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TED Radio Hour Exploring the biggest questions of our time with the help of the world's greatest thinkers. Host Manoush Zomorodi inspires us to learn more about the world, our communities, and most importantly, ourselves.

Get more brainy miscellany with TED Radio Hour+. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/ted
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TED Radio Hour

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Exploring the biggest questions of our time with the help of the world's greatest thinkers. Host Manoush Zomorodi inspires us to learn more about the world, our communities, and most importantly, ourselves.

Get more brainy miscellany with TED Radio Hour+. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/ted

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Decoding the secret messages of data, biology and music
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Decoding the secret messages of data, biology and music

It's easy to focus on the nuances that get lost in translation, but what about the insights that are found? This hour, TED speakers reveal what we gain by adapting and translating information. Guests include textual scientist Gregory Heyworth, economist Ralph Chami, microbiologist and nanotechnologist Fatima AlZahra'a Alatraktchi and polyglot Lýdia Machová.

Decoding the secret messages of data, biology and music

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We resist change and surprises—but shock can shift our lives for the better
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We resist change and surprises—but shock can shift our lives for the better

Being jolted out of the everyday can be a good thing. From an elaborate farce, to benign naughtiness, to a life-altering event—this hour, TED speakers explain the productive side of the provocative. Guests include bird truther Peter McIndoe, psychologist Paul Bloom and cognitive scientist Maya Shankar.

We resist change and surprises—but shock can shift our lives for the better

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The challenge of preserving and archiving information... for all eternity
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The challenge of preserving and archiving information... for all eternity

Original broadcast date: January 27, 2023. Information feels more accessible than ever, but the ways we store data are surprisingly fragile. Can we save anything forever? This hour, TED speakers explore preserving our past, present and future. Guests include artist CM Ralph, digital librarian Brewster Kahle, molecular biologist Dina Zielinski and archaeologist Chris Fisher.

The challenge of preserving and archiving information... for all eternity

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The future of democracy looks very different than its past
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The future of democracy looks very different than its past

Around the world, democratic ideals are being tested in surprising ways. As the curtains rise on a big election year, TED speakers explore what can keep people united and what drives them apart. Guests include journalist and Broadway producer Jose Antonio Vargas, civil war expert Barbara Walter, and political scientist Yascha Mounk.

The future of democracy looks very different than its past

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Embracing the foods of our past and future
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Embracing the foods of our past and future

Original broadcast date: September 3, 2021. Food is one of life's greatest pleasures, yet many of our food systems are flawed. This hour, TED speakers look to the past to reconnect with what we eat, and the present to reimagine our food future. Guests include forager Alexis Nikole Nelson, chef Sean Sherman, social entrepreneur Jasmine Crowe, and environmental journalist Amanda Little.

Embracing the foods of our past and future

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What we find when we search for paradise
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What we find when we search for paradise

We often view paradise as a place of safety, beauty, tranquility. It's an ideal we long for, but one we can rarely find. This hour, TED speakers search for utopia and come to terms with reality.

What we find when we search for paradise

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Over 20,000 joined the NPR/Columbia study to move throughout the day. Did it work?
Daniel Hertzberg

Over 20,000 joined the NPR/Columbia study to move throughout the day. Did it work?

In part six: host Manoush Zomorodi digs into the preliminary results of the listener study with Columbia University researcher Keith Diaz. He shares the surprising — and encouraging — initial findings from more than 20,000 listeners who tried to incorporate movement breaks into their day.

Over 20,000 joined the NPR/Columbia study to move throughout the day. Did it work?

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From microbes eating plastic to rats saving lives: The shocking power of tiny things
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From microbes eating plastic to rats saving lives: The shocking power of tiny things

Original broadcast date: February 24, 2023. You don't need to be big and boisterous to pack a punch. This hour, TED speakers explore the surprising strength of all things minuscule and fleeting. Guests include microbiologist Anne Madden, cognitive scientist Lera Boroditsky, former educator YeYoon Kim and former industrial engineer and Zen Buddhist monk Bart Weetjens.

From microbes eating plastic to rats saving lives: The shocking power of tiny things

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Overwhelmed by doom scrolling? Time to check in with your body
Daniel Hertzberg

Overwhelmed by doom scrolling? Time to check in with your body

In part five: host Manoush Zomorodi investigates what information overload does to our physical and mental health. Could our tech use be interfering with the critical dialogue that takes place between the body and the brain? Psychiatrist and neuroscientist Sahib Khalsa shares his latest research on interoception — the brain's ability to sense how the body is feeling — and how finding time to unplug from our devices can help us tune into our body's natural signals.

Overwhelmed by doom scrolling? Time to check in with your body

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Learning from what others leave behind
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Learning from what others leave behind

Original broadcast date: November 4, 2022. For millennia, humans have created artifacts of their lives — from art, to books, to music. This hour, we explore ideas about capturing the ephemeral human experience for future generations to find. Guests include paleoanthropologist Genevieve von Petzinger, museum curator Ariana Curtis, music curator Alexis Charpentier and artist Katie Paterson.

Learning from what others leave behind

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