TED-Ed
Do you really need to take 10,000 steps a day? | Shannon Odell
For years, Jean Béliveau walked from country to country, with the goal of circumnavigating the globe on foot. While few people have the time or desire to walk such extreme lengths, research shows that adding even a modest amount of...
TED-Ed
A day in the life of a martial artist in medieval China | Peter Lorge
The year is 1030 CE. Chu Hong's best friend, Liang Gao, tells him that the local magistrate has been spotted holding a surprise archery competition in a nearby town and will arrive at their village soon. This is Hong’s chance to showcase...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How some friendships last — and others don’t | Iseult Gillespie
Friendships can change how we see and move through the world. They can boost our academic performance, help us deal with setbacks, and even improve our health. And the relationships we form in adolescence can shape our beliefs, values,...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The woman who broke the Great Wall of China | Juwen Zhang
Long ago, an emperor decided to build a great wall to protect his new empire and ensure his power. He ordered men across China to leave their homes and submit to the grueling labor required for its construction. As years passed and the...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Can you solve the trickster god riddle? | Alex Rosenthal
Ragnarok has been raging for far too long; many gods and heroes have fallen, and the rest can barely stand. Loki, his bright eyes dimmed by exhaustion, asks to meet. He proposes that you and he settle the conflict with a game atop a...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The real tale of the Monkey King in Heaven | Ji Hao
While his disciples loved their roguish leader, Sun Wukong’s misadventures had spread chaos throughout the land. The Jade Emperor, watching from his throne in Heaven, decided he would no longer stand by as this monkey wreaked havoc...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How did ancient civilizations make ice cream? | Vivian Jiang
Ice cream has a unique role in our world’s history, culture, and cravings. The first accounts of cold desserts date back to the first century, in civilizations including ancient Rome, Mughal India, and Tang Dynasty China. Yet the...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Japan's scariest ghost story | Kit Brooks
Oiwa’s only hope for ending her marriage to the cruel and dishonorable samurai, Iemon, was her father. But after he tried to end the union, Iemon murdered him in cold blood. With plans to marry another, Iemon conspired to poison his wife...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The dark history of werewolves | Craig Thomson
Stories of werewolves have existed for thousands of years and continue to live on today. They're especially prominent in European literature and folklore, and often found in cultures where the wolf is the largest natural predator. Over...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How to overcome your mistakes | TED-Ed
People often describe failure as a teachable moment— a necessary stumble on our way to improvement. But learning from our mistakes isn't always easy, especially when those failures are demoralizing, overwhelming, or just downright...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: What would happen if everyone stopped eating meat tomorrow? | Carolyn Beans
Imagine if a wizard of meatless dining suddenly appeared on Earth and with one wave of a wand wiped away all meat from our shelves— along with any desire to eat it. Farm animals destined for food vanish, whisked away to another planet....
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why is it so hard to break a bad habit? | TED-Ed
Many people deal with a nail-biting habit at some point in their lives. Some will go to great lengths to try to stop, employing strategies like dipping their hands in salt or wearing gloves. And while not all of us are nail-biters, most...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How to enter flow state | TED-Ed
Flow is more than just concentrating or paying attention; it's a unique mental state of effortless engagement. And those who more frequently experience flow report higher levels of positive emotions, creativity, and feelings of...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Can you outsmart Fate and break her ancient curse? | Dan Finkel
Hundreds of years ago, your ancestor stole a magical tarot deck from Fate herself— and it came with a terrible cost. Once every 23 years, one member of your family must face Fate in a duel with rules only known to your opponent. And...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The Hawaiian story of the king's betrayal | Sydney Iaukea
Long ago, the Hawaiian wind goddess wielded a gourd that housed the winds of the Islands. It came to hold her bones, along with the life force they carried, and was eventually passed to her grandson, Paka'a. Like his father before him,...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why do we eat popcorn at the movies? | Andrew Smith
Soft percussion and a toasty scent mark the violent transformation of tough seeds into cloud-like puffs. This is the almost magical process of popcorn-making. Dozens of kinds of popcorn are now grown in the US, with different strains...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: A day in the Islamic Golden Age | Birte Kristiansen and Petra Sijpesteijn
It's 791 CE. As the morning sun shines on the Golden Gate Palace, brother and sister Hisham and Asma prepare for the journey of a lifetime: the hajj, a holy pilgrimage to Mecca. They intend to travel with the big hajj caravan— but a...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Can you steal the most powerful wand in the wizarding world? | Dan Finkel
The fabled Mirzakhani wand is the most powerful magical item ever created. And that's why the evil wizard Moldevort is planning to use it to conquer the world. You and Drumbledrore have finally discovered its hiding place in a cave, but...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Mao Zedong's infamous mango cult | Vivian Jiang
In August 1968, factory workers overheard news of a mandatory meeting. Whispered rumors described shipments of a gift from the country's Communist leader, Chairman Mao Zedong. And sure enough, managers soon distributed a gift to every...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: This one weird trick will get you infinite gold | Dan Finkel
A few years ago, the king decided your life would be forfeit unless you tripled the gold coins in his treasury. Fortunately, a strange little man appeared and magically performed the feat. Unfortunately, you promised him your first-born...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: How batteries work - Adam Jacobson
Batteries are a triumph of science-they allow smartphones and other technologies to exist without anchoring us to an infernal tangle of power cables. Yet even the best batteries will diminish daily, slowly losing capacity until they...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: What is MSG, and is it actually bad for you? | Sarah E. Tracy
In 1968, Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok felt ill after dinner at a Chinese restaurant and wrote a letter to a medical journal connecting his symptoms to MSG. His letter would change the world's relationship with MSG, inspiring international...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Michelle Brown: What is a butt tuba and why is it in medieval art?
A rabbit attempts to play a church organ, while a knight fights a giant snail and a naked man blows a trumpet with his rear end. These bizarre images, painted with squirrel-hair brushes on vellum or parchment by monks, nuns and urban...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: The history of museums - J. V. Maranto
Museums have been a part of human history for over 2,000 years -- but they weren't always like the ones we visit today. J.V. Maranto uncovers the evolution of museums, from the first museum in 530 BC (curated by a princess) to PT...