TED Talks Daily Audio Selection

How to use family dinner to teach politics | Hajer Sharief

Everyone should participate in decision-making and politics -- and it starts at home, says activist Hajer Sharief. She introduces a simple yet transformative idea: that parents can teach their children about political agency by giving them a say in how their households are run, in the form of candid family…

18 Aug 2020 11AM 11 min

How you can help map the world's most vulnerable places | Rebecca Firth

Want to help map the world? Community builder Rebecca Firth explains how the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team (HOT) is using open-source software powered by volunteers to put one billion people on the map in the next five years. (This ambitious plan is a part of the Audacious Project, TED's initiative to…

17 Aug 2020 10AM 10 min

Love letters to strangers | Hannah Brencher

Hannah Brencher's mother always wrote her letters. So when she felt herself bottom into depression after college, she did what felt natural -- she wrote love letters and left them for strangers to find. The act has become a global initiative, The World Needs More Love Letters, which rushes handwritten…

14 Aug 2020 11AM 5 min

When is a pandemic over? | Alex Rosenthal

Consider the following scenario: a highly infectious, sometimes deadly respiratory virus infects humans for the first time. It spreads rapidly worldwide, and the WHO declares a pandemic. The death toll starts to rise and everyone is asking the same question: when will the pandemic end? Alex Rosenthal details the three…

13 Aug 2020 11AM 6 min

What silence can teach you about sound | Dallas Taylor

What can you hear in silence? In this exploration of sound, host of the podcast "Twenty Thousand Hertz" Dallas Taylor tells the story of arguably the most debated musical composition in recent history -- composer John Cage's iconic piece 4'33" -- and invites you to take notice of the soundscape…

12 Aug 2020 11AM 10 min

3 questions to ask yourself about US citizenship | Jose Antonio Vargas

At age 16, journalist and filmmaker Jose Antonio Vargas found out he was in the United States illegally. Since then, he's been thinking deeply about immigration and what it means to be a US citizen -- whether it's by birth, law or otherwise. In this powerful talk, Vargas calls for…

11 Aug 2020 3PM 9 min

Let's scan the whole planet with LiDAR | Chris Fisher

We have archives of films, newspapers, even seeds -- what if we could make one for the entire surface of the earth? Drawing on his experience mapping an ancient city in the Honduran jungle, archaeologist Chris Fisher makes the case for scanning the whole planet with LiDAR -- a technology…

10 Aug 2020 4PM 13 min

How every movie trailer gets made | Twenty Thousand Hertz

"In a world" -- our world -- movie trailers have undergone a massive evolution. The booming voice-of-God narration of the '80s and '90s has been silenced in favor of boojes and bwaas. In this episode of Twenty Thousand Hertz, host and sound design expert Dallas Taylor is joined by guests…

7 Aug 2020 6AM 22 min

The difference between healthy and unhealthy love | Katie Hood

In a talk about understanding and practicing the art of healthy relationships, Katie Hood reveals the five signs you might be in an unhealthy relationship -- with a romantic partner, a friend, a family member -- and shares the things you can do every day to love with respect, kindness…

6 Aug 2020 6AM 11 min

The secrets of learning a new language | Lýdia Machová

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 multiple languages) and shares four principles to help unlock…

5 Aug 2020 6AM 11 min

How to raise a black son in America | Clint Smith

As kids, we all get advice from parents and teachers that seems strange, even confusing. This was crystallized one night for a young Clint Smith, who was playing with water guns in a dark parking lot with his white friends. In a heartfelt piece, the poet paints the scene of…

4 Aug 2020 6AM 6 min

A stock market for social justice | ZigZag

On this episode of ZigZag, host Manoush Zomorodi is joined by Eric Ries, who went from writing Silicon Valley's bible to building a stock market for social justice. Together, they examine why quarterly earnings reports cause anti-social behavior and how a new stock exchange in the US might present a…

3 Aug 2020 6AM 39 min

Rewriting the script(ure) | Pindrop

Nearly 400 years ago, a tiny town in Germany made a bargain with God: spare its people from the Black Plague and we'll put on a play in your honor... forever. And it worked! Now every decade, the entire town comes together to stage the play, drawing massive crowds to…

31 Jul 2020 6AM 49 min

How your brain's executive function works -- and how to improve it | Sabine Doebel

You use your brain's executive function every day -- it's how you do things like pay attention, plan ahead and control impulses. Can you improve it to change for the better? With highlights from her research on child development, cognitive scientist Sabine Doebel explores the factors that affect executive function…

30 Jul 2020 6AM 7 min

How to overcome our biases? Walk boldly toward them | Vernā Myers

Our biases can be dangerous, even deadly — as we've seen in the cases of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner, in Staten Island, New York. Diversity advocate Vernā Myers looks closely at some of the subconscious attitudes we hold toward out-groups. She makes a plea to all…

29 Jul 2020 6AM 18 min

How shocking events can spark positive change | Naomi Klein

Things are pretty shocking out there right now -- record-breaking storms, deadly terror attacks, thousands of migrants disappearing beneath the waves and openly supremacist movements rising. Are we responding with the urgency that these overlapping crises demand from us? Journalist and activist Naomi Klein studies how governments use large-scale shocks…

28 Jul 2020 6AM 16 min

The secret soundtrack of the sea | TEDx SHORTS

Marine biologist, fish ecologist and self-confessed ocean optimist Steve Simpson explains the intricate sounds that exist in our oceans -- and why listening to this soundtrack can help us protect it. This talk was filmed at TEDxExeter. All TEDx events are organized independently by volunteers in the spirit of TED's…

27 Jul 2020 6AM 7 min

Can light stop the coronavirus? | David Brenner

Far-UVC light is a type of ultraviolet light that kills microbes and viruses and, crucially, seems to be safe to use around humans. Radiation scientist David Brenner describes how we could use this light to stop the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, in hospitals, nursing homes, trains…

24 Jul 2020 10AM 20 min

Give yourself permission to be creative | Ethan Hawke

Reflecting on moments that shaped his life, actor Ethan Hawke examines how courageous expression promotes healing and connection with one another -- and invites you to discover your own unabashed creativity. "There is no path till you walk it," he says.

23 Jul 2020 10AM 8 min

How to use love to repair social inequality | Chloé Valdary

What does Kendrick Lamar have in common with Disney's "Moana"? They recognize our common humanity and show us how to love ourselves and one another, says writer and educator Chloé Valdary. She shares how she uses pop culture to help people develop resilience and advance social change -- and explains…

22 Jul 2020 6AM 17 min