help every student thrive. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chemical plants create many of the materials found in everyday items, from the shoes you wear to the car you drive to the cell phone in your pocket. But the massive carbon footprint from chemical manufacturing is leading to climate breakdown. Sustainable engineering researcher Miguel A. Modestino presents his team’s pioneering work on electrochemical engineering -- the design and implementation of new chemical reactions that source their energy directly from electricity, as opposed to fossil fuels -- and explains how it could reduce the world’s dependence on oil and gas, protect its natural treasures and keep the economy humming. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Digital creator Dylan Marron has racked up millions of views for projects like "Every Single Word" and "Sitting in Bathrooms With Trans People" -- but he's found that the flip side of success online is internet hate. Over time, he's developed an unexpected coping mechanism: calling the people who leave him insensitive comments and asking a simple question: "Why did you write that?" In a thoughtful talk about how we interact online, Marron explains how sometimes the most subversive thing you can do is actually speak with people you disagree with, not simply at them. Listen to Dylan's podcast, "Conversations With People Who Hate Me", wherever you get your podcasts. 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 price of insulin in the US is both outrageous and deadly to those who can't live without it. Diabetes advocate Brooke Bennett shares her own struggles living with type 1 diabetes and how the astronomical cost of a life-saving drug leaves millions struggling to survive. A rallying cry for an affordable and humane livelihood for those with chronic illness. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neuroscientist Sergiu P. Pasca has made it his life's work to understand how the human brain builds itself -- and what makes it susceptible to disease. In a mind-blowing talk laden with breakthrough science, he shows how his team figured out how to grow what they call brain "assembloids" -- self-organizing clumps of neural tissue derived from stem cells that have shown the ability to form circuits -- and explains how these miniature parts of the nervous system are bringing us closer to demystifying the brain. 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 quick wit and sharp insight, writer Jeanette Winterson lays out a vision of the future where human and machine intelligence meld -- forming what she calls “alternative intelligence” -- and takes a philosophical look at our species, asking: Are we smart enough to survive how smart we are? (Followed by a Q&A with TED’s head of curation Helen Walters) 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 metaverse is already on fire, and we haven't even built it yet," says TED Fellow and video game lawyer Micaela Mantegna. She lays out why the metaverse is at risk of inheriting some of the internet's worst traits, like unchecked surveillance -- and shows how we could redirect its fate through new laws grounded in kindness and connection. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Taking cues from soft robotics and the natural world, conceptual artist Anicka Yi builds lighter-than-air machines that roam and react like autonomous life forms. Her floating “aerobes” inspire us to think about new ways of living with machines -- and to ponder how they could evolve into living creatures. “What if our machines could be more than just our tools, and instead, a new type of companion species?” she asks. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everyone has the right to a clean environment -- but major disparities exist when it comes to who faces the consequences of pollution. Environmental justice leader Peggy Shepard points to the disproportionate impact that hazardous environmental conditions have on Black, brown and Indigenous communities and challenges us to build a truly equitable future that turns "sacrifice zones" -- where community health is sacrificed for the sake of development -- into "green zones" that redress the legacy of pollution and harmful policies. Learn more about our flagship conference happening this April at attend.ted.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.