In which John Green teaches you about what westerners call the middle ages and the lives of the aristocracy...in Japan. The Heian period in Japan lasted from 794CE to 1185CE, and it was an interesting time in Japan. Rather than being...

In which John Green teaches you about the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which used to be Zaire, which used to be The Belgian Congo, which used to be the Congo Free State, which used to be the region surrounding the Congo River Basin...

In the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, protests and unrest continued continued across Europe, and the Soviet Union was having increasing trouble holding its sphere of influence together. Today you'll learn about the labor strikes of...

The $8 billion merger between Paramount and Skydance is fueling a fierce First Amendment fight and raising questions about the influence of the Trump administration. The FCC approved the deal by a 2-1 vote along party lines and came...

Energy expert Sebastián Kind helped Argentina go from virtually no renewable energy to generating nearly 40 percent of its electricity from wind and solar in just six years, despite economic crises and skepticism. How did the country's...

The US political system is broken — and the solution might be in the palm of your hands, says political strategist Bradley Tusk. Drawing on his deep experience with government and technology, he makes the case for allowing Americans to...

If you can't respect the basic fundamental underlying principles with which we order society — which is 'Do not steal' — then what are you left with? asks investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr. Following her TED2025 talk, Cadwalladr...

The clock is ticking on social media giant TikTok, which faces a nationwide ban in the United States unless its parent company, ByteDance, sells it by January 19. Social media theorist Clay Shirky unpacks why the US is trying to ban...

We've been talking about the unavoidables recently. Last time, we covered Death. This time, it's taxes. So, what are taxes? Why do we pay taxes? What is all that tax money used for? This week, Adriene is going to cover all that and more....

The future of Telegram remains uncertain as it faces legal challenges and regulatory scrutiny from multiple governments. While the platform has adopted a combative stance, its model—offering partially open communication but resisting...

The recent charges against Telegram founder Pavel Durov by France, followed by similar actions from South Korea, highlight the growing tension between governments and global tech platforms. These cases underscore the challenges in...

Telegram founder Pavel Durov, a self-proclaimed free speech absolutist, faces scrutiny as his platform navigates the complexities of enabling open communication while addressing criminal misuse, including child sexual abuse material....

TED’s Whitney Pennington Rodgers sits down with Eli Pariser examine the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France. The arrest sparked debates on free speech, tech regulation, and government oversight in digital platforms. The...

When an Armenian resistance movement began to form in the 19th century, Sultan Abdul Hamid II took decisive action. He led the Hamidian Massacres— a relentless campaign of violence that killed over 150,000 Armenians. These massacres were...

Wigs date at least as far back as ancient Egypt, where well-regarded hairdressers crafted them into intricate styles. And under certain ancient Roman dynasties, women’s wigs became particularly ornate. Yet it wasn’t until Louis XIII...

Your government has introduced a plan to address record-breaking rates of traffic tickets and deadly hovercar accidents. They propose assigning “driver credit scores” to every citizen, but would need to install cameras and microphones in...

How can everyday people help foster and protect democracy? Detailing her work fighting for people power as an activist in Madagascar, Ketakandriana Rafitoson discusses how citizen assemblies — meetings where ordinary citizens get...

How do we protect ourselves from being misled online? Counter-terrorism expert Vidhya Ramalingam reveals how disinformation is being weaponized to justify violence — increasingly against climate scientists — and introduces a powerful...

Seventy-two percent of the world's population lives under some sort of autocratic rule, says freedom fighter Leopoldo Lopez. In a rousing call to defend democracy worldwide, he shares the story of his imprisonment and exile for leading...

Here's a wild stat: nearly one-third of the world's food production goes to waste each year, a major contributor to the climate crisis. Farmer and UN climate champion Gonzalo Muñoz sheds light on the international negotiations aimed at...

What we eat is less about what we choose and more about what’s offered to us, says food and climate expert Sarah Lake. Unpacking how governments and companies have driven up meat consumption in the US through extensive marketing, she...

Climate change doesn't just melt ice caps, it also fuels conflict, corruption and division worldwide, explains TED Fellow and journalist Peter Schwartzstein. From droughts in Syria to rising seas in Bangladesh, he explores how climate...

At the end of World War II, the nations of Europe were a shambles. Today we'll learn about how the various countries and blocs approached the problem of rebuilding their infrastructure and helping their residents recover. You'll learn...

The conversation between president and founder of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media Ian Bremmer and TED’s Helen Walters delves into the issue of gun violence in America. They emphasize the ease of access to firearms, including military-grade...