TED Talks
Lessons from history for a better future | Roman Krznaric
How can the lessons of the past help us navigate the turbulence of the present and future? Social philosopher Roman Krznaric explores why history isn’t just a record of what’s gone wrong — it’s also full of solutions, resilience and...
TED Talks
Don't fear superintelligent AI | Grady Booch
New tech spawns new anxieties, says scientist and philosopher Grady Booch, but we don't need to be afraid an all-powerful, unfeeling AI. Booch allays our worst (sci-fi induced) fears about superintelligent computers by explaining how...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Is safety worth the loss of privacy? | Sarah Stroud and Michael Vazquez
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...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How could so many people support Hitler? | Joseph Lacey
Philosopher Hannah Arendt was a German Jew who dedicated herself to understanding how the Nazi regime came to power, and more specifically, how it inspired so many atrocities. She believed the true conditions behind the unprecedented...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: 3 easy steps to build a real utopia | Joseph Lacey
A group of strangers have gathered to design a just society. To ensure none of them rig the system, they’ve been placed under a veil of ignorance. Under this veil, they’re blind to information about age, sex, profession, wealth,...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Rumi: One of the world's most famous writers | Stephanie Honchell Smith
According to legend, the renowned scholar Jalaluddin Muhammad Rumi was giving a lecture when a disheveled man approached and asked him the meaning of his academic books. Rumi didn’t know it yet, but this question and this man would...
Crash Course
Booker T. Washington and W.E.B DuBois
As the 19th century gave way to the 20th, Black Americans were searching for ways to think about how and where they would fit into a post-slavery society. There were several competing schools of thought. Booker T. Washington and W.E.B....
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Ethical dilemma: What makes life worth living? | Douglas MacLean
Life on your planet depends entirely on Nuronium for normal cognition. Unfortunately, its source has been compromised and you are now at risk of extinction. Scientists have found an alternate energy source, Polixate, but it can't sustain...
PBS
Hacking the Nature of Reality
In standard use, the S-matrix can be calculated if you understand the forces in the interaction region - for example, in the nucleus of an atom. But what if you don’t know those internal interaction forces? Heisenberg sought a way to...
TED Talks
TED: The beauty of building with mud and trash | Vinu Daniel
What if we could use waste to create resilient and sustainable buildings? Bringing out the beauty of the dirt beneath our feet, climate-responsive architect Vinu Daniel shares how he and his team are giving local and discarded materials...
SciShow
World’s Most Asked Questions: What Is Love?
People ask Google everything under the sun. One of the most commonly searched questions in the world is “What Is Love?” Allow us at SciShow to explain.
TED Talks
TED: Where does your sense of self come from? A scientific look | Anil Ananthaswamy
Our memories and bodies give us clues about who we are, but what happens when this guidance shifts? In this mind-bending talk, science writer Anil Ananthaswamy shares how the experiences of "altered selves" -- resulting from...
PBS
Justice Scalia Writes How-to Read Guide for Interpreting the Law (August 9, 2012)
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia says the key factor for a judge's ruling is finding where the balance resides in a case. Margaret Warner interviews Justice Scalia about his new book, "Reading Law: The Interpretation of Legal...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Chris Anderson (TED): Questions no one knows the answers to
TED curator Chris Anderson shares his obsession with questions that no one (yet) knows the answers to. A short intro leads into two questions: Why can't we see evidence of alien life? And how many universes are there?
TED Talks
Sam Harris: Science can answer moral questions
Questions of good and evil, right and wrong are commonly thought unanswerable by science. But Sam Harris argues that science can -- and should -- be an authority on moral issues, shaping human values and setting out what constitutes a...
Crash Course
Batman & Identity: Crash Course Philosophy
Hank explores different ways of understanding identity – including the Indiscernibility of Identicals, and essential and accidental properties. In what ways does affect identity? In what ways does it not? What does it mean for a thing to...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Is life meaningless? And other absurd questions | Nina Medvinskaya
Albert Camus grew up surrounded by violence. His homeland of Algeria was mired in conflict. He lost his father in World War I. Seeing World War II's devastation, Camus grew despondent. What was the meaning behind all this endless...
TED Talks
Kwame Anthony Appiah: Is religion good or bad? (This is a trick question)
Plenty of good things are done in the name of religion, and plenty of bad things too. But what is religion, exactly — is it good or bad, in and of itself? Philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah offers a generous, surprising view.
TED Talks
TED: Math is the hidden secret to understanding the world | Roger Antonsen
unlock the mysteries and inner workings of the world through one of the most imaginative art forms ever -- mathematics -- with Roger Antonsen, as he explains how a slight change in perspective can reveal patterns, numbers and formulas as...
TED Talks
Chris Anderson (TED): Questions no one knows the answers to
TED curator Chris Anderson shares his obsession with questions that no one (yet) knows the answers to. A short intro leads into two questions: Why can't we see evidence of alien life? And how many universes are there?
TED Talks
Chris Anderson: TED's nonprofit transition
Chris Anderson gave this talk in 2002, prior to taking over leadership of TED. Co-founder Richard Saul Wurman was leaving, and TED's future was in the balance. He seeks to persuade TEDsters that what was then a for-profit conference had...
Crash Course
Leonardo DiCaprio & The Nature of Reality: Crash Course Philosophy
Today Hank gains insight from that most philosophical of figures...Leonardo DiCaprio. In this episode, we’re talking about the process of philosophical discovery and questioning the relationship between appearance and reality by taking a...
TED Talks
TED: How ethics can help you make better decisions | Michael Schur
What would Immanuel Kant say about a fender bender? In a surprisingly funny trip through the teachings of some of history's great philosophers, TV writer and producer Michael Schur (from hit shows like "The Office" and "The Good Place")...
TED Talks
Why there's no such thing as objective reality | Greg Anderson
In the grand scheme of history, modern reality is a bizarre exception when compared to the worlds of ancient, precolonial and Indigenous civilizations, where myths ruled and gods roamed, says historian Greg Anderson. So why do Westerners...