From TED2019 speakers: 14 websites and links that you didn’t know you needed in your life
Author: Oliver Friedman
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We’re excited about the lineup for TED2019: “Bigger than us”. So excited that we compiled a list of websites, links and pages from this year’s speakers that you didn’t know you needed. But you do.
1. AI Weirdness
Adventures in the often hilarious antics of AI algorithms as they try to imitate human datasets, like firework names or Dungeons and Dragons character bios. Here’s a gem from a neural network doing its best Julia Child impression:
Or perhaps you’re more in the mood for horseradish brownies?
Found thanks to speaker: Janelle Shane
2. One Love
Want to learn how to love better? Peruse this collection of tips, advice and practical resources about building healthy relationships — and spotting unhealthy ones. You can even order a box of chocolates that will give you a “taste” of different relationship behaviors, like manipulation or respect. Because you deserve a healthy relationship and chocolate, too.
Found thanks to speaker: Katie Hood
3. “Cephalopod dynamic camouflage”
Chameleons are the masters of disguise, right? Wrong. This quick overview of the camouflage skills of cephalopods (octopuses, cuttlefish and squids) will make your jaw drop. See how they rapidly camouflage against almost any background: colorful coral reefs, kelp forests, sand, seagrass beds …
Found thanks to speaker: Roger Hanlon
An interactive art installation meets a social psych experiment. This “artificially-intelligent room” is designed to look like a sitcom set, but with a twist: the room analyzes participants’ patterns of laughter and plays a laugh track based on that data. Jump in at around minute 30 of the livestream and enjoy the awkwardness.
Found thanks to speaker: Jonny Sun
A poetry-spewing lion sculpture in London’s Trafalgar Square. Need we say more?
Found thanks to speaker: Es Devlin
Our sleep patterns change as we grow older. Why is that? This study offers a wealth of answers (and will make you feel better about taking more naps).
Found thanks to speaker: Matthew Walker
You’re probably familiar with Hannah Gadsby’s critically acclaimed Netflix special, Nanette, but have you seen the four seasons of her Hulu series, Please Like Me? If you need a show to fill that 25-minute comedy slot in your TV life, start watching now.
Found thanks to speaker: Hannah Gadsby
Reflections on family, love and activism from Suleika Jaouad, a young writer diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 22. An invaluable resource for those battling cancer.
Found thanks to speaker: Suleika Jaouad
9. Robogamis
The days of big, clunky robots are over. These folding robots are inspired by origami, can morph into 2D or 3D shapes and we need one to play with.
Found thanks to speaker: Jamie Paik
10. “Smartphone use undermines enjoyment of face-to-face social interactions” (PDF)
The first concrete evidence that phone use may spoil our enjoyment of real-world social interactions. You probably already knew that, but now you have the facts to back it up. So, really: put your phone away at dinner! (You can also listen to the study being read if you want to stop looking at your phone right now.)
Thanks to speaker: Elizabeth Dunn
11. Global Change
The climate is changing. This much we know. But how can we prepare for the human health risks connected to climate change, like heat waves and rising sea levels? Explore this vast trove of resources to find out — and get involved in what could be the public health challenge of the century.
Found thanks to speaker: Kristie Ebi
12. “A digital gangster destroying democracy: the damning verdict on Facebook”
A withering summary of the British Parliament’s 2019 report on fake news and disinformation, from the journalist who uncovered the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica story. Read the parliament’s full report here.
Found thanks to speaker: Carole Cadwalladr
13. “David Deutsch on the infinite reach of knowledge”
Do you like having your mind slightly blown? Good, we do too. This episode of The TED Interview explores how humanity’s ability to attain knowledge first developed — and how it could take us across galaxies.
Found thanks to speaker: David Deutsch
14. “Fireworks”
A remix of the song “Fireworks” by Swedish duo First Aid Kit … as though the song were playing on the radio while actual fireworks exploded in the distance. Surprisingly calming.
Found thanks to performer: First Aid Kit
And a bonus for making it this far: travel back in time to TED7 … how far we’ve come since then!