Video
See life (and learning) like a musical piece
05 days ago
A powerful insight into life, education, and careers. In only two minutes, British philosopher Alan Watts cautions against one of the most troubling outcomes of the modern education system and focus on career: realizing that you’ve missed most of what life has to offer. It’s no wonder that schools are pumping out generic clones that dutifully meet the “standards” to which they are taught.
After watching this, hopefully you’ll be inspired to “stop and smell the roses.” If you are, tell me what “rose” you stopped for in the comments.
The Future Belongs to the Curious
01 month ago
There couldn’t possibly be a more appropriate video for my blog than this one…
it doesn’t matter what you ask…just that you ask
An unlikely story of survival and collaboration
01 month ago
When she was just 22, Ramona Pierson went for a jog with her dog. Thanks to a drunk driver, that would be the last “normal” thing she’d do for over a decade.
Tangled in the wheels of the drunk’s car, her body mangled in multiple ways, bystanders were able to help Pierson hang on to a thin thread of life. She then spent the next 18 months in a coma, endured multiple surgeries to reconstruct nearly her entire body and emerged unable to see, eat, or speak. Discharged from the hospital to a senior center, a community of dedicated seniors invested themselves in her recovery.
Miraculously, Pierson regained the ability to eat, talk, walk, and thanks to the wonders of technology, ten years later she recovered sight in one eye due to an experimental surgery. Her story is remarkable in every conceivable way.
The only aspect of Pierson’s talk that disappoints is that she’s only given the typical 12 minutes of a TED talk. I would have greatly appreciated hearing much, much more of her remarkable story. [Videos after the jump.]
Flipped architecture turns high-rise apartments into a jungle [TED talk]
0In this visually stimulating TED talk, architect Thomas Heatherwick shows off some of the best designs inspired by biology in his portfolio. 
While some may go gaga over the famous Seed Cathedral, in a surprising conclusion to the presentation, Heatherwick reveals plans for high-rise apartments in Malaysia that are designed…upside-down. This unique configuration provides the economic benefit of creating more of the valuable top-floor real estate while also creating ample space for a natural rainforest ecosystem.
The before and after pictures below show how a seemingly simple adjustment in a traditional design – the “flip” – produced a dramatically new result (click each image for the full-sized version).
 Traditional Design |
 Revised Design |
 Rendered Design |
While he doesn’t explain structural aspects in his talk, the design does not seem especially suited to earthquake-prone regions (which seem to be increasing around the globe).
Best school assembly ever: A lifelike dinosaur puppet
1Boingboing recently posted a video showing a life-like dinosaur puppet, controlled by a masterful puppeteer, that brought delight and surprise to a group of Australian school children. I can only imagine my daughters hiding in fear as this thing lunged and roared at them! What’s so amazing is that the incredible realism of the puppet and its movements almost completely mask the puppetmaster’s legs sticking out of the costume.
If the kids weren’t already enthralled with the subject of paleontology, I’m sure they are now!
