How do spaces shape the human experience? In what ways do our rooms, homes and buildings give us meaning and purpose? In this segment, architect Michael Murphy joins host Manoush Zomorodi to explore the power of the spaces we make and inhabit. To listen to the whole episode, find TED Radio Hour wherever you're listening to this. And explore the ...

As kids, play comes naturally. But over time, it gets replaced by work. This hour, TED speakers explore how to reconnect with play -- to spark creativity, combat despair and find our way in the world. In this segment, host Manoush Zomorodi talks to Grammy winner Jacob Collier, who makes a case for why we should emphasize play, passion and curios...

For millennia, we have debated the mind, body, spirit connection. But today, it sounds trite, #selfcare. In this special series on the TED Radio Hour, we explore fresh ideas on how we think, move and feel. Up first: the mind. In this segment, neurotech entrepreneur Tom Oxley joins host Manoush Zomorodi to talk about an implantable brain-computer...

Taking on the climate crisis can seem like an insurmountable feat. On part one of TED Radio Hour episode -- Climate Mindset -- climate scientist Tom Rivett-Carnac makes the case that what we may need most to take on the challenge is a mental shift. You can hear from more speakers and listen to the full episode wherever you find your podcasts. If...

The impacts of climate change are growing, but so are the world's attempts to stop them. Hosted by Manoush Zomorodi of the TED Radio Hour, this special TED documentary examines the rapid technological revolution underway — and the real possibility of a better future for all. Featuring urban planner Anika Goss, scientist and carbon expert Julio F...

Nearly half a million people in the US are in jail right now without being convicted of a crime, simply because they can't come up with the money to pay cash bail. To try and fix this system, public defender and activist Robin Steinberg asked a straightforward question: What if we paid bail for them? In conversation with TED Radio Hour host Mano...

Right now, invisible signals are flying through the air all around you. Massive radio waves carry information between computers, GPS systems, cell phones, and more. And the sky is flooded with interference from routers, satellites, and, of course, people flying who haven't put their phones on airplane mode. So, what exactly does airplane mode do...

Witness the unveiling of Countdown, a major global campaign to cut greenhouse gas emissions. TED has partnered with scientists, policy makers, organizations, activists and more to create an initiative that everyone in the world can be part of. Check out http://countdown.ted.com to learn how you can get involved — and help turn the tide on climat...

Introducing The TED Interview, a new podcast hosted by head of TED Chris Anderson. As a writer, Elizabeth Gilbert is notorious for placing her heart squarely on her sleeve. Her best-selling memoir "Eat Pray Love" was a sensation precisely because of her eloquent, open-hearted descriptions of fear, divorce and wanting everything life had to offer...

Accepting his 2005 TED Prize, inventor Robert Fischell makes three wishes: redesigning a portable device that treats migraines, finding new cures for clinical depression and reforming the medical malpractice system.

To celebrate TED's 40th anniversary, Head of TED Chris Anderson and TED's founder Richard Saul Wurman reflect on the conference's transformative journey — from its inception as a daring experiment blending technology, entertainment and design to its expansion into a global platform for world-changing ideas. Get a glimpse into the minds behind a ...

Accepting his 2005 TED Prize, photographer Edward Burtynsky makes a wish: that his images -- stunning landscapes that document humanity's impact on the world -- help persuade millions to join a global conversation on sustainability.

ZigZag, a business podcast about being human, returns with The ZigZag Project: six steps (and episodes) to help you map out a path that aligns your personal values with your professional ambitions. In this first episode, host Manoush Zomorodi shares stories and data from the 150 listeners who volunteered to test the project. Learn why change req...

Dave Isay opened the first StoryCorps booth in New York’s Grand Central Terminal in 2003 with the intention of creating a quiet place where a person could honor someone who mattered to them by listening to their story. Since then, StoryCorps has evolved into the single largest collection of human voices ever recorded. His TED Prize wish: to grow...

Microsoft founder Bill Gates takes us deep into his remarkable history and propels us into the future of technology and philanthropy. (Audio only)

GPS location apps on a smartphone can be very handy when mapping a travel route or finding nearby events. But how does your smartphone know where you are? Wilton L. Virgo explains how the answer lies 12,000 miles over your head, in an orbiting satellite that keeps time to the beat of an atomic clock powered by quantum mechanics. [Directed by Nic...

In 1967, researchers gathered to answer a long-running scientific question: just how long is a second? It might seem obvious at first. A second is the tick of a clock, the swing of a pendulum, the time it takes to count to one. But how precise are those measurements? And what is that length based on? John Kitching digs into how we scientifically...

As of 1989, mankind had successfully sent craft to every known planet in the solar system except one: Pluto. Located in an mysterious region called the Kuiper Belt, Pluto is a scientific goldmine, and could hold clues to the formation of our solar system. Alan Stern explains how NASA's New Horizons mission is going to allow us to see Pluto for t...

When we drive, we get into a glass bubble, lock the doors and press the accelerator, relying on our eyes to guide us -- even though we can only see the few cars ahead of and behind us. But what if cars could share data with each other about their position and velocity, and use predictive models to calculate the safest routes for everyone on the ...

What if traffic flowed through our streets as smoothly and efficiently as blood flows through our veins? Transportation geek Wanis Kabbaj thinks we can find inspiration in the genius of our biology to design the transit systems of the future. In this forward-thinking talk, preview exciting concepts like modular, detachable buses, flying taxis an...

In the US, the very same blood test can cost $19 at one clinic and $522 at another clinic just blocks away -- and nobody knows the difference until they get a bill weeks later. Journalist Jeanne Pinder says it doesn't have to be this way. She's built a platform that crowdsources the true costs of medical procedures and makes the data public, rev...

You don't need political power to make real change, says activist Katie Fahey. She tells the story of how she led a successful movement in Michigan to end gerrymandering — the practice of drawing district lines to favor one political party — and how it all started with a simple social media post.

Roughly 85 percent of mass in the universe is "dark matter" -- mysterious material that can't be directly observed but has an immense influence on the cosmos. What exactly is this strange stuff, and what does it have to do with our existence? Astrophysicist Risa Wechsler explores why dark matter may be the key to understanding how the universe f...

They're millions of digits long, and it takes an army of mathematicians and machines to hunt them down -- what's not to love about monster primes? Adam Spencer, comedian and lifelong math geek, shares his passion for these odd numbers, and for the mysterious magic of math.

What do you learn when you sail around the world on your own? When solo sailor Ellen MacArthur circled the globe – carrying everything she needed with her – she came back with new insight into the way the world works, as a place of interlocking cycles and finite resources, where the decisions we make today affect what's left for tomorrow. She pr...

When Joshua Prager was 19, a devastating bus accident left him a hemiplegic. He returned to Israel twenty years later to find the driver who turned his world upside down. In this mesmerizing tale of their meeting, Prager probes deep questions of nature, nurture, self-deception and identity.

To get young kids to thrive in school, we need to do more than teach them how to read and write -- we need to teach them how to manage their emotions, says educator Olympia Della Flora. In this practical talk, she shares creative tactics she used to help struggling, sometimes disruptive students -- things like stopping for brain breaks, singing ...

For many years Sergeant Kevin Briggs had a dark, unusual, at times strangely rewarding job: He patrolled the southern end of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, a popular site for suicide attempts. In a sobering, deeply personal talk Briggs shares stories from those he’s spoken — and listened — to standing on the edge of life. He gives a powerfu...

Natalie MacMaster and her musical partner Donnell Leahy play several tunes from the Cape Breton tradition -- a sprightly, soulful style of folk fiddling. It's an inspired collaboration that will have you clapping (and maybe dancing) along.

When monarch butterflies migrate, they produce one of the most iconic wildlife spectacles in the world — and provide us with an important indicator of ecological health, says photographer Jaime Rojo. Telling a story about our relationship to the natural world, he shares his experience photographing these mesmerizing insects deep in their remote ...