Over 2,500 years ago, one of ancient Greece's most celebrated popstars and erotic poets enraptured listeners. The singer-songwriter offered a uniquely intimate perspective on love, passion, and longing, and was the first on record to...

Virtuoso Pamelia Kurstin performs and discusses her theremin, the not-just-for-sci-fi electronic instrument that is played without being touched. Songs include "Autumn Leaves," "Lush Life" and David Mash’s "Listen, Words Are Gone."

Why is it that every time you see an adorable puppy in the park or outside a cafe your voice suddenly jumps up about two octaves and you’re talking total gooey nonsense? If you watch this episode to find out, you can have a treat and...

The older the word, the longer (and more fascinating) the story. With roots in Old English, 'true' shares etymological ancestors with words like betroth and truce...but also with the word tree. In fact, trees have been metaphors for...

In this video Paul Andersen explains how chemical analysis is important in determining the composition, purity and empirical formula of a compound. An empirical formula determination problem is also included.

Most politicians choose their words carefully, to shape the reality they hope to create. But does it work? Etymologist Mark Forsyth shares a few entertaining word-origin stories from British and American history (for instance, did you...

Paul Andersen starts with a brief description of the history of life. He then discusses the seven characteristics of life and why viruses are not alive. He then describes the three domains in the current classification system and...

Do you mumble to yourself while looking for your keys, or pump yourself up in the morning with a bathroom mirror pep talk? It may actually be helpful,but only if you do it right.

Beyond giving the world dozens of English language masterpieces and inventing countless words (including the word countless), William Shakespeare, ever the overachieving bard, especially had a way with the romantic turn of phrase....

In this video Paul Andersen explains how thermodynamic and equilibrium reasoning can be related through changes in free energy and the equilibrium constant. When the delta G is negative the reaction shifts to the right or favors...

You might know of dyslexia as a reading disorder, but years of research suggests that people with dyslexia might struggle with processing letters because they also have trouble processing rhythm.

You’re on the internet, so you probably know that people sometimes claim to have been abducted by aliens. When researchers start to look closely at these stories and where they come from, they begin to realize that there might be...

It’s probably not a surprise that many ancient texts are a bit worn out and tattered, and that makes deciphering what they say quite a task. But with new computer tech and artificial intelligence, we are getting much clearer glimpses of...

In this fun, short talk from TEDYouth, lexicographer Erin McKean encourages — nay, cheerleads — her audience to create new words when the existing ones won’t quite do. She lists out 6 ways to make new words in English, from compounding...

Among the great poets of literary history, certain names like Homer, Shakespeare and Whitman are instantly recognizable. However, there's an early 20th century great poet whose name you may not know: Guillaume Apollinaire. Genevieve Emy...

Shameem Akhtar posed as a boy during her early childhood in Pakistan so she could enjoy the privileges Pakistani girls are rarely afforded: to play outside and attend school. In an eye-opening, personal talk, Akhtar recounts how the...

What’s with all the "G"s and why do we keep having to develop new ones to use our phones in this technology.

All animals communicate. But do they have language? Michele Bishop details the four specific qualities we associate with language and investigates whether or not certain animals utilize some or all of those qualities to communicate.

In a neutralization reaction (or acid-base reaction) a proton is transferred from the Brinsted--Lowry acid to the Brinsted--Lowry base. Water is amphoteric and so it can serve as either an acid or a base in a neutralization reaction. ...

With scissors and paper, artist Béatrice Coron creates intricate worlds, cities and countries, heavens and hells. Striding onstage in a glorious cape cut from Tyvek, she describes her creative process and the way her stories develop from...

When we talk about 'English', we often think of it as a single language. But what do the dialects spoken in dozens of countries around the world have in common with each other, or with the writings of Chaucer? Claire Bowern traces the...

Try talking to yourself without opening your mouth, by simply saying words internally. What if you could search the internet like that -- and get an answer back? In the first live public demo of his new technology, TED Fellow Arnav Kapur...

Don't take the easy route! Instead, use this little trick to improve your writing -- let go of the words "good" and "bad," and push yourself to illustrate, elucidate and illuminate your world with language.

Want to learn a new language but feel daunted or unsure where to begin? You don't need some special talent or a "language gene," says Lýdia Machová. In an upbeat, inspiring talk, she reveals the secrets of polyglots (people who speak...