TED-Ideas Worth Spreading
TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader.
The annual conference now brings together the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes).
Mission of TED: Spreading ideas.
We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.
Today, TED is therefore best thought of as a global community. It’s a community welcoming people from every discipline and culture who have just two things in common: they seek a deeper understanding of the world, and they hope to turn that understanding into a better future for us all.
Assignment over break:
*Pick at least 2 videos that interest you.
*Summarize the video that you watch.
{Remember, the reader has no background knowledge of the
video)
*What is the essential question the speaker is trying to get across.
*Give your opinion of the video. (Make connections with prior
knowledge, your life, other subjects, etc.)
*Would you recommend this video to your class?
March 12th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Have you heard of T.E.D.? If you haven’t, you’re missing out on a lot of very interesting and valuable information. T.E.D. is a non-profit website that presents videos of the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers. Some of these people include Jane Goodall, Al Gore, and Jill Bolt Taylor.
The mission of T.E.D., which by the way stands for technology, entertainment, design, is to spread new ideas that have the power to change paradigms, lives, and even the world!!! T.E.D. seeks a deeper understanding of the world. T.E.D. hopes to use that understanding into making a better future for all of us.
The first video I watched on T.E.D. was called A Greener Future. In this video, former Vice President, Al Gore spoke of the climate crisis in the world and how we can help to reduce Global Warming by doing very simple actions. It’s actually much easier than you think. For example, instead of buying cars that use up gallons and gallons of fossil fuels, you can encourage your parents to buy a hybrid because it’s a car that doesn’t use as much gas. You can even catch the bus, carpool, or ride your bike.
I liked this video because it didn’t just tell me about the negative effects the C02 levels have on the polar ice caps and ultimately the world. It gave me examples on how to turn the situation around. Many of these ideas are mostly actions for adults, but there are also many things that kids can do too. One example is to raise awareness about the climate crisis in your school and community because if no one knows how dangerous the climate crisis can be, no one will take action to stop it.
I have learned many lessons from watching this video. One lesson I would like to share is that we must set aside our differences to work together on a problem this big. We know that one person can make a difference like how Martin Luther King Jr. led the colored people to a world of equality. If everyone worked together, we could be strong and overcome this not just as nations, but as a world.
I would recommend Al Gore’s video to the class because what he was talking about made me realize that this is truly a CO2 crisis that is affecting the entire world and that it’s critical for us to do something about it. Actions speak louder than words.
The second video I watched was Educating A New Generation Of African Leaders. The speaker, Patrick Awuah, said, “The question of transformation in Africa is a question of leadership.” He also said that the only way a society can reclaim itself was to be led by enlightened leaders. Every society needs to educate their future leaders well in order to create a sustainable environment.
The type of leaders he was talking about were not leaders in politics, but leaders in everyday life. Patrick Awuah said that although it’s good to have political leaders, it is also essential to have people such as doctors, nurses, firefighters, teachers and police officers. If it weren’t for them, many lives would be lost; lives a politician wouldn’t have been able to save.
I enjoyed this video because I feel relieved that actions are being done to prevent the problems in Africa from getting any worse. For example, many of the children aren’t being educated properly and there also aren’t enough money and supplies for the people. Now, the children in Africa are slowly being educated properly. After three months of learning at Ashesi University, a boy wrote to Patrick saying, “I am THINKING now.” These four simple words had a huge meaning. At that moment, he was ready to truly become a leader. That is why I would recommend this video to my class because it shows you directly what is happening, the ideal solution, and how you can help other African children to start really THINKING NOW.
Not only do African children need to be educated to help their land prosper, but any children of any race. If we Hawaiians take action to save our ‘aina from pollution, we can return it to the lush, green land that God created it to be.
If you want to know more about these subjects, or if you want to check out the site, search on the Internet for TED. Then YOU can really start THINKING NOW.
March 12th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Jill Bolte Taylor is a neurologist. She started becoming a neurologist because her brother was schizophrenic and she wanted to know about the brain and how it works. She got to study the right and left hemispheres of her brain while she had a stroke.
The right hemisphere of our brain pictures the present as what happens right here and right now. It takes in all of the information, channels it through your body, then it explodes into an enormous collage of what this present moment looks like, sounds like, taste like, smells like and feels like.
On the other hand, the left hemisphere of our brain has a completely different job. They are actually somewhat opposite. The left half of our brain works linearly and methodically. It stores information about the past and what can happen in the future. It takes the enormous collage that our right hemisphere produces; it categorizes, and organizes the detailed information. It associates the information with everything in the past that we’ve learned and projects it as what could happen in the future.
On the fateful morning she had a stroke, she awoke to a pounding pain in her left eye. Through the rest of the morning she had very peculiar things happen to her. For example, she realized the left side of her brain shut off and turned back on. When the left hemisphere of her brain was shut off, she felt disconnected from the real world. She became fascinated with the energy around her, and was in a place she refers to as “Lalaland.” When the left hemisphere switched back on, she was able to get help. She eventually called a friend to get help.
The next thing she knew was that she was in an ambulance, curled up in the fetal position. She then said to herself, “Either the doctors rescue me and give me a second chance, or this could be my time of transition.” When she awoke in the hospital, she was shocked to find that she was still alive. She found that she was still a little confused and she felt expandable like a genie out of a bottle. She felt she had found nirvana and she thought what a gift it would be if she could stay in nirvana. She thought that others should feel nirvana like she did.
Her conclusion was that if we know who we are, we have a chance to make ourselves what and who we want to be. She believes that if we could choose which side of our brain we want, we can know who we are. She also believes that if we look deep into the right hemisphere of our brain, we can find peace and project it throughout the world. Think of how peaceful our planet would be. Now that’s an idea worth sharing!
I thought this video was very different than the other videos because Jill Bolte Taylor has sent a message of what we can do with ourselves and what we make of ourselves. She talks about how we can find peace if we look deep inside ourselves.
I think this video should be shown throughout the world. It will show people what they can and should do with themselves.
March 13th, 2008 at 10:33 am
The video that I watched was an amazing performance by an eleven year old girl named Sirena Huang. She started playing the violin when she was four. As the lights dimmed and the first note was struck the audience became spell-bound. After the first piece, Sirena explained why she was at TED. Most of the audience was stunned by the first line. “Why I am here, I don’t really know. Technology Entertainment Design. I guess you could call a violin 16th century technology.” She then went on to explain the design of the violin. The design was meant to be simple but elegant. A sound-box, strings and a bow. The entertainment part was harder to explain. “The instrument itself wasn’t entertaining although my brother did find the bow very fun to use as a fencing sword.” She told a story that helped to explain the violin. A violinist just had a concert. While meeting his fans a young woman came up to him and said, “Your violin sounds beautiful”. The young man then picked up his violin and shook it. “Funny, I don’t hear a sound”. Sirena explained that at that moment she knew that the violin is not the entertainment, it is the violinist that is the entertainer. The violin is simply something to help make the entertainer successful.
I think Sirena is very talented. She is the same age as most of us and I believe if we try hard enough we can probably be just as talented. I know what it feels like because in order to become good at something you have to practice. Sirena practices her violin and I practice the piano. There is not a very big difference between the two instruments except for the design, techniques and sound.
I would recommend this video to the class because it just shows the how far we can go talent-wise. There is no limit to what we can do.
March 13th, 2008 at 11:24 am
The video I watched on TED was by Roy Gould on the World Wide Telescope. Roy Gould talked about how the new World Wide Telescope worked and how it would benefit human beings. It would also change our paradigm about the way we think about ourselves. The W.W.T takes the greatest images from combined sources to make a magnificent image. It will change the way we do astronomy and the way we teach astronomy. You can tour the universe with the W.W.T. by looking around in space. How does the night sky make you feel, probably tiny and insignificant. The W.W.T. makes you realize we are tiny but at the same time, we are truly wonderfully significant.
The essential question that Roy Gould is trying to get across to the audience is are we insignificant. Another question is why are we here and why do we exist.
I think this video was a good video for me because I like all kinds of science, and I think Roy Gould gave a clear message and did a good presentation at TED. This new telescope is just like when Galileo made the first telescope ever in history.
I would recommend this video that watch to people that is interested these kind of stuff like science, astronomy, and space. Caution if you do not like any of science or astronomy you should not watch this video.
March 13th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
We see so few truths, but “The War Tapes” is one video that everyone should see. Deborah Scranton has used her talents to discuss the present day war in Iraq. In addition, “The War Tapes” is a film which isn’t against the war or for the war, but shows how the soldiers and civilians lived from the inside out. This film is not about one individual. The troops were able to film the war action on live footage, not knowing what to expect but still getting it all on tape. Not only is the film brought up in her talk, but she also asked the audience and her viewers to think about how a lot of us are afraid to have conversations about the war because we might disagree and it might get uncomfortable. The question is how do we open it up so we will be able to have a real conversation?
Furthermore, Deborah Scranton created a new way to film a documentary. Her talk all ties into one big puzzle. She was able to create a new form of documentary while showing the reality of the war from the troops’ point of view, meaning from the inside out. The part where she asks the audience and her viewers to think about being able to have a real conversation ties into the part where the soldiers were able to open up on film, to share their private diaries and to be able to discuss political issues. Sometimes people don’t want to listen to those who are speaking or they don’t want to open up to others, but she feels in life it is necessary that people have difficult conversations.
Along the way, while Deborah Scranton was giving her speech, one of the few essential questions that she was trying to get across was “Why is it important to be able to open up to others, to take in their ideas, speak yours, and accept theirs?”
This presentation can relate to many people, and I want to highlight the part where she mentions that it is really important to have conversations. I agree with her because if we never take the chance to listen to others and speak up, we will never really have good leaders in the world. Deborah Scranton had made a good point about how openness can really help others understand where one is coming from or the situation they have been in. The idea of making the documentary by the troops is in my opinion a phenomenal idea. One can see how it makes the war look more like reality and how others feel about it.
I would recommend this video to those who would like to take their time and see how the world and war are evolving. Deborah is capable of changing your mind and how you react to others, but in a positive way.
March 14th, 2008 at 9:02 am
The video I watched was “The Vision Behind One Laptop per Child” by Nicholas Negroponte. Nicholas was talking about how his business with the “one laptop per child” is now expanding. His business is now in 7 countries. It is in China, India, Thailand, Nigeria, Egypt, Argentina, and Brazil. Thailand, Brazil, and Nigeria are the most active in getting the computers as soon as possible. He says that “This is not a laptop project, it’s an education project.” I think that hit me the most because he is not in it for the money but for the good of kids and their education. When he first started the laptop project, he went to Africa. He explained that the teachers told him he shouldn’t be wasting his money on laptops but on building more schools or something more useful. He didn’t listen to them and went through with the laptop project. After he did, the teachers regretted what they said because of three different reasons. First, all the parents are now attending parent-teacher conferences (before nobody attended). Secondly, there is now a drop in discipline problems and thirdly, there is now an increase in student participation. Presently, the teachers say they like teaching more. Nicholas said that the idea of the laptop was not only for it to be a laptop. It is a laptop, book, a game station, and a television set.
In my opinion, I think that this video was good for me because it taught me about other places in the world and their education. It also taught me about third-world countries and their economic systems. It also taught me about how one invention can change a whole continent (Africa).
I would recommend this video to my class because it can inspire you to do something to change the world. I would also recommend this video because you learn a little bit of everything. You get to also learn a little about Third-world countries and their economic systems.
March 15th, 2008 at 9:25 am
I would recommend the video I watched to my class because it shows that anything can become something as long as you use your imagination. In the video, the maker of the instrument made an instrument that was formed from pieces of a short wave radio, which he also invented. Itt also shows that you can play anything with practice, or you can make it up as you go along but you need practice every now and then.
My opinion of the video is that it was very educational and makes you think about creativity because you can have more copies made of the original idea, and even with the extra copies, you can make even more inventions. One invention is easy to make, but more inventions from the original that serve for different purposes are special because you have to use your imagination even more.
The essential question is what would you make with an idea and why.
March 15th, 2008 at 11:06 am
The video I watched was “Underwater Astonishments” by David Gallo. This video was really fascinating. There is a doctor at a marine science school that sent over the video that David showed and it is just amazing what underwater is. David explained to the audience that we only know about 3% of the ocean. The other 97% is unknown because the ocean has so many fascinating things. The video showed the audience how the animals of the ocean fight, flirt, and camouflage. When the marine animals fought they turned white, which meant they were angry. When they would flirt with each other, the males would make their body half white and half brown. The male would only let the female see the brown side of him because that was his kinder and gentler side. His white side was his angry side so he wouldn’t let the female see that part. In conclusion, we also have the camouflaging. In the last part of the video there was a just a tall piece of algae (well that’s what I thought) and the camera man came closer. An octopus just came back to its normal color, it was SUPER freaky. It just popped back to its normal color. They showed it in slow motion backward and it changed its color to camouflage with the algae in three seconds. It was so AMAZING!
To me, the video was just AMAZING! I got to learn a whole lot about marine biology and about the animals living in the ocean. Just the way the animals move is astonishing. I thought we knew pretty much everything about the ocean and the animals that live in it but, we only know 3% of it. That makes me very excited because there is a lot more to learn about marine life. You never know, there could be a monster living in the ocean or this crazy unknown fish with 5 eyes. You never know.
I would recommend this video to my class because it is very amazing and you can learn a lot about marine life. The last clip was so amazing I can’t even explain it. It makes you want to learn about the other 97% of the unknown ocean. It kind of makes you want to become a marine biologist.
March 16th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
The first video I watched was with the Raspyni brothers. The Raspyni brothers were very creative because they could juggle 7 clubs, 3 sharp sickles, 3 bean bag chairs, and pop balloons with a bullwhip while someone was holding the balloon! I think that they are good people because they know how to make everyone laugh. I think they came on TED because they had original ideas. One brother had invented his own juggling trick by flipping up to 6 cups, but making them land in one cup only! Another reason is I think almost no one would be willing to handle a bullwhip so close to someone just to pop a balloon! The Raspyni brothers were funny and creative because they invented all of their tricks and used it to entertain the audience. They were actually just tricks to make you laugh, and not anything that would scare you. I like the Raspyni brothers because the only thing closest to their humor are magic shows with people that juggle bowling balls, machetes, or torches, but they don’t always make you laugh. They just awe you.
In the second video, Jane Goodall talked about “What separates us from apes.” She also said “The world is not only composed of human beings, there are other creatures that live here as well.” She means that we should save this earth because even though we can survive in pollution, other creatures might not be able to. “These beings have voices that mean something.” And she gave us a chimpanzee call that meant “hello.” The neat thing about that was she said the call in her own voice, because she said that too often we would see a video clip and not actually hear one ourselves. This means a lot for me because she knows that we aren’t the only creatures living on this earth. She is trying to help apes and monkeys since they are a big part of life, and if we are missing them, we are missing a part of the food chain. Jane Goodall (Dr. Goodall) has been working on saving the monkeys for a long time now. She doesn’t want to study them in captivity because they aren’t what they are in the wild. The monkeys have their own “technology,” especially to get food. They make tools out of twigs to get termites and bugs out of their nest. This was exciting to her because everyone at the time thought that humans and only humans made and used tools. She also saw monkeys doing things that people thought were “just human” and human alone. Jane Goodall wanted us to think about how we use and abuse so many other creatures on this planet. “The one thing that we have that makes us so different from the apes is our sophisticated language.” She means that we can communicate through writing and the internet, while monkeys can only talk in person. I would recommend this to my class because she doesn’t only talk about apes, but making a better future for all humans and other creatures.
March 18th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
The video I watched was an amazing performance by the Pilobolus dance company starring Otis Cook and Jennifer Macavinta. They did an outstanding performance which showed emotion, delicacy, and romance. Their performance took a lot of balance, patience, and strength to do the moves with ease. I think that when they performed they were talking about how people can fall in love, and to get love you need to show how you feel towards them. When they were performing they reminded me of how the wind blows branches because of the way that they did things. They were creative in their work and the amazing part for me was how they did all those moves so precisely and accurately. When they did all of those flips it amazed me that they didn’t hit their heads and didn’t mess up all of those difficult moves. They painted a picture in my mind of what they were feeling.
I would recommend this video to the class because I think that they would find it rather exciting and cheerful to see people doing an amazing performance like this.
March 18th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
The video I watched is called ”Share a Vital Story of the World” by James Nachtwey. Mr. Nachtwey wanted to share photos of wars around the world and how they can change how people think and their actions. He showed pictures of wounded and dead soldiers, civilians and even young children. There were also pictures of explosions and homes burning down.
Photos of people who are suffering and dying showed me how fortunate we are and how safe we live. He shows many children dying painfully of starvation or being shot. Also, it showed soldiers shooting civilians or burning them alive and civilians shooting back. Everyday they live in chaos and fear.
The essential idea he is trying to get across is how pictures have a powerful meaning on people. In the video he said he showed a picture of a dying child, and millions of people donated money to a fund to save them. He also asked “How can you change the world, and are you helping or hurting the world?”
I really enjoyed this video because it showed stunning pictures and had phrases that made me think like ”Countries that don’t suffer, don’t feel until they are affected.” He was also able to share both sides of the Palestinian and Israeli conflict, and the U.S. and Iraq war. American media tells us one thing, but photos tell us another. In the video, there was an American tank blowing up a building with civilian people walking by to work.
I think my class should watch this video because it made me think about how I think about certain issues. (I just wasn’t thinking!) It also made me think about how you would feel if you were in their shoes. It would be interesting to be a war photographer and learn the real truth instead of listening to propaganda.
March 20th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
The video that I watched was about the climate crisis by Al Gore, the Nobel peace prizewinner in 2007. He talked about 15 ways to avert a climate crisis: 1. Reduce emissions from your home energy use (better design, insulation, and green electricity. 2. Reduce emissions from your car and other transportations. Buy a hybrid, light rail, carpool, and bike. 3. Buy the most energy-efficient appliances and other products. Be a green consumer. 4. Live a carbon-neutral life. It is easier than you think. Reduce your carbon emissions. 5. To find out how, go to http://www.climatecrisis.net and use the carbon calculator. 6. Make your business carbon neutral. 7. Then whether you work in T, E, or D, integrate climate solutions into all innovations. 8. Invest in sustainability in companies and funds that are part of the solution. 9. Become a catalyst for change in your community. Teach others about the climate crisis. 10. Raise awareness by promoting an inconvenient truth in your community. 11. Send someone to Nashville who can learn how to give Al Gore’s slideshow in your community. 12. Become politically active, speak up. 13. Urge the U.S. to join the rest of the world in capping and trading carbon emissions. 14. Help with the mass persuasion campaign when it is launched in spring. 15. Let’s call it the climate crisis even though it is really a planetary emergency.
The essential question that Al Gore is trying to get across is does anybody care if we all die from our fossil fuel burning that make greenhouse gases come into play?
This also applies to my life when my family recycles our cans, bottles, and glasses. We do it because we want to not just for the money.
Yes, I recommend this video to Wailele, and maybe Wailani because out of the whole grade level, I think we are the ones that care the most about global warming. Just look outside, we gave the school recycling bins because we reacted to global warming.
March 21st, 2008 at 8:18 pm
The video that I have just watched is by Tierney Thys which is about the giant ocean sunfish and the mola mola. She talks about how the giant sunfish lives and where it goes. They are starting a new program to help find out more about these fishes. She talks about if we don’t learn more about these creatures, then she thinks that the ocean will belong to the jellyfish because they are low energy creatures that don’t need much food.
My opinion on this video is that people should watch it because it tells a lot about this creature’s life and how it lives. It also tells how we are accidentally and in some places purposely fishing for the ocean sunfish. Tierney (the speaker in this video) was served a full course meal out of molas. It also tells that they have other fish clean them, how they sunbathe and how they are really productive creatures that they’re not lazy
I would recommend this video to Wailele and Wailani because it tells a story of an interesting ocean creature that is highly bizarre and unusual.
March 21st, 2008 at 11:19 pm
The video I watched was ”Entrepreneurs are the Future of Space Flight” by Burt Rutan. He talks about how space is our future and we need to explore space to learn. Mr. Rutan also said we need to inspire future generations to take risks and know that it is okay to sacrifice to succeed.
We need to explore space and not be afraid to die. We need to take risks to succeed. If we go to space we can learn much about space, and also about earth and how we can improve our living. Since we are afraid to die, we don’t go past our limits and don’t realize that it is okay to fail and learn by mistakes.
To get us into space we need to inspire future generation to raise their confidence. To raise our confidence we need to be inspired by someone like the Wright Brothers and make others eager to go and discover. When the Wright Brothers flew the airplane it made others think we can do that and made them try. Inspiration makes us reach for the stars, set goals and have no limits.
I think the essential idea Burt Rutan was trying to get across was that we need to go to space, explore the universe and go past our limits. Also he is trying to make us find new discoveries, learn new ideas, and get new concepts of space.
I think this is a great video and really enjoyed it because Mr. Rutan talked about many interesting topics like what our future could be in space, and what we need to change as a country to succeed and survive. Talking about space makes me wonder how our society will survive in the future. I believe in order for our country to continue to be a world power, we have to be intrested in space. This makes me want to explore the universe, make new discoveries and learn about our survival in space.
I think my class should watch this video because it tells a lot about the urge to discover and learn about our unknown space. Mr. Rutan also talks about finding new mysteries in space that help us think about our future in the universe. He shows many interesting facts like how 5 air flights went to space in 1961 and how no one in the U.S. survived going to space in 2003. Watching this video inspired me to learn more about new discoveries in space and how it could shape our future.
March 22nd, 2008 at 9:46 am
The video I watched was a spectacular performance by Arthur Benjamin doing Mathemagic. He was very fascinating. He could square two digit numbers like we could add one digit numbers. He was so fast squaring numbers that he could beat a calculator.
For his first act, he had some people in the audience bring their calculator to try to race him in squaring numbers. They tried their hardest to beat him but they were unsuccessful. He blew them out of the water.
For his second act he picked people in the audience to give him three digit numbers to square.
He raced the calculators and won spectacularly. For his third act, he asked one person in the audience to give him their birth date and he had to guess the day of the week they were born on. He got every one of their birthdays right. Then he gave an 18th centaury calendar to a stagehand and made him pick a date from the calendar. The stagehand said June 6, 1824 and he said Sunday. He was right!
For his last act he asked a person in the audience to give him a five-digit number to square. He was going to square 57,683. He warned the audience that he was going to use words to take the place of numbers. He used words like fishing, cookie, baby, and rev up. In the end he got 3,327,328,489 and it was right! He can do mathemagic.
I think that Arthur is an inspiration to all little math kids everywhere to go beyond Arthur and be able to do mathemagic. But he also taught that you need a lot of practice and patience to get to be like him.
I would recommend this video to my class because he will stretch your mind about math by what he can do.
March 22nd, 2008 at 12:19 pm
My report is on a man named David Gallo. David Gallo is a pioneer in ocean exploration. He is also an enthusiastic ambassador between the sea and those of us on dry land.
He showed a video on the deep blue sea and the shallow waters. The first part of the film he talks about how little we know about the deep sea creatures. First of all, we know that some of them can give off light. One of the reasons for this is that they attract other fish for food. Another reason is that some lights warn other creatures, “Hey, I’m poisonous!” Another reason is to avoid getting eaten.
After this part he talks about cephalopods such as octopi, cuttlefish, and squids. He talks about how they can turn different shades of colors and textures. Then he shows some clips showing squids fighting, a cuttlefish looking like algae, an octopus that looks like a rock that moves unseen and my favorite, an octopus that appears out of nowhere. This video is indescribable so you’ll have to watch it yourselves! It’s called: Underwater Astonishments!
March 22nd, 2008 at 2:15 pm
The video that I watched was by Marine Biologist Tierney Thys about The Giant Ocean Sunfish (Mola Mola).
She asked the audience to step off of the land and jump into the open ocean to take a look at the Giant Ocean Sunfish. A typical day in the life of a Giant Ocean Sunfish is basking in the sun on the top of the water, eating jellyfish, swimming up and down from one layer of the ocean to the next, and getting massages from the cleaner fish. One thing that the Sunfish contributes to marine biologists is that they tell biologists how the earth’s climate change is affecting the ocean’s creatures.
In my opinion her presentation is very informative and thorough about this topic. I think she is studying a creature that most marine biologists wouldn’t study. I think that most marine biologists would study tropical fish or maybe a sea dragon, but she feels really passionate about the sunfish and she keeps on studying it. I believe that if you feel passionate about something, you should help support it and inform people about it.
I would recommend this video to my class because it teaches people that when you feel passionate about a subject, you can make a difference in the world.
March 22nd, 2008 at 2:16 pm
The second video that I watched is by Hans Rosling. The video is called “New Insight on Poverty and Life Around the World.”
Rosling demonstrates how some developing countries are working their way out of poverty. Then he shows us the next few generations of the world using his software which displays data from certain years in the future. It also shows people patterns from the different years and different countries. He then shows the audience about the dollar street which shows how families who make more money and less money live. He then compares what the different houses look like with different family’s incomes.
I think this video shows the audience how poverty affects different countries, how it affects how people live, and what they eat.
I would recommend this video to my class because it shows how one thing can affect a lot of other things, like a domino effect. Poverty affects how we think of themselves, it affects what we eat, and it affects what we live in.
March 23rd, 2008 at 10:08 am
The video I watched was about squatter cities and how the people have more exciting lives there than people in the countries and villages. That is why the people are moving to the squatter cities from the country and villages.
The essential question is what would the world turn out to be if the squatter cities get so huge. If so, then how would the world look?
My opinion of the video is that squatter cities are helpful for unemployed people and people who like excitement and want a better future because you can get any job that you want. This makes connections with my life because when I look for excitement, I just do something new.
I would recommend this video to my class because it is educational and looks at the full perspective of the world, and that you can get fun out of life by trying new things.
March 24th, 2008 at 10:55 am
I watched a spectacular performance by Sirena Huang who is only eleven years old and won numerous prizes in international competitions. Sirena started playing the violin when she was only four and to me that is pretty amazing. She also made a professional solo debut at 9 with the Taiwan Symphony Orchestra. She is able to combine technical ability with emotional force. As the spotlight beamed on her, she began to play her first song which was a melodic melody that was so professionally played. I loved all of her songs because they were so beautiful and well performed. When she played her songs songs, they sounded very beautiful. She told a story with her songs and it was amazing. I wish that I could meet her in real life because she was so exciting.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:52 am
The video that I saw was by Dan Gilbert. It is called, “Why are we happy? Why aren’t we happy?” It first starts off with Dan Gilbert talking about the evolution of the humans’ head, how “fat” it was around 2,000,000 B.C., and how much smaller it got in 200,000 B.C. Then, he said why our heads got bigger. It gained two new parts of the brain called the “frontal lobe” (I think that’s what he said) and the prefrontal cortex. Why is the prefrontal cortex important? Itt gives us “experience” before even trying something out. This is something that none of our ancestors ever had. Then, Gilbert gave the audience a little pop quiz to see how their prefrontal cortexes were working. You had to choose a situation that you would want happen to you. One of them was winning the lottery and the other one was losing the ability to move your arms and legs. If you chose winning the Lottery, you win! Just Kidding. You failed the quiz. If you chose losing the ability of moving your arms and legs, you lost as well. Why? After a year, both of those people were equally happy. Some people think that you need to find happiness, but you already have it inside of you. Then, Dan Gilbert said there are two types of happiness: Synthetic happiness (what you make when you don’t get what you want) and natural happiness (when you get what you want) In the end, you will get the same amount of happiness.
I think that the essential question is “Why do we get happy?”
I think that Dan Gilbert gave a “good enough” presentation. I got a little bored in the middle of it but, I just think I got bored because I was a little tired. Other than that, I think that this was a good presentation with humor and intelligence.
I would recommend this video to my class and Wailani. I would recommend it because it combines many things such as humor, science, and so many other things.
March 27th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
The movie that I watched on TED is by Susan Savage. The movie is called “Apes that write, start fires, and play Pac-Man.” The apes write with symbols that scientist can read. In the movie, an ape didn’t get to take a walk in the woods for a long time and kept staring out the window at the woods. After a minute or so, the ape got a piece of chalk and started writing symbols on the floor. After the ape was done, the scientist matched it to the key in a binder. The scientist figured it out and found out that the ape wanted to go to the woods. Next, the scientist took the ape out into the woods and told him to make a fire. He started to collect sticks and put them into a pile. He then got the lighter from the scientist’s pocket and lit the wood. After they were done using the fire, the ape poured a jug of water on the fire. I thought that was neat! He played Pac-Man on the computer using the arrows on the keyboard to move right, left, up, and down. The scientist told him when to run away from the colorful monsters and when to chase them.
I think the essential question for this movie is “What can apes do?” The movie shows that apes can act just like humans. They can write, play games and more. This question makes us humans think, what can these apes really do if we train them?
I think that maybe in the future, if the human race ever dies out, then maybe the apes will be the next power. This movie changed my paradigm about the apes. I used to think that they were just animals that wander around the woods. I am amazed by how much apes can do if you take the time to teach them.
I would definitely recommend this movie to my class because I think that they would enjoy seeing the apes doing things that we do. I would also recommend this movie to my class because they can learn more about the apes and how they act.
March 27th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
The second video that I watched was by Deborah Gordon. It is called, how do ants know what to do?
It starts off with Deborah saying one thing that all ant colonies have one thing in common: they all have no central control. Nobody tells anybody what to do, the queen just lays her eggs. She went on about how the ants know just what to do if it rains. They know what do to if there is a shortage of food, water and things like that. She also spent a lot of time talking about the structure of the ants’ home. There are little rooms inside like a prison cell covered with damp sand that hardens over time.
I think that this video was pretty good. It shows that no matter the size, you can run a society. Even though it’s about ants, you really can learn a lot about them.
I would recommend this to my class because it is actually really interesting to see ants in their natural habitat.
March 28th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
One of the videos that I watched was Norman Foster: Building on the Green Agenda. Norman Foster is an architect who discusses his own work to show how computers can help architects design buildings that are green, beautiful, and “basically pollution-free.” He shares about his projects, from the pioneering roof-gardened Wills Building to the London Gherkin. He is also talking about two mega projects: the first is that he wants to build a pipe from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. The second project he is working on is the new Beijing airport.
From museums and banks to airports and bridges, from apartment buildings to the Reichstag, Norman Foster’s beautiful and efficient designs have dramatically changed the character of the cities.
I really would suggest this video to my friends and family because it really inspires you to reduce, reuse and recycle. This is because Norman Foster really loves his job and he has really good persuasive comments that makes you want to listen to what he was trying to say. He isn’t like some people when they say things just to say them. He is actually saying things that can help us and he is also acting them out. Norman has never ignored the chance to rewrite the rules of architecture.
March 28th, 2008 at 11:05 pm
I think the question of the video is: are the things going around in our solar system bring about an end of our world?
My opinion is that the video is good, except I don’t understand everything that he is talking about. Martin goes really deep into this. I think he is very passionate in this subject. If I connected this to my life it would be that I don’t go as deep into things like he does. The only thing I could probably go deep in is baseball, my family, and things that I enjoy.
Martin Rees questions if this is the last century of the world? First he talks about if you take 10,000 people randomly and 9,999 have something in common. The odd man would be the stronger one. The odd man is the stronger one because that person has another point of view. Then he starts talking about our stars that they are like small suns of light. He talks about some stars dying in not spectacular ways. He also talked about the stars dying in spectacular ways like the supernova. He also talks about ants on a piece of paper they think it is a 2-dimensional world, when there is another paper of ants just about a few millimeters away. Finally, he talks about how the 21st century is special because we can materially change ourselves and our planet.
I would recommend this video for my class because he goes very deep and teaches you new things like supernovas.
March 29th, 2008 at 9:41 am
TED Video: Alex Steffen
Written by Jenna Oley
One video I watched was about ideas for a more sustainable future. The speaker’s name was Alex Steffen. Alex Steffen has been the Executive Editor of World Changing since he co-founded the organization in 2003.
He said that we had two major problems. One was that if everyone in the world lives like we live today then we would need 5, 6, 7, or (even some people think) 10 earths! The second problem is that we use the earth in wildly unfair ways.
Some of the goals that Steffen had for our future are for us to create Bright Green Cities. There are car share clubs. These “clubs” are starting to take off in America and have already taken off in Europe.
We get so little news about the developing world, that we literally forget about the millions of people trying to change things to be more democratic. Some new tools for people in the developing world are L.A.D. lights, which help about a billion people whose nighttime means darkness and lights are not readily available. Life straw is another invention. You can sip any water with this straw and by the time the water reaches you mouth it will be safe and clean to drink. Another invention is a “Merry-go-round” that pumps water while children play on it! This next thing was made by earth or Mother Nature. These are plants that save lives. You can use the flower by taking the seeds and placing on the ground to detect land mines. The flowers will grow red if the land that they’re growing on is a land mine.
Essential question: Do you think that we need a sustainable future?
I think that the video was very inspirational as well as having lots of information. The video made you think about the future, our future, and how the generation can either help save or damage the environment even more, which are two extremes. If lots of people watch the video, hopefully there will be a positive change in the environment, and it will help to raise awareness of this cause.
Yes, I would recommend that our class watch this video because it talks about topics mentioned in and outside of school. We can teach each other and help to expand our knowledge. I recommend this video because it is very inspirational, and we can mentally acknowledge the problem that we face. This video serves as a caution the generations now and to come, that something must be done to help protect our Earth
We need to change the way we live, and alter our lifestyles to better the environment and the habitat of mankind.
March 29th, 2008 at 10:41 am
The video that I watched was about a man who was interested in robots. The essential question that he was asking was how does a robot work.
Watching this video I wondered when we will figure out a way to make robots. Another thought is what if the robots develop their own minds and turn on the owner and outsmart us, because if that happens it will probably be hard to shut it down. Good examples of this are the movies The Incredibles and IRobot. In The Incredibles, the villain made a machine that gets abilities from what it observes the only way to stop it is itself. In the movie IRobot, the robots are much stronger so they turn on people and try to have the world for themselves.
I would recommend this video to my class because they are all interested about the technology, and robots are the future.
March 29th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
The second video that I watched was Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala: Economic Reformer. This video is about Ngozi and in Africa. She is talking about the trading going on in Africa. This video is very eye-catching and makes you want to just ask other question. This is because she is really inspiring and she is standing up for the people and places that she believes in, because if Ngozi doesn’t do anything then who will. She wants to let everybody know what is going on around the world in Africa and also other places because if she teaches us about these kinds of things we can really make a difference, not just throughout our own state or country but everywhere.
During Ngozi term as Finance Minister, she worked to combat deceitfulness, make Nigeria’s finances more clear, and institute reforms to make the nation’s resources more hospitable to foreign investment. The government unlinked its budget from the price of oil, its main export, to lessen frequent cash flow crises, and got oil companies to publish how much they pay the government.
March 30th, 2008 at 11:48 am
The video that I watched is called “5 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Kids Do” by Gever Tulley. The first topic he talked about is “Play with Fire.” He explained that if you let your kids play with fire, they will learn more about how to use it and get more familiar with it. The second topic he talked about was “Own a Pocket Knife.” The next topic he talked about was “Throw a Spear.” Gever Tulley said that kids have a tension to throw things. The fourth thing he talked about was “Deconstruct Appliances because kids like to take apart objects. The fifth thing he talked about was “Break the DMCA” and the last thing he talked about was “Drive a Car.” He said that most kids want to drive a car when they get into dinosaurs.
I think the essential questions that Gever is trying to get across are “What is the limit?” “What should kids be able to do?” This shows that our parents need to set limits for us kids but not to the point where we can barley do anything. Some us do have limits that suit us but others have parents that don’t set any limits.
I think that this video shows that parents shouldn’t keep their children away from all dangerous things. It shows that parents shouldn’t protect and hide their kids from things that might hurt them. I think that parents should let their kids experiment even if it means they might get a little hurt. My parents tell me not to do certain things but they don’t hide and protect me from everything that might hurt me.
I recommend this video to my class but especially to the parents. I think that this video will show kids that they have very small limits in what they can actually do.
March 30th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
The video I watched was about ants and other creatures. The question was how do creatures live in the business world like us. Watching ants made me think that ants can be pretty smart and they can also be living in a business world too. When a task required more ants, other ants will “smell” it and join voluntarily.
I wonder when will us human do that? Helping out another human being without asking for reward. We don’t even communicate and try to see others needs that well. It is no wonder that the Bible tells us to consider the ants’ way and be wise like them.
I would recommend this video because it teaches you about ants and how they live in their “business world.” The ant world is pretty amazing, especially how the queen lays eggs.
March 30th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Jill Bolte Taylor: My Stroke of Insight
Written by Jenna Oley
The video I watched was Jill Bolte Taylor: My Stroke of Insight. Jill Bolte Taylor is a brain scientist. She talked about the two hemispheres of the human brain, how it works, and the differing realms of reality.
The morning of her stroke, she woke up to feel an immense pain in the back of her left eye. The pain would grip and then release her. It took her a long time to realize that she was having a stroke. When she finally comprehended this occurrence, she thought to herself how many scientists who study the brain get to actually experience a stroke.
She also explained how the brain works, as mentioned above. Taylor said that the two hemispheres of the brain were basically separate, except for a miniscule “string” that holds them together. She even showed a real brain. Attached to the real brain were the spinal cord and the “string” that holds the hemispheres together.
I thought that the video was very amusing because you don’t really think about your brain and how important it is. Without your brain, you wouldn’t be able to do anything at all. I also thought that the video was thought-provoking because I am still thinking about the knowledge that I gained from that video. I will always treasure my brain, for without it, I could not function nor experience all that I have to this day.
March 30th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
The video I watched was about the regeneration of organs and body parts. If you have lost a limb, why put a fake arm or leg when you could just grow the body part back? The message he is trying to get across is that instead of treating the symptoms of a disease that targets vital organs, you could just grow the organ back.
I think that this was a good video because he made a good point in his speech. For example, he talked about how you can regenerate body parts and about how the body regenerates. Like he said, in the future we may regenerate body parts, but we will have to learn to talk the body’s language. We know that the human body has the capability to but we don’t know how to tell it to regenerate. When a baby is in his/her mom’s stomach, it can regenerate some of his/her body parts but as it grows older it loses that capability. I would recommend this video.
March 30th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
I watched a video that puts together a piece of hip-hop, magic, and dancing. Kenichi Ebina shows some pretty wicked stuff. He makes his entire moves look so simple and easy but I think his moves are pretty complex and hard. It is like he has no bones in his body because he moves in weird ways.
This relates to me because I watched a show called Americas Best Dance Crew and the people who break dance do flares and do tricks likes flips and spinning on their heads.
Kenichi Ebina added a little magic to his act like the blue lights on his finger.
I liked that video because it really entertained me and I was amazed by his movement and technique.
I would recommend this to my class because I think they will enjoy it.
March 30th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
The first thing that popped out when I watched this video was the presenter showed a slide and it said, “If the world is not as it seems,” “If we see things as we are…” Underneath those two lines was a graph with four bubbles connecting. The first bubble said, “What we call “reality” is a kind of hallucination, a “waking dream.” The second bubble going clockwise said, “Complex might be made simple and understandable.” The next bubble said, “Key is to understand ourselves better and to find ways to get around our flaws.” The last bubble said, “Simple and understandable might not be.” The next slide he put up jumped out at me even more then the first. The first line said, “We cannot see until we admit we are blind.” That saying I think is very true. For example, you can try to learn how to see and understand, but first you have to be humble.
One of the things that we do going from simple to complex is doing more. We like more. If we do more in a stupid way the simplicity gets more complex. When the simplicity gets complex in effect we can keep on doing it for a very long time.
Children are the future and they are the ones that are going to be sending the messages into the future. It doesn’t matter about the written messages anymore. Children from the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd World need mentors. This summer they are going to build 5 million of the hundred dollar laptops that was shone in the video and they are going to also make 50 million next year. But we couldn’t create 100 thousand new teachers this year to save our lives. That means that once again we have this thing where we can put technology out but the mentoring that is required going from a simple new ichat instant messaging system to something with depth is missing. This has to be done with a new user interface and this new user interface could be done with an expanding of 100 million dollars. It isn’t like what we are using in Iraq. We are spending 8 million dollars a month. So it must be cheap. Einstein said, “Things need to be as simple as possible but not simpler.”
March 30th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
I watched a video of a guy named David Gallo who talked about the creatures of the deep and how they camouflage to hide from predators. He also showed how squids fight and how they change colors to get girls. I learned that the first two hours and a half going down to the bottom of the ocean would be totally pitch black.
Fishes that live where it is dark adapt to the darkness because they have lights on their body to see, and they also use their flashing light patterns to hypnotize the enemy. Octopi have great camouflage techniques because they can go right next to algae and look exactly like it.
I liked this video because I like learning about creatures of the deep. I think that they are so cool the way they can camouflage and hide from the enemy.
I would recommend this to my class because I think that they would like this film.
March 31st, 2008 at 2:40 pm
One of the videos I watched on TED was on the five (actually six) dangerous things you should let your kids do. Gever Tulley, is a contract computer scientist and he runs the Tinkering School. Not only does he allows the kids to let out their feelings with power tools, he also can put those tools in the hands of second graders! So, if you ever think of sending your kids to that school, make sure you send them off with a first aid kit just in case! Anyway, this video popped out to me in the bunch I watched because most kids like me want to do things only adults can do. Gever Tulley supports that. He thinks that kids should be prepared for the dangers of the world. I agree because I am like that too! I want to be ready for adulthood.
The first thing is to let children play with fire. If we get burned, it is a life lesson because the next time we will not put our hands in the fire since we know that it was not pleasant! The second thing is own a pocket knife. Owning a pocket knife will teach you to be prepared because you never know what can happen to you. Number three is to throw a spear. At Gevers school, his students are allowed to make things they think of, So some students make spears. He thinks that all kids should throw spears like his students, and kids around the world do. Number four is to deconstruct appliances. Taking apart things and putting them back together is like exercising for the mind. Number five is to break the law. For example, the DMCA. The DMCA stands for the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This is when you download a song, put it on a cd, then on an mp3. Yes, this is a law. Lastly but not least is to drive a car. Hard to believe, right?
I think the essential question is: Will locking your kids up help them to branch out? I think he is definitely right because we should be able to branch out. This video will make you think a lot about the issue and I definitely recommend this!
Another video I saw was about girl named Sirena Huang that played the violin. An 11 year old girl was that good! Who knew? Well she just took the audiences breath away. She talked about how we should be thankful for our parents and shared a couple stories. But the real thing that was important was that she said humans are smart. I agree because we invented the latest technology.
On the other hand, if we humans are so “smart”, then why can’t we do anything about all the problems in the world. She said that humans were smart because we could change the 16th century design into something new. Since we are so smart, we should think about the bad events going on around the world and maybe we can stop it!
I would recommend this because you really focus when she says that humans are smart and creative. We can use those talents for good!
I agree humans are smart but sometimes people use their smartness in a bad way and we have problems. If we can use our brains wisely, maybe we can change the world!
March 31st, 2008 at 2:47 pm
I watched a video about technology and space by Bill Stones. First he talked about the underground and how they used technology to get there, and how they used artificial lighting because there is no natural lighting there. Next he talked about life beyond Earth. He talked about a place called Europea. Europea is an icy small object in space. He talks about how we would need a very smart rover to land there. The rover would have to find a safe place to land. After it lands, it would have to drill a hole in the ice. Then it would have to swim in the icy water beneath the surface. But the rover would take a very long time to get there, even at light speed.
I thought this video was very interesting. It taught me a lot. I would recommend this because it talks about technology used underground in the water and in space. The essential question would be: How does technology help us in different ways depending on where we use it?
March 31st, 2008 at 2:50 pm
Another video I watched was about the underwater animals by David Gallo. He talks about the deep sea animals where there is no natural light. Then he talked about the octopus and the squid, and how they change to camouflage themselves. He says that the octopus has to always be aware of its surroundings. He talks about how it changes color and texture to camouflage.
I think this video is very good and interesting because of all the animals and the amazing things they can do. The deep water animals are unusual and different. I would recommend it because it is interesting and very cool. The essential question would be: How do different animals protect themselves in different ways?
March 31st, 2008 at 3:09 pm
On Saturday, I watched a video from a special event called T.E.D. T.E.D is an event that happens once a year. They bring together 1000 of the smartest people in the world and they talk for 18 minutes about what they do or one of their concerns.
The video I saw was about finding happiness in the body and soul. Eve Ensler talked about finding happiness within us. She had gone around to many places and talked to women. She said that women would come up to her and tell her about how they were raped or beaten. She was very worried and wanted to stop violence towards women. She had had over 200 interviews with women and is still doing it. She talked about how sharing these stories through monologue and special events helped her to reconnect with her body, her soul, and the world, and find a deep happiness. I think that her message is very clear. Her message is that to find happiness you need to look deep with into your own body and soul. You need to live in your body and not your head. Happiness comes from within you.
After watching this video I have decided that I will find my inner happiness and I will help others to find theirs too. I would recommend that others go to T.E.D.com and watch some videos because I know you will be inspired.
March 31st, 2008 at 4:52 pm
I watched a video called “Underwater Astonishment” by David Gallo. This video was amazing. It showed how much that we don’t know about our ocean and about how much more there is than coral and fish to our oceans. There were the predators, the tricks, the camouflaging, the deep sea wonders, and so much more. David Gallo said that we only know 3% of what happens in our oceans. The other 97% is unknown or we haven’t seen yet. David presented a video that had weird looking creatures and so much more in it. Some creatures were things that I have never seen before. One creature was called a bioluminescent. It was a creature that looked like it was made out of fireflies. There also was a funny animal called a flying turkey. Throughout the video, it showed all different animals and what they do. Also, how they reacted in different situations. One of the actions was an octopus finding a place where he could sleep but also camouflage itself. It showed the octopus moving along the rocks until it found the perfect spot and disappeared into the rocks. Secondly, in the video it showed how squids would get their mates. The male would split its body into two different colors, brown and white. The brown represented the kind side in the squid, and the white represented the angry side of him. So, when the male squid found the female, it would only let her see the brown side of him. Lastly, in the video it showed an Australian cuttlefish backing up into a small hole in the reef. Then when it wanted to camouflage itself, it made its tentacles look exactly like the seaweed on the rock. It was a truly amazing video.
To me the essential question was what do you think of the ocean? I think that is the essential question because he is trying to tell us everything about the ocean that a lot of people probably didn’t know about. So, by that I think that he is trying to make us think about how the ocean is so different when you actually take the time to learn about it. Secondly, I think that is the essential question because he was always saying what do you think? And isn’t that amazing? Whenever I heard him say that, it made me think about what all the things that I didn’t know. Then, it made me rethink about what I thought about the ocean. Lastly, I think that is the essential question because when he was always asking, what do you think of that? That always made me think wow, I wonder what everyone else is thinking and things like that.
My opinion of this video is AMAZING. That is my opinion because this video had so many things that most people probably didn’t even know existed. Secondly, I thought this video was amazing because it showed how there was so much more to those animals than just swimming around, squirting ink and stuff. It showed how they were almost like us in their everyday life. Lastly, I think this video was amazing because it showed how smart these animals were. It showed how the octopus climbed over the rocks and blended in with the rocks to protect itself from the predators.
I would recommend this video because it really shows you how different the ocean is than it seems. Secondly, It also shows how different our lives are everyday, how they just have to worry about a predator coming to eat them while they are sleeping. Also, it shows how little we know about the world around us. When I first saw this video I was shocked to see how much I didn’t know about the ocean even though I am surrounded by it. Also, I recommend this video because it has creatures that you probably didn’t know even existed. I also recommend this video because it will give you greater knowledge of what is in the ocean and what happens in the ocean.
March 31st, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Frans Lanting studies nature and is a photographer for National Geographic. He said that studying nature and animal life is his passion. He also said, “Five years ago he wanted to visualize the story of life.” It was the hardest thing he had ever attempted and he felt like backing out more than once although there were revelations such as when he went down to a remote lagoon in Australia hoping to see if he could find a way to look at the earth as it was three billion years ago. He succeeded. There were stromatolites down there. Stromatolites are tiny mounds of limestone. Stromatolites were the
first things to accomplish photosynthesis. He explains that, “Going down there was almost like being in a time capsule.”
During the video he showed a series of pictures that helped him to tell the story of all life on earth through time. Here are some of the things he mentioned:
-Matter condenses to spheres over time.
-Lava hardened and it made up the earths surface and he said that this planet looked like an alien planet because everything was shaped differently.
-Water froze and made glaciers. He says water is the key to life because when frozen, it shapes the earth and if it melts, it vanishes.
-Stromatolites were the first things to ever breathe oxygen and they changed the atmosphere. Their breath turned into iron.
-Meteorites delivered chemistry and perhaps membranes too. Life needs a membrane to contain itself so it can replicate and mutate.
-Diatoms are single-celled plankton. Shallow seas nurtured life early on. That is where the diatoms form into more complex structures. The diatoms grew as light and oxygen increased.
-Life hardened and became defensive. It learned to move. The first eyes grew on trilobites and moved to horseshoe crabs. Horseshoe crabs were among the first to leave the sea and travel onto land.
-Land plants arose first without leaves and they learned to shape differently. Life also flourished in swamps. It took time for life to break away from water.
-Life turned hard so it could explore the inlands.
-Birds traveled differently and they migrated. A bird is trapped if it cannot fly. Birds also witnessed the growth of plants.
-Plants began to differ and they grew, turning into trees.
-Primates evolved from jungles. Could we be brothers or sisters of apes?
March 31st, 2008 at 6:04 pm
My Stroke of Insight
By Jarin Espinda #8 Wailani
I just finished watching a video on ted.com called “My stroke of Insight” by Jill Bolte Talor. This video is about a woman whose brain vessel exploded and her recovery. On the morning of December 10, 1996, one of Jill’s brain vessels exploded. She could not talk, read and write.
When she woke up that morning she felt a pain behind her left eye. That morning she did her morning drill, so she did her work out on her machine where she was grabbed and pulled a bar that worked out her arms. Jill was thinking, “What weird hands I have, they looks like claws.” Then she looked at her body and said “I also have a weird body.” Then she said “I have to get to work, but I don’t know the number for my office.” Then she remembered that there were cards on her desk that have her number. She pretended that she was at her desk looking for the right card. It took her 30 minuets to look through 1 inch of the stack because she kept on getting out of focused. So then she finally found the card but she did not know what numbers were so she matched the lines to the lines on the number pad on the phone. She finally called work and one of her coworkers answered the phone and sounded like a dog. So she said, “This is Jill I need help.” She sounded like a dog also but it was lucky that her coworker remembered her voice and called help for her. When she got to the hospital, she thought that she was dead but she was not. The doctors removed the problem in her brain and it took her 8 years to completely recover from surgery.
If I was grading this video I would grade this video four stars for the info that it gives, and how it makes the viewer feel as if he was experiencing what Jill feels.
March 31st, 2008 at 6:26 pm
The first video I watch was by Vik Muniz called “Making Art with wire, thread, chocolate.” He was here to talk about creation or more, creativity. Think that the essential question for this video is “Is it important to be creative?” I would recommend this video to the people from this class that has a lot of creativity.
Vik Muniz talks about the ways of creativity and when he was a teen he was creator he was starting to know who he was. Then he started to create things he called relics. He started to work with clouds so he grabbed cotton and formed them into different type of clouds. After this he started to make pictures out of wire, from this he wanted to deal with more subjects like yarn. After meeting children from a Caribbean island he got some pictures from them and learned that they were all children from plantation workers so he made pictures of these children out of sugar. Vik Muniz also relised that he can add still in his picture he called it pictures of chocolate. Vik Muniz used dust from the Vitmum museum to create picture from their collection. Finally he started with color but this was the first time he did because he had a hard time with single colors. The last thing he did was earthworks he started to make earth works on a table and thought the relationship of the model and the original. So he went and created some earthwork.
March 31st, 2008 at 6:28 pm
The second video I watched is Gever Tulley‘s“5 Dangerous things you should let your kids do.” (Actually 6)Gever Tulley is a contract computer scientist and the founder of Tinkering School. Gever Tulley wants kids to experience these dangerous things to make them stronger and safer. I think the essential question is “Should kids be able to use\have dangerous things?”
Gever Tulley talks about how our world has no limit on child safety. After he starts talking about how kids should experience some dangers things. Number one is to play with fire because if you play with fire you can learn about combustion, and intake. The second thing was to own a pocket knife because you’re first pocket knife will be your first universal tool and with this they will learn some important rules. The third dangerous thing is to throw a spear this is because our brain is actually wired to throw things. Number four was deconstruct appliances this was for kids to get the sense that they can take thing out and know what it is. Number 5 is to break the DMCA law this is to teach kids that laws can be broken by accident. The last thing Gever Tully said is that kids should drive a car this was to give kids a new handle on the world.
March 31st, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Mathemagic
By Jarin Espinda #8 Wailani
I watched a video on ted.com where Arthur Benjamin does “Mathemagic.” Mathemagic is a combination between math and magic. One thing that Arthur did was find the square root of seven digit numbers and higher. Another thing that Arthur did was figure out the day of the week that people were born on.
I think the essential questions are how does Arthur do his math in his head and how does Arther figure out the day you were born on such as Monday?
The lesson that I learned from this video was that if you put your mind into it you can accomplish anything. For example, I put my mind to building a Pinewood derby car and I finished it. I would grade this video three stars.
I would recommend this video to my classmates because this man is really amazing and fascinating. He can do things different from normal people and he persevered in learning his math skills.
March 31st, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Richard St. John “8 Secrets of Success”
By: Kaho`ea Akau #2 Wailani
Richard St. John is just a regular person who interviewed people and now he is on TED to share about the eight themes that lead us to success in life. He has told us a story of his experience and his talk was very inspiring.
One day when Richard St. John was on a plane he came across a teenage girl who came from a poor family and asked him, “What leads to success?” Since he was surrounded by successful people, he interviewed about five hundred of them and he came up with the best suggestions. The eight that he chose were passion, work, focus, persist, idea, good, push and serve. You need passion because you’re driven to do things because you want to and not just for money. Work because you need to work hard for everything because not everything is easy. He also goes on to say to focus on one topic and to persist to failure. Persist is the number one reason of our success. Ideas are important like listening, observing, being curious, asking questions, solving problems and making connections. Getting good at something is one way to be successful so you have to practice. Push yourself mentally and physically and push yourself through shyness and self doubt. When serving, you have to serve others things that mean something, not yourself.
The essential question that I think Richard St. John is trying to get across is what the teenage girl asked him on the plane which was “What leads to success?” I think that this is the essential question because it really makes you think about the attributes that leads us to success in life.
I think that this video is very important to watch. I say this because it teaches you about what will help you succeed in life and you should follow these attributes. Some connections are that I see some people who have these attributes. For example, people are very passionate at what they do and work hard. People also strive to do something and stay focused.
I would definitely recommend this to my class because as I said before, this video is very inspiring and important to watch. They will learn how to succeed in life and how to strive in what they believe in.
March 31st, 2008 at 7:44 pm
Gever Tulley “5 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Children Do”
By: Kaho`ea Akau #2 Wailani
I have just finished watching a video about five and a half dangerous things that you should let your children do. This talk was given by Gever Tulley, the founder of “The Tinkering School” which is a summer program to help children build on ideas that they think of. This video is very persuasive and inspiring, and I am going to tell you about it.
This whole talk is trying to get kids to be safe and stay safe. The five and a half dangers that Gever Tulley said that grownups should let their children do is play with fire, own a pocket knife, throw a spear, deconstruct appliances, break the D.M.C.A. (Digital Millennial Copyright Act) and drive a car. Playing with fire is OK because it will teach kids basic principles about fire such as intake, combustion and exhaust. Intake, combustion and exhaust are the three elements that you need to have to have a good controlled fire. Mr. Tulley chose to own a pocket knife because it shows that kids can discover how to work objects in a certain way, and children will learn simple rules for using sharp objects. Throwing a spear is good because if you don’t use your muscles, then it will just be a waste. It also strengthens your arms, helps your visualization skills, our predictive ability, and also our concentration and attention skills. By deconstructing appliances, it helps children take things apart and understand it. Break the DMCA because lessons are taught to us that laws are broken on accident, and that they have to be explained to others. Driving a car gives kids a chance to do something that they don’t get to do.
The essential question that I think the speaker, Gever Tulley is trying to get across is “Do your children realize the dangers involved?” I think that this is the essential question because kids should be aware of their surroundings and what they do. They should also learn about these dangers so that they can be better prepared in life.
What I think of this video is that it is wrong for children to be doing these dangerous things, but it teaches them lessons and their skills will get better. Some connections I made are I have some cousins who have pocket knives and I see some people playing with fire.
I would recommend this video to my class because it shows that you can learn things from doing dangerous things. The main lesson teaches you to stay away from these dangerous ideas and be prepared for them, so avoid them and stay safe.
March 31st, 2008 at 7:57 pm
Once Upon a School
By Mariko Lau #14
Today, I watched the video “Once upon a School,” by Dave Eggers. Dave started off by telling the audience about his friends who are teachers. The teachers were saying that some of their students were having a hard time in English. Dave told them that they should just give their students more one on one attention. But, the teachers explained that each class has 30-40 kids in the class and there are five classes all together. Dave then explained that he thought of renting a building and making it like a learning center. After a lot of hard work and perseverance, people around the world started making learning centers just like the one that Dave had.
I think that the essential question that Dave was trying to get across was “What can I do to help?” Dave thought about this question and he decided that he could open a learning center. Dave also asked himself what he could assign to the kids so that they would work even harder. He started to notice that kids worked harder when they wrote books. Dave said that this was because the kids knew that their writing was going to be open to the public and the books were going to be permanent.
This video was really good because it showed me that we have to ask what we can do to help others, not what someone else could do for us. A lot of the times, people talk about doing something to make a difference but they don’t do anything to help. Dave said that he was going to help the kids in English, and he followed through on doing so.
I would recommend this video because Dave showed that if you persevere, you can accomplish any goal that you set for yourself. At first, Dave had a hard time finding kids to teach because there was a trust problem. But, he convinced a teacher to talk to some of the teachers in different schools. In no time, Dave had full classes daily!
March 31st, 2008 at 7:57 pm
Mathemagic
By Mariko Lau
The video that I watched was a spectacular performance by Arthor Benjamin doing mathemagic. Arthor was so fast at squaring numbers that he could beat the calculator. He was amazing! Arthor Benjamin did a couple of different acts.
For his first act, Arthor asked people in the audience to bring their calculators up onto the stage to race Arthor in squaring numbers. While Arthor had already figured out the answers, the calculators were still in action. In his second act, Arthor Benjamin chose people in the audience to give him a three digit number. Again, he raced the calculators and he won victoriously. Arthor’s third act was amazing! He looked for people in the audience who knew the exact day that they were born and he asked them what the date of their birthday was. Then, he told them the exact day that they were born (Monday-Sunday). To make it harder, he gave someone an 18th century calendar. Next, he told the person to choose any date. The person choose the date of June 6, 1824 and of course, Arthor Benjamin said that June 6, 1824 was a Sunday. He was correct once again!
For his last act, Arthor Benjamin wowed the audience by attempting to square a five digit number. First, he asked people in the audience to give him a five digit number to square. They ended up with the number 57,683. Arthor Benjamin then explained that he was going to speak out loud so that everyone could see his process. Arthor also said that he was going to replace some of the numbers with words to help him. Arthor used words like baby, cookie, rev up, and fishing. In the end, Arthor Benjamin came up with the answer of 3,327,328,489 and he was right! That’s what I call mathemagic!
I thought that this video was great! Arthor Benjamin really liked to do magic, and he really enjoyed doing math. That’s how he came up with Mathemagic. This shows that if you pesevere in doing something that you really enjoy, you can become very good at it and accomplish any goal that you have in those subjects.
I would definitely recommend this video to the classes of Wailele and Wailani because it is an inspiration to all of the kids who enjoy math and it shows that you can become very good at something if you put your heart into it!
March 31st, 2008 at 8:48 pm
The movie that I watched was Educating Leaders by Patrick Awuah. He was talking about how leaders have a huge impact on everyone because people listen to them. Also, he was talking about how the education you get when you are young is very important because kids listen to the teacher, and that teacher could be very wrong. I think that having bad leaders is very bad because it starts a chain reaction by educating kids wrong. When they are older and become leaders, they will make bad choices too, and that cycle keeps going on and on and on until one person thinks outside of the paradigm, thinks for himself and ends the chain. Not only are the mayors and important people leaders, your parents, doctors, and even truck drivers are leaders.
I think that the point that he was trying to get across was that if you teach a kid that you knew was going to be a leader someday, how and what would you teach him and why.
I thought that this video was very deep and that you won’t get anything out of it if you don’t listen and think. I think that this video makes you think because Hitler probably had a horrible leader when he was young. We have a lot of bad leaders so what if someone decides that he is going to follow that person. That means there can easily be another Hitler.
I would reccomend this video to only some people in the class because you have to really think and really listen carefully.
March 31st, 2008 at 9:47 pm
TED
By: Makana Nahaku #18
I just watched 2 of the most interesting videos. The 1st one I watched was about the stories of Africa by Chris Abani. He is a writer who lived in Nigeria. The 1st book he wrote was published when he was 16 years old called “Masters of the Board”. His talk was about the stories of Africa. He and a lot of other people wanted to know why some Africans paint rocks. I thought that painting rocks was a way to express themselves. Chris Abani believes that languages are what shapes the world.
He said something that I didn’t understandfully, “You shouldn’t eat or drink in a man’s house because he could poison you.” To me this means that life is full of surprises. When he was growing up in school, he would learn more about his culture through someone else’s culture. Also when he was in school they didn’t teach them about any type of war because they thought that they would start a new generation of rebels.
Chris Abani’s message is clear to me. His message is that you’ll never know what’s going to happen in life. And that you can learn a lot from someone else.
The 2nd video I watched was called 5 dangerous things you should let your kids do by Gever Tully. Gever Tully is the founder of the tinkering school, this is a program for kids. In this program they help kids build the things they really want to during summer.
The 1st thing was playing with fire. When you play with fire you learn the principles and teaches you a lot of good life lessons. The 2nd thing was owning a pocket knife. Your 1st pocketknife is like your 1st universal tool and some cultures will give you a knife as soon as you become toddlers. The 3rd thing was throwing a spear because our brain is wired to throw things. Like the muscles, if you don’t use the brain, they tend to go bad over time.
The 4th thing was deconstructing appliances. Gever Tully said that there’s an amazing world of things in your dishwasher. I really don’t think that deconstructing appliances is the smartest thing to let a child do because it’s very risky. I say this because if there was a rusty nail and you didn’t see it, you could poke yourself. Another reason is that what if there was faulty wiring. Lastly, it’s just plain dangerous. The 5th thing was breaking the DMCA law. The DMCA law is to teach kids that laws will be broken such as illegal downloading of songs and more. The last thing that Gever Tully said was to drive a car. I think it’s not such a bad idea. I say this because it will teach you responsibilities and you will eventually drive so you can learn while you’re young. In addition, you might have a natural talent to drive.
I would recommend these 2 videos to both of our classes because we can learn a lot of important messages from it.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:20 am
The first video that I watched from TED was “Richard St. Johns 8 secrets of succsess.” This video is about a girl that asks Richard St. John what leads to success but he felt bad because he couldn’t give her a good answer so he interviewed people from TED on what leads to success and he got these answers. The 8 answers that he got were, you need to be passionate and do your job for love and not for money. You need to work hard. You must get good at something and to do that you need to practise, practise, practise. You also need to focus yourself to one thing. It’s also important to push yourself physically and mentally. You have to learn to serve others of value and you need to have really good ideas. Lastly, you need to be persistent and not give up.
I think these are very essential things to be succesful but I think one of these things are more important. That thing is to have good ideas and to apply it into life. If you do and you make something really important like how Bill Gates did, you will make other people’s lives much easier and the people that really want to help people’s lives get easiear and doesn’t do it for money, the money comes to them anyways.
I would reccomend this video to anyone that needs a hint of how to be successful in life. I also reccomend this video to people who want a little humor in their videos.
The second video that I watched that I thought was really facsinating was “Casting spells with DNA by Paul Rothemund.” This video is about using DNA sequences to make different art like a happy face, a triangle, a star and many more. What I thought was really amazing about this video is you can make different objects or shapes just by folding a long DNA strand into that certain shape or design
I learned that the letters C,T,G,and A represent different chemicals in the DNA. I also learned that patterns with only 0s and 1s which is computer language can actually be transferred into english or into pictures. I would reccomend this video to anyone who wants to be amazed or to anyone who wants to learn more about DNA.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:21 am
The first video that I picked was by the founder of the Acumen Fund, Jacqueline Novogratz. I think the main idea behind her speech is about the poverty in our world. Her video starts with her talking about one of her personal experiences. Jacqueline said that she once had a sweater that she liked, but one day her friends made fun of her so she dropped it off at Goodwill. Then later in her life in Rwanda, Jacqueline saw a boy wearing the same sweater she had. If I was in her position I would feel glad and surprised. I would feel glad because it would make me feel I made the right decision by giving the sweater to Goodwill, and I would feel surprised because I would think that I would never see the sweater again. Jacqueline’s presentation also includes things like how smart less fortunate people are and problems from the disease malaria. One thing that I found shocking was that we spend more money on trying to find life on Mars than saving people’s lives from malaria.
I think Jacqueline’s presentation was very informative to me. I say this because it had many interesting things and facts. First of all, it taught me about what the people who are less fortunate than me are doing to help themselves and what we aren’t doing to help them. But Jacqueline also said that maybe we shouldn’t help them because they are learning what to do if bad things again. I sort of agree with her statement because if something happens again, they can solve it. But at the same time, I think we should find a way to help.
The essential question I made for this presentation was “What can we do to help the people in Africa.” I think there is actually a lot we can do about this subject. I think one thing that will really help the people in Africa is for us to donate money for mosquito nets. This will help because they can prevent a person from getting malaria.
I would recommend this video to all because as I said earlier it is very informative to people. It can also help you understand the real situation in Africa. This video taught me a lot and I think you should watch it.
The second video I watched was a talk given by Gever Tulley. Gever Tulley likes to build things with children. He is also the founder of a program for children called the “Tinkering School.” The program allows children to learn how to use power tools. This program is about what you should allow your children to do. First, you should let children play with fire; second, own a pocket knife; third, throw spears; fourth, deconstruct appliances; fifth, break the Digital Millenium Copyright Act; and lastly, allow your child to sit by you and practice driving the car. Gever says you should let children do these things because children are overprotected.
I think Gever has some good thoughts and ideas. But for some people his ideas might be too drastic. I think it is okay to let children play with fire so they can understand the dangers and uses for it. I think it is okay to own a pocket knife because it may offer protection someday. I think throwing a spear is good because it can help your accuracy and coordination. I am not sure about deconstructing appliances, breaking the Digital Millenium Copyright Act and driving a car which seems dangerous to me. I also think that it is important that parents are present to supervise these situations in a controlled environment.
The essential question I made for this video is “Do you think children are overprotected in the United States?” If I answered this question I would say that they are. At the same time, that might be good because it can protect us from danger. On the other hand, if we don’t understand the consequences, we will never learn.
I would recommend this video to everyone because it can teach or give ideas to what you can or cannot do with children. This video taught me a lot and I hope you have the opportunity to watch it.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:28 am
“Impressive, cool, never knew that before.” All those things were running through my mind when I was watching a video about the brain. You will never believe how much you can learn, and how complex the mind is. I would like to show you, in word, what I watched.
My summary for this video is that “If she can survive a stroke, anyone can.” That’s as long as we keep on living a healthy life and be strong. If that can happen, we can solve the massive problem from a lot of diseases. I think that we need to educate people to be doctors and nurses. This is because the more people that can help and understand more about these serious diseases, the more safe these states will be from dying out.
My opinion on this presentation is that it is very inspiring, and gives an example of what happened to a person with stroke. Another thing that I might add is that she told other people what inspired her to become an expert in brain studies. It was because her brother had a very bad disease that almost killed him. So Jill Taylor wanted to make sure that everyone was aware of what’s going on around the world (in addition to what happened to her brother).
I think that the essential question in this program is “What do we know about the brain?” That question puzzles me because, what DO we know about the brain? We know that it controls our bodies and what we decide to do. But there is so much more. For example: Did you know that the right hemisphere of the brain is all about “Right here, right now (Tthe present moment).” The right hemisphere also thinks in pictures. It also thinks that I am just like everyone else, I am a beam connected to everyone else. In this moment we are perfect, we are whole. On the other hand, the left hemisphere thinks about the past (taking little detailed parts of the past and present, and projects it to what’s going to happen in the future). The left hemisphere also thinks in language, plus it’s also the little voice inside your head that reminds you, or anyone else, what they have to do today or in the future (kind of like a to do list inside your head). The last thing that the left hemisphere does is say “I am.” Once that happens you become a single cell, separate from others and their energy.
Since I have been giving you my opinions and thoughts, I will give you a connection too. A connection that I made watching this video was my grandpa. This is because my grandpa died from phenomena. Even though this phenomenon has nothing to do with the brain, it is still a very serious disease. Some people don’t really know how to treat it. I think this because after 17 days in the hospital, he passed away. My best friend died on Dec. 17, 2006. But as Jill Bolte Taylor survived, he could’ve too.
You can learn a lot from this video. I would definitely recommend this for my class because my classmates need to know how killer these diseases are. All we have to do is research more. Then when we grow up, we can help others that have needs.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:35 am
I watched a movie called what “What separates us from apes” by Jane Goodall. Jane Goodall was talking about a lot of great subjects in her speech. In the beginning of her speech she talked about how she had just come from a place in Ecuador deep in the rain forest. She said it was so deep that you could only get there by plane. In the rain forest there the indigenous people are fighting against companies from coming in and taking their oil. They said that they want to live in a place where it is clean and not polluted. Jane Goodall explained how in this village they have solar panels so some houses get to have electricity for 30 minutes at a time. The chief of the village had been to other places so he has a laptop. They said that they also want to learn other languages.
Jane Goodall said the gorillas that live in the forest are losing their homes because some companies are coming in and clear cutting the trees in parts of the forest. In the video she was also talking about her program called Roots and Shoots. Her program is for people who have so little and by helping them, they will be able to grow in a better way. Also she said how Africa used to be such a beautiful place but now all we see is desert and disease spreading. We also see starvation and places that are already overpopulated, and therir numbers are still going up.
To me, I think that the essential question is what can you going to do to help the earth? I think that is the essential question because throughout the video, she was always talking about how we can help all the people in need around the world. Also, she was talking about how we can help by going with her program called Roots and Shoots. Lastly, I think that is the essential question because she was giving her time to tell other people what is happening around the world. If she really didn’t want other people to help, why would she do this?
My feeling on this video is that it was very thoughtful. That is my opinion because Jane Goodall was talking about the issues around the world and not about herself. She was talking about Ecuador and Africa but nothing about herself. Secondly, when she was talking about issues around the world she didn’t talk about the issue and move on, she explained about the issue like she had been a part of it. Lastly, I think this video is caring because all the talking and explaining was for a good cause in the world. I really liked this video.
I recommend this video to everyone. I recommend this video because of the message. The message to me is to be aware at all times about what is happening in the world. Lastly, I recommend this video because it will show how much we truly don’t know about our earth. This video will tell you things that you would never know about otherwise.
April 2nd, 2008 at 7:22 am
TED
By: Keao Sproat-Hum #23
My first video features Theo Jansen, he talks about a project that started 16 years ago it was creating new life. Not organic life from dead animal and human parts but he builds the animals out of plastic tubes with electric cords traveling through them. The animals will be very energy efficient because the animals will be automated by the wind, meaning that they will have large feather like fans on their backs or sides and will walk with their noses in to the wind, (sideways). As soon as the animals feel dry sand or water it walks in the opposite direction, it is because they have “feelers” underneath them that can feel the ocean and dry sand. Theo Jansen says that the animal’s feet are like the evolution of the wheel the feet are a “u” shape with a line over the “u” the feet swivel to let a free range of movement similar to our ankle.
A new breed that Mr. Jansen has created can store energy in giant lemonade bottles in side of it’s skeletal structure and it pumps up the bottles with air so that if the wind dies down it can use the excess air left in the bottles to walk up to higher land so it does not get swept away by the ocean. The animals can carry heavy loads and can walk against the wind for long distances. One day Mr. Jansen believes that the animals will be able to live in herds on the beaches once they are able to fend for themselves. I think that Mr. Jansen is trying to ask, “Do you think that the animals can serve a real purpose in the future?” When I was a kid I thought about how cool it would be to create or discover new life. I would recommend this video to the class because the animals in it are cool and complex.
My second video features Susan Savage-Rumbaugh, she talks about smart Apes that can write, start fires, play video games, and much more. She works with an ape species that only lives in the Congo called the Bonobo. When Dr. Rumbaugh shows you a picture of the Chimpanzee and Bonobo skeletons walking upright on the screen it shows that the chimps are less comfortable walking upright and their skeleton less resembles ours while the Bonobo’s looks more comfortable walking upright and their skeleton more resembles our human skeleton. The Bonobos featured in the video can gather wood, take a lighter from their trainer, then light a fire, and makes a marshmallow. Another grooms its baby’s hair like a Bonobo mom would in the wild but with scissors very carefully like a barber would. The same Bonobo wrote to her trainer in symbols that she uses on her keyboard that she types with; she told her trainer that she wanted to go outside after being inside for three days. For the Bonobos last trick she will play packman! Yes she can play packman and she doesn’t just mess around but she can really play packman.
I think that Mrs. Rumbaugh is trying to ask, “Could it be possible that we evolved from these Bonobos?” When I was little I always thought that we evolved from apes but I meant monkeys and gorillas witch we possibly could have but after this video I changed my paradigm, now I think that we evolved from Bonobos. I would recommend this video to the class because it is educative and is very amusing. I say that it is educative because we can learn from these animals and study their behavior and connect it to something like evolution. I say that it is amusing because the apes have very human like humor. Lastly I think that T.E.D. is a very good idea and is educative to all I’d recommend T.E.D. to everyone who feels like learning more.
April 8th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Bill Clinton:TED Prize wish: Let’s build a health care system in Rwanda
By Caitlin Bright#6
Bill Clinton talks about interdependence but the problem are insufficient, organizing markets for change. His TED prize wish is, “I wish for help in creating a better future for Rwanda by assisting my foundation, in partnership with the Rwandan Government, to build a sustainable, high quality rural health system for the whole country.” He mainly talks about his passion for the poor people in Rwanda. He wants to build systems that can help the people in Rwanda, such as the Urban Health Care.
My Rating of this video: *****(5/5 stars)
Why: I love how he shares his passion and also shares his ideas to help the people of Rwanda. He also has really great ideas that can support the entire country as well.
Alex Steffen: Inspired ideas for a sustainable future
Alex talks about how technology can impact on a sustainable future. He talks about the latest technology that might be very popular in the sustainable future. Alex mainly talks about the gadgets that can help children and adults make their jobs easier, and can also be life and world changing. My favorite gadget is a merry-go-round that pumps water while the children play. Alex also talks about the collaboration, the copyfight, the leapfrogging, and what he thinks is the second superpower (politics).
My Rating of this video: ****(4/5 stars)
Why: This video talks about how we can make our future a sustainable future which I think is great, but I wish that he would talk more about global issues and how we can prevent them.
April 8th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
The first amazing video I watched is called “Learning about the story of Africa” spoken by Chris Abani. Chris Abani talks about the things that are happening in Africa, how language makes the world in which we live, and how he got imprisoned by the government. In prison, he learned there was an Ebil Bible in Tameron. They tried to translate the bible in Tameron en Patwa, but they chose the Ebil version instead. We need to remember special events in different periods otherwise ten years from now, they’ll be back at T.E.D. trying to tell the story all over again. For example, in 1967 during the African and Nigerian civil war, Dr. Jukul Be invented the color of vaccine.
I think the essential question that the speaker is trying to communicate is “How can the government imprison people when they stand up for what is right.”
In my opinion, I liked the speech because Chris Abani is a speaker who can pull you in and make you want to hear more. I felt sad for him because I could visualize the pain and suffering Chris Abani went through when he was in prison. Not once, but three times in prison.
Chris Abani had a privileged upbringing. His school was not allowed to teach the history of the African and Nigerian Civil war but was taught the history of the Jewish holocaust. At 16, he wrote his first book about neo-Nazi’s taking over Nigeria to institute the fourth right, blow up strategic targets, take over the country, but they were foiled by a Nigerian James Bond. At 18, Chris Abani was hauled off to prison because coincidentally when his book came out, it was in time for him to be accused for constructing the blueprint for a failed coup attempt. In prison, he very was terrified, completely broken and had no language for it.
I would recommend this video to people who want to know what happened in Africa, and why and how Chris Abani got arrested and also how to translate languages.
The second video that I watched was “On Everything” and it was spoken by Clifford Stoll. He talks about everything like the atmosphere in Jupiter for people in radiative transfer to non-gray atmospheres. After twenty years later, he found his computer security job boring. He said that “The first thing you do is science, the second time it’s engineering, and the third time it’s being technician.” He thinks that computers shouldn’t belong in schools. He feels that there is a massive and bizarre idea going around that people need to bring more computers into schools. His idea is that the computers should stay out of school. He says “If you really want to know about the future, don’t ask a technologist, a scientist, a physicist, or a person who is writing code. Ask a kindergarten teacher and don’t just ask any kindergarten teacher, ask an experienced one.” He loves Mobius Loops and he loves to make Klein Bottles. He and his students used the lens to measure the speed of light and they also measured the speed of sound. To measure the speed of sound, sound is bounced off something to measure the echo.
I think the essential question in this speech is “What kind of society are we going to have in the future?” Another essential question is “How do you think we can create a future with all the distractions around us.”
In my opinion, this would be a great speech to listen to because Clifford Stoll talks about why schools shouldn’t have kids use computers, and he also teaches how to measure the speed of sound.
I think that Clifford Stoll had a pretty hard time when his mom passed away in the summer and Robert Mouge passed away in August.
I would recommend this video for people who want to know about how to measure the exact speed of light and why schools shouldn’t allow kids to use computers.
April 10th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
Dutch artist Theo Jansen demonstrated “The art of creating creatures.” Now, for an ongoing sixteen years, Mr. Jansen has continued his project of inventing amazingly lifelike kinetic sculptures. His “Strandbeests” (Beach Creatures) are built to move and even survive on their own, formed of plastic tubes and lemonade bottles. In his presentation, he was able to tell his audience about his unique and interesting creatures. The Stranbeests do not get their energy from food or water, but from the wind which then move their feathers on their back which then cause their feet to drive. Each generation of his Beach Creatures is subject to the forces of evolution, with successful forms moving onward into new creations and designs. His purpose of being on T.E.D. was to introduce the new creatures that he intends to be roaming the beaches of Holland.
I feel that his inventions are very distinctive, but for the Strandbeests to be able to survive on their own at this stage is quite irrational, meaning they don’t have any means to multiply or to self repair. Of course, if I could extrapolate from the present state, I can imagine them being able to wander on the beach alone, but they have to be significantly more complex than today. Also, this video has taught me that reusing products is not that bad of an idea. If one just lets their imagination flow, they might be able to invent something new and that person may just end up on T.E.D.
My essential question for Theo Jansen is, “Can a man-made object level up to be as real as mother nature?” For example, a computer may have information that a human might want to know, but it will never have characteristics or the six senses of a human.
I would recommend this video to the class because it is a new way of art and it shows how far one can go with their imagination. It is a video that lets me and many others know that you can get very far with what you love, no matter what subject or category.
April 13th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
The video I watched on T.E.D. was called Underwater Astonishments by David Gallo. He stated that we have only explored three percent of the ocean. That means to me that we have barely scratched the surface of understanding sea life and its creatures. His opening speech started with pictures deep under the ocean where the sun does not reach; it was amazing flashes of patterns and pictures. These creatures have just been discovered because we didn’t have the ability to go that deep and film with a special camera. Imagine if we knew ten percent more about the undersea, it would truly be mind-boggling. Perhaps by knowing more, we might see true evidence of how little we know about our Earth.
For instance, a camera man was filming the sea reef. As he got closer to the reef he startled an octopus. The octopus was so well camouflaged by the exact color and texture of the reef, that only as the camera man got closer did the octopus flee and show its true octopus colors. Mr. Gallo had to reverse the film to see how truly amazing these sea creatures use their brain and body to survive from their predators by camouflaging themselves.
The second T.E.D. film I watched was about the international champion jugglers called the Raspyni Brothers. They are world famous, have won numerous juggling awards, and are also in the Guinness Worlds record book. Normally I would not bother to watch juggling acts. However, these jugglers were interesting to watch because of their variety of juggling items; they were also fun to listen to because they had a funny script, and what was even more intriguing was the hilarious and witty conversation they were having among themselves. They continued to make me laugh at the comments they would say. For example, one juggler was about juggle razor sharp sickles but the audience wasn’t thrilled so to convince them that the sickles were sharp he said, “… someone please throw a small farm animal or a bag pipe.” The juggling act was more of a comedy show. At the end, people gave them a standing ovation. I, too, really enjoyed this show. If you want to laugh and watch two talented jugglers, I would recommend that you watch this hilarious video.