"Prolific inventor and outrageous visionary Ray Kurzweil explains in abundant, grounded detail why -- by the 2020s -- we will have reverse-engineered the human brain, and nanobots will be operating your... more inside

J.J. Abrams traces his love of the unseen mystery -- the heart of Alias, Lost, and the upcoming Cloverfield -- back to its own magical beginnings, which may or may not include an early obsession with magic, the love of a supportive grandfather, or his own unopened Mystery Box.

"To date, there hasn't been an overarching theory of how the human brain really works, Jeff Hawkins argues in this compelling talk. That's because we still haven't defined intelligence accurately. But... more inside

Dean Kamen previews the extraordinary prosthetic arm he's developing at the request of the Department of Defense, to help the 1,600 "kids" who've come back from Iraq without an arm (and the two dozen who've... more inside

Scott Ritter describes Israel's role in shaping U.S. Foreign policy

UN Inspector Scott Ritter predicts where a war with Iran will lead. In the same talk Ritter has something to say about Israel and how they influence our foreign policy. http://www.videosift.com/video/Israels-influence-of-US-policy

From YT: http://www.ted.com Economist Eleni Gabre-Madhin outlines her ambitious vision to found the first commodities market in Ethiopia. Her plan would create wealth, minimize risk for farmers and turn... more inside

Against gun control laws. part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnAEvqI6V9E part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS0hKNuS8zU

From YT: http://www.ted.com Juan Enriquez offers a glimpse of some ground-breaking research to explore the potential of bioenergy. Our current energy sources -- coal, oil, gas -- are ultimately derived... more inside

From the YT Desc: http://www.ted.com Legendary designer Philippe Starck -- with no pretty slides behind him -- spends 18 minutes reaching for the very roots of the question "Why design?" Along the way... more inside

Amory Lovins: We must win the oil end game

Edit, updated with direct TED link. Try it full screen. http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/145

Speaker Gever Tulley explains the necessity of learning through experience for children. When I grew up I did 4 of the 5 and am no worse for the wear.

Deborah Scranton: Scenes from "The War Tapes"

Stephen Petranek: 10 ways the world could end

A Dutch TV host loses it when interviewing a man who ostensibly had his testicles removed by mistake in surgery.

Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence, asks why we aren’t more compassionate more of the time. Sharing the results of psychological experiments (and the story of the Santa Cruz Strangler),... more inside