TED: Ideas worth spreading TED Comedy and Entertainment

TED Comedy and Entertainment

TED: Riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world. The annual TED conferences, in Long Beach/Palm Springs and Edinburgh, bring together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes or less). This section contains talks generally related to design.
English United States TV & Film · Comedy
32 Episodes
1 – 20

Sarah Jones: One woman, five characters, and a sex lesson from the future

In this performance, Sarah Jones brings you to the front row of a classroom in the future, as a teacher plugs in different personas from the year 2016 to show their varied perspectives on sex work. As she changes props, Jones embodies an elderly homemaker, a “sex work studies” major,…
11 Jun 2015 25 min

Chris Burkard: The joy of surfing in ice-cold water

"Anything that is worth pursuing is going to require us to suffer, just a little bit," says surf photographer Chris Burkard, as he explains his obsession with the coldest, choppiest, most isolated beaches on earth. With jawdropping photos and stories of places few humans have ever seen — much less…
26 May 2015 9 min

Esther Perel: Rethinking infidelity ... a talk for anyone who has ever loved

Infidelity is the ultimate betrayal. But does it have to be? Relationship therapist Esther Perel examines why people cheat, and unpacks why affairs are so traumatic: because they threaten our emotional security. In infidelity, she sees something unexpected — an expression of longing and loss. A must-watch for anyone who…
25 May 2015 21 min

Bill T. Jones: The dancer, the singer, the cellist ... and a moment of creative

Legendary dance choreographer Bill T. Jones and TED Fellows Joshua Roman and Somi didn't know exactly what was going to happen when they took the stage at TED2015. They just knew they wanted to offer the audience an opportunity to witness creative collaboration in action. The result: An improvised piece…
7 May 2015 6 min

Chris Milk: How virtual reality can create the ultimate empathy machine

Chris Milk uses cutting edge technology to produce astonishing films that delight and enchant. But for Milk, the human story is the driving force behind everything he does. In this short, charming talk, he shows some of his collaborations with musicians including Kanye West and Arcade Fire, and describes his…
23 Apr 2015 10 min

Harry Baker: A love poem for lonely prime numbers

Performance poet (and math student) Harry Baker spins a love poem about his favorite kind of numbers — the lonely, love-lorn prime. Stay on for two more lively, inspiring poems from this charming performer.
5 Mar 2015 14 min

Helder Guimarães: A magical search for a coincidence

Small coincidences. They happen all the time and yet, they pass us by because we are not looking for them. In a delightfully subtle trick, magician Helder Guimarães demonstrates with a deck of cards, a dollar bill and a stuffed giraffe.
3 Mar 2015 13 min

Hannah Fry: The mathematics of love

Finding the right mate is no cakewalk — but is it even mathematically likely? In a charming talk, mathematician Hannah Fry shows patterns in how we look for love, and gives her top three tips (verified by math!) for finding that special someone.
16 Feb 2015 17 min

Erin McKean: Go ahead, make up new words!

In this fun, short talk from TEDYouth, lexicographer Erin McKean encourages — nay, cheerleads — her audience to create new words when the existing ones won’t quite do. She lists out 6 ways to make new words in English, from compounding to “verbing,” in order to make language better at…
5 Jan 2015 6 min

Daria van den Bercken: Why I take the piano on the road … and in the air

Pianist Daria van den Bercken fell in love with the baroque keyboard music of George Frideric Handel. Now, she aims to ignite this passion in others. In this talk, she plays us through the emotional roller coaster of his music — while sailing with her piano through the air, driving…
6 Oct 2014 9 min

Ze Frank: Are you human?

Have you ever wondered: Am I a human being? Ze Frank suggests a series of simple questions that will determine this. Please relax and follow the prompts. Let's begin …
21 Jul 2014 4 min

AJ Jacobs: The world's largest family reunion ... we're all invited!

You may not know it yet, but AJ Jacobs is probably your cousin (many, many times removed). Using genealogy websites, he’s been following the unexpected links that make us all, however distantly, related. His goal: to throw the world’s largest family reunion. See you there?
18 Jun 2014 9 min

Rives: The Museum of Four in the Morning

Beware: Rives has a contagious obsession with 4 a.m. At TED2007, the poet shared what was then a minor fixation with a time that kept popping up everywhere. But after the talk, emails starting pouring in with obscure, hilarious references—from the cover of "Crochet Today!" magazine to twin mentions in…
19 May 2014 14 min

Joe Kowan: How I beat stage fright

Humanity's fine-tuned sense of fear served us well as a young species, giving us laser focus to avoid being eaten by competing beasts. But it's less wonderful when that same visceral, body-hijacking sense of fear kicks in in front of 20 folk-music fans at a Tuesday night open-mic. Palms sweat,…
27 Jan 2014 8 min

Guy Hoffman: Robots with "soul"

What kind of robots does an animator / jazz musician / roboticist make? Playful, reactive, curious ones. Guy Hoffman shows demo film of his family of unusual robots -- including two musical bots that like to jam with humans. (Filmed at TEDxJaffa.)
21 Jan 2014 17 min

Maysoon Zayid: I got 99 problems... palsy is just one

"I have cerebral palsy. I shake all the time," Maysoon Zayid announces at the beginning of this exhilarating, hilarious talk. (Really, it's hilarious.) "I'm like Shakira meets Muhammad Ali." With grace and wit, the Arab-American comedian takes us on a whistle-stop tour of her adventures as an actress, stand-up comic,…
6 Jan 2014 14 min
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