Brain Candy

Fixing Our Broken Systems()  

Looking at what's broken in our system isn't easy. Fixing it could be an even greater challenge.

May 25, 2012 We depend on rules, guidelines and laws to provide structure, order and function, but too often these systems fail us. Here's a look at how trust and practical wisdom could mend education, medicine and the law. Plus, can games solve real world problems?

Summary

TED Radio Hour

Barry Schwartz: How Do Rules Fail Us?()  

"Rules are like a road map that get you to the right city, but not the right street." — Barry Schwartz

May 25, 2012 Psychologist Barry Schwartz makes a passionate call for practical wisdom as an antidote to a society gone mad with bureaucracy. He argues powerfully that rules often fail us, incentives often backfire, and practical, everyday wisdom will help rebuild our world.

Transcript

On TED Radio HourPlaylist

TED Radio Hour

Jane McGonigal: Can Video Games Solve Real Issues? ()  

"The more hours we spend play games, the more we build up that desire to surprise ourselves and surprise others and to do extraordinary things." -- Jane McGonigal

May 25, 2012 Games like World of Warcraft give players the means to save worlds and incentive to learn the habits of heroes. What if we could harness this gamer power to solve real-world problems? Game designer Jane McGonigal says we can.

Transcript

On TED Radio HourPlaylist

Krulwich Wonders...

Tom Waits Salutes (I Think) An Artist I've Never Heard Of()  

John Baldessari

May 20, 2012 John Baldessari is a conceptual artist whose work includes people with colored dots on their heads, oddly composed photographs and large trumpet sculptures. What happens when the gravelly-voiced Tom Waits narrates a film about an artist who proclaims "I will not make any more boring art"?

Summary

Krulwich Wonders...

The Essence Of Science Explained In 63 Seconds ()  

Richard Feynman giving a lecture at Cornell

May 17, 2012 Legendary scientist Reichard Feynman offered a simple but profound lesson about how we understand the world in a lecture at Cornell in 1964. The world, it is presumed, works perfectly well without us. How we think about it makes no important difference.

Summary

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Map: Carbon Emissions Giants

Who are the biggest carbon polluters today? Who will it be in 2030?

Amazon forest

Climate Strategists: Focus On Forests To Cut Emissions

The basic idea: Let rich countries pay poor ones to save and even expand carbon-absorbing forests.

Marsh grasses in California

Can 'Carbon Ranching' Offset Emissions In Calif.?

Farmers hope money they make from capturing greenhouse gases would make up for the lost acreage.

China

What Countries Are Doing To Tackle Climate Change

Many of the world's major greenhouse gas emitters are forging their own plans to cut emissions.

A carbon atom. Credit: OddTodd

Global Warming? It's All About Carbon

An animated Robert Krulwich chemistry lesson -- in five episodes.

Red marks area of potential flooding in Florida. Credit: NPR

Rising Temperatures, Disappearing Coastlines

See what climate change could do to a coastline near you.

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