TED Talk- Jane Chen

"What could you place in your hands?"

In her TED talk, Jane Chen opened by saying, “Please close your eyes, and open your hands. Now imagine what you could place in your hands.” After giving some examples, Jane asked the audience to open their eyes. On the screen was a picture of a tiny premature baby, being held in two hands. As the picture was onscreen, she referred back to what we could place in our hands. She asked, “What about a life?” She went on to tell the story of the baby, and how millions of other are just like him. She explained the health problems premature babies have, and then went into a more personal story. The story was about a mother in India who lost her premature baby because she didn’t have a way to get him to a hospital. Jane helped put her topic into perspective. As she was speaking, she had passion about what she was talking about. She knew what she was saying and how to say it. The stories she told, and her personal experience helped the listener understand the problem. Jane then went on and told her solution, instead of introducing it first. I thought this was a great idea because introducing the problem at the beginning makes the audience want to find a solution. Chen’s idea was great and her passion for what she was doing made me want to help too.

Jane and her team came up with this idea

Jane Chen is the CEO and co-founder of a company called Embrace. Millions of babies die each year from premature birth. The world has technology to save these babies, yet it has become too expensive at around $20,000 per incubator. Warmth is crucial for a premature baby to regulate body temperature and prevent hypothermia. It can help not only survival but long term growth as well. Without these incubators, premature babies can have growing issues or even die. Jane, touched by the story of a premature baby’s mother from India wanted to change this. She and her partners realized they needed a local solution that could work without electricity, that was simple enough for a mother to use, something portable, that could be sterilized and reused across multiple babies, and most important ultra low cost. Jane and her team came up with a sleeping bag type heater. A wax-like substance that can be reheated by water is placed into the back and the baby can lay inside. The “sleeping bag” can maintain on temperature for 4 to 6 hours at a time. The target price point is only $25. That is less than .1% of the cost of an incubator in the US. This technology can not only save lives, but it can change countries. Overpopulated countries like China or India will have a reduction in population growth, because families don’t have to assume they will lose their baby. Not only is this technology doing good for babies and their families, it is helping countries as well. Jane talked about how we need to think of simple, localized, affordable solutions that have potential to make huge social impact. This idea relates to the Dave Eggers TED talk we watched. Dave and his team thought of a simple solution to help children with school, which was absolutely free. He had an impact on these kids and their community; it changed the way the children looked at learning. Simple solutions like these can be the future of technology. We just need to find a way to empathize and see through other people’s eyes. Jane looked through the eyes of an Indian mother, who lost her child because she could not afford the technology to save its life. Dave looked through the eyes of teachers and students, and though of a way to reinvent learning, and make it a fun and creative process. Empathy, which was brought up in A Whole New Mind, can help us better understand other people. It can help us change the world. 

Incubator needed by premature babies

Family effected by Embrace

Family effected by Embrace

Embrace being used to warm a premature baby

TED Talk- Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers’ TED talk was an idea that was so creative and fun. He turned a shop that he and co-workers used for magazine and book editing, and used it to put their skills to further use. This idea is so obvious, yet it is so unique. Why didn’t I think of this? That is the question that is going through my head right now. Dave opened a “pirate supply store” called 826 Valencia, a place to edit magazines and books. He thought, why not put our skills , as editors, to further use? So, he opened the front of the building as a free tutoring center for kids. During his talk, Dave talked about how enthusiastic these kids were to improve their English skills in a fun environment. Unlike classrooms, 826 Valencia gave one on one help and had the creative freedom, classes sometimes restricted.

Dave was so enthusiastic about what he was talking about; he was lost for words almost at the beginning. He saved himself though humor and passion. As a listener, you knew Dave had enthusiasm for what he and his co-workers were doing. He was real, not just helping kids for money, but for the sake of just helping kids. During his speech Dave also showed the audience pictures of other “stores” that had kind-of copied the idea of 826 Valencia.

What is important to take away from this video is learning can be fun. These students chose to show up everyday to be tutored. The volunteers also chose to give their time to these children. This is a fun learning environment with creative freedom. Classrooms in school are filled with fluorescent lighting, walls painted faded white, and boring desks all lined in a row. Just thinking about sitting in a room like that for an hour makes me tired. 826 Valencia looked at learning through a new perspective. Sometimes learning in a fun, distracting environment can give inspiration, like the pirate supply store. I don’t know any kids who look forward to sitting through a one hour class in a boring, jail-like classroom with a teacher who seems just as bored and unenthusiastic as the students. What is sad is that is what most schools are like. Dave is explaining with passion and freedom, education can change and students can be excited to learn. What Eggers is doing relates to another TED talk I watched by Barry Shcwartz. Mr. Shcwartz was talking about how we need to have practical wisdom in order to form a better society. Dave is the perfect example of this. He is helping others for the good of society, and not himself. More people like Dave need to step out and help change the world. As a student, I need teachers who will come to class not just enthusiastic about the subject, but creative as well. I need a teacher who will push me and support me, yet make class fun. I love to learn about subjects that are interesting, why can’t most teachers teach a subject and make it interesting?

TED Talk- Johnny Lee demos Wii Remote Hacks

Johnny Lee is a researcher who has learned how to hack Wii remotes. He demonstrated two ways to use Wii remotes for things other than video games in his TED talk. Lee said he is motivated about his research when he is given a simple opportunity to drastically change the distribution of information. Lee uses YouTube to share his Wii remote hack video for free. The first hack Lee shared was using the Wii remote to copy technology like a Smart board. The difference is this set-up costs only $50. Lee said that schools that do not have much money can use this as a much cheaper alternative to the thousand dollar interactive whiteboard. The second hack Lee shared was a head mounted 3-d viewer. This viewer had never been discovered before. Since Lee developed it, it has been used in numerous games and new technologies.

Lee’s speech was very interactive. He explained what he was doing during the whole speech so the audience would understand and stay engaged. What was cool about Lee’s talk was that he demonstrated technology we could make ourselves. He did not share some groundbreaking new technology that needs to be bought to use. He displayed cool technology we could make for less than $50. What Lee did relates to what we are reading in A Whole New Mind. Lee looked at a video game controller, but with a different perspective. The everyday person would not think to use a Wii remote to invent a touch screen projector or 3-d head device. This new perspective can help less privileged schools bring new technology in to help their students learn. What is even greater is that he is sharing this technology for free. Lee has a YouTube channel where he shares new technology he has researched, that costs very little. Whether this technology can help educate or is just for fun, all of it is approachable and shared at absolutely no cost. Some other technologies Lee has thought up are things like finger tracking in mid-air, and a haptic pen. While these technologies will not end world hunger, they can help develop things that can help out the everyday person for less money. It is discoveries like these that are helping new technology become more affordable.  

TED Talk- Barry Schwartz

In his TED Talk, Barry Schwartz shared the idea of using our practical wisdom. He says that our country has a collective disagreement with the way things are working. People who are in charge of this nation or our welfare do not have our interests at heart; or if they do, they do not know us personally enough. He, like Pink, talks about the carrots and sticks way of discipline. If things do not go right in our country, we either make more rules, or use clever incentives to make them better. What we need to make a better job of doing, is hiring people who have character. People who want to do the right thing, because no matter what, people will always find cracks in the rules. This all tied back to practical wisdom, an idea Aristotle first described as, “the moral will to do the right thing and skill to figure out what the right thing is”.

During his speech, Schwartz really connected to his audience. He used eye contacts and arm gestures. Through using these movements, you could tell he was passionate about what he was saying. He did not even use pictures or visual aid, yet I was still interested. Schwartz was not redundant as well, so the idea he was sharing did not become boring. I was surprised that the video was 23 minutes long! I feel like the topic was very relatable too, to the real world and our own personal lives. After listening to some TED talks, I like the idea but do not know how to apply it to the real world. Schwartz’s idea is very approachable and he hinted at way we can incorporate practical wisdom in our lives. He said wise people know why and how to bend the rules and know when to improvise. This idea is easy to apply to our lives with patience and a different mindset. Schwartz did an amazing job at sharing his subject in an interesting way and relating it to his audience.

Like Pink is talking about in Drive, Schwartz says the carrots and stick method create people who only do thing for incentive. What we need in society is people who do things because it is right and because they want to. Psychologists have known this for decades, yet our government still listens to economists. My question is why? If we truly want our nation to be the best in the world, why does our government insist on taking shortcuts and not investing in things for the long run? Swartz shared a story of a teacher who went to a meeting. At this meeting, she was told that in order for her class to get high test scores, she should ignore the people who will pass or fail either way, and focus on people in the middle. This is a complete shortcut to good test scores. Sure, it may be a good idea at the time, but in the long run, these kids that are ignored will not learn anything. I think it is sad how schools and government have been so caught up in test scores and grades. What we need to make sure we are doing is teaching children in a way so they can remember what they have learned and apply it to real life. This will only help our country in the long run, and help our children. Our economy is going downhill and we are falling further and further behind other countries academically. We need to pay more attention to doing the right thing and teaching the kids of the future the right way. This all goes back to practical wisdom. In order to live a better future, we need to work hard today with integrity. 

TED Talk- Clay Shirky

Cognitive surplus is what we, as humans, contribute to the Internet in our spare time. Clay Shirky brought up this idea in his TED talk. He said that Americans watch around 200 billion hours of television each year. This is a lot of free time. Many Americans now, however, are using their spare time to contribute to the Internet. They are not only “consuming” what is offered in the Internet, but now humans are contributing. We are contributing things like blogs, videos, and information. Any comment, rating, or contribution we put out on the Internet, builds to the cognitive surplus. Although all of these contributions may not be great work,(Shirky exampled LOLcats as unimportant), it is still a contribution. More important sites, like Ushahidi, aid the overall welling-being of the world. Americans are spending more of their free time contributing to something for self- satisfaction, no reward.

This was a great TED talk, however, I feel like Mr. Shirky could have done a better job helping the audience understand his point. After the video I found myself confused; I had to do further research on cognitive surplus and watch the video again in order to understand the whole idea.  I did like how Shirky related cognitive surplus to past inventions, like the printing press, however. These relations did help me develop a better understanding. Shirky also made sure to connect with the audience through eye contact, arm movements, and also had pictures to back up his information and example what he was talking about. Some of these pictures were a technique of side-humor Shirky used to transition to new points during his talk.

Before Internet, humans were just consumers. The web has opened a whole new door for people to share and create. Today, the Internet is almost essential. A massive amount of knowledge from all over the world can be shared. Anyone, from anywhere can contribute, and most people contributing are not doing it as a job.  Clay Shirky’s talk related so much to what Daniel Pink is talking about in Drive. Pink is saying that people are no longer motivated by the carrots and sticks technique. Both talked about how we are driven by intrinsic motivation. In Clay’s talk, people are motivated purely by intrinsic motivation when they contribute things to the Internet during free time. These contributions are just fueled by the joy of doing the task. Americans are being less of consumers in this era, and more of engagers. When I was researching what cognitive surplus was, I came across an interview between Daniel Pink and Clay Shirky. This was very interesting because they agreed on so many ideas. Both agree on Pink’s carrots and sticks theory and agree that the Internet just examples this more. Today, it is very rare to come across someone who has never contributed to the Internet. Whether it is through a blog, posting information, or even commenting or rating a video on Youtube, almost everyone old enough to contribute, has. Even a Facebook profile helps distribute information for others to find. 20 years ago, there was not half as much information online as there is now. Overtime, the wealth of knowledge just started to grow. The web has become the biggest source of knowledge to so many people around the world. We can find blogs about anything from fashion to someone’s trip to China. Tavi Gevinson, a famous teen fashion blogger, began her blog at only age 11. Now, Tavi has been in numerous magazines and is looked to for style advice around the world. Anyone can contribute to the web. Whether it be a wolrd changing database or fml.com.  Like Shirky said, “The stupidest possible creative act is still a creative act.”

Works Cited:

"Clay Shirky: How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World | Video on TED.com." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Web. 23 Apr. 2011. <http://www.ted.com/talks/clay_shirky_how_cognitive_surplus_will_change_the_world.html>.

Gevinson, Tavi. Style Rookie. Web. 23 Apr. 2011. <http://www.thestylerookie.com/>.

Magazine, Wired. "Cognitive Surplus: The Great Spare-Time Revolution | Magazine." Wired.com. Web. 23 Apr. 2011. <http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/05/ff_pink_shirky/>.

Ushahidi :: Home. Web. 23 Apr. 2011. <http://www.ushahidi.com/>.

Wiseman, Eva. "Tavi Gevinson: the 13-year-old Blogger with the Fashion World at Her Feet | Life and Style | The Observer." Latest News, Comment and Reviews from the Guardian | Guardian.co.uk. Web. 23 Apr. 2011. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/sep/20/tavi-gevinson-new-york-fashion>.

TED Talk- Dan Pink on the surprising science of motivation

Rewards are not effective. This is the point Daniel Pink is trying to convey in his TED talk (Dan). The explanation for this is people lose motivation to do something for a reward. Although incentive works in some cases, in most, it can actually do harm. Pink tells us that this finding is one of the most robust yet ignored findings. Even with multiple studies (Candle) proving rewards can harm work, many businesses still offer them for being the best. Pink explains that if more companies and businesses listened to this study, it would help our economy tremendously and help bring creative ideas into the work place. Rewards kill motivation.

                                                                    

To express his point, Dan Pink starts off with a confession. This confession draws the audience in and makes them want to listen to what he has to say. He confesses he went to law school. Although this may be off topic, Pink relates it to what he is talking about, saying he is going to make a case for what he has to say. He brings in multiple studies proving his case and visual aid to enhance it. The listener could tell Pink was very passionate about what he was preaching, especially around eight minutes into the video. Dan was relating what he was talking about to every person, saying how they could apply it to their own life. This made the audience want to listen because it was a topic that they could to relate to themselves. Dan was personable, passionate and informative, so those techniques made his presentation work.

The most important thing to take out of this video is humans are motivated more by themselves than they are reward. With a reward, humans can actually do a worse job at the task assigned. This discovery can relate to anyone, anywhere in the world. Like in school, some children get rewarded for getting good grades. I don’t expect anything in return for doing well in school because doing well only affects me. I work hard for myself, and my parents support that.  They don’t say we will give you twenty dollars per A you get; if they did I don’t think I would take school as seriously. I would treat school more like an optional job and look for the easiest way to get the reward. I am self-directed in school, and that is my drive. Businesses around the world can learn from this. Dan made a great example when he talked about companies like Atlassian and Google, which give their employees freedom in the workplace. This freedom has helped develop new ideas and new software, that just giving out a bonus would not. Another company that works like this is Pixar (Pixar). Pixar describes itself as a “Unique down-to-earth atmosphere cultivated by an enthusiastic, tireless, yet super fun group that is diverse in background and talent”(Pixar).  Although Pixar may not produce groundbreaking software that can help the world, it gives its employees freedom and self-expression in the workplace (Alder). Any Pixar employee can pitch an idea for a movie. These employees can develop on these ideas during work or on their own time. Every Pixar employee loves what they do and that is why they are hired. This company gives creative freedom and that is why it is such a fun place to work and every movie produced there has been a hit. All of the employees at these three companies are self-motivated, and that is why they are so successful. The rest of the world could take a hint, and that is the point Dan Pink is making. Self-motivation is the most productive.

Inside Pixar (Art) and Google (Life)

Works Cited:

Art, In. "A Rare Look Inside Pixar Studios." Open Culture. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://www.openculture.com/2011/02/a_rare_look_inside_pixar_studios.html>.

Adler, Shawn. "Pulling Back The Curtain At Pixar's Studios, Where 'Story Is King' - MTV Movie News| MTV." New Music Videos, Reality TV Shows, Celebrity News, Top Stories | MTV. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1544882/pulling-back-curtain-at-pixars-studios.jhtml>.

"Candle Problem." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Candle_Problem>.

"Dan Pink on the Surprising Science of Motivation | Video on TED.com." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/dan_pink_on_motivation.html>.

"Life in the Googleplex - Photo Essays - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1947844,00.html>.

"Pixar Jobs." Pixar Animation Studios. Web. 19 Apr. 2011. <http://www.pixar.com/companyinfo/jobs/index.html>.

TED Talk- Jacqueline Novogratz on escaping poverty

The inspiring story (Jacqueline) Jacqueline Novogratz told about Jane was truly humbling. Jane’s story can teach anyone to be happy with what you have. Jane, a woman living in the Nairobi slums (BBC), dreamt of becoming a doctor or marrying a good man. When these dreams could not be fulfilled she turned to prostitution, gaining a few dollars, but losing her dignity. She soon found out there was another way to live out her dream, she turned to sewing. Now she improves old dresses and other clothing for women in her town, and makes around four dollars a day (what is considered above poverty level in her area). She has a loving family and is happy with the life she lives. Jane was patient and persistent to achieve her goal, and even though she did not achieve her childhood ambition, she completed an even better one; having loving children and being able to give them love back.  

 

Jacqueline Novogratz had been to Nairobi, and done research to enhance her speech. She provided heartbreaking photos and small stories of some families living in the slums. She talked most about one person’s story, however, and this person was Jane. What made the talk interesting was Novogratz actually met Jane, she saw the conditions she was living in, and saw Jane’s love of her work and children. Novogratz was personable during the talk and could give descriptions and provide photos that just an interview or research over the internet could not give. The audience could tell Jacqueline felt strongly about women like Jane; self-driven, independent women who could beat the odds and provide for themselves. The story she told about Jane was descriptive, but not too intrusive. It was inspiring, and in the end you did not feel bad for the life Jane had lived. This is because Jacqueline really portrayed how Jane felt about her own life, opportunistic and humble.

 

What Americans and the rest of the world can really take from this video is hard work and persistence pays off. Jane had to struggle to escape poverty. She had to take out many loans and work hard day after day. In the end, however, Jane ended up doing what she loves. Although she may not get paid as much as someone working in the US would, she is happy. If the whole world stopped spending money on the next best thing and helped out women and families like Jane, the world would be a better place. Anyone can beat the odds if they seek help and have the courage and drive to pursue. Some other inspiring stories (Seasay) like Jane’s give hope of a better world. Mike Wamaya gives ballet instruction to children in the Mathare slums in Kenya. Wamaya says it helps the children find a way to express themselves and gives them hope. Both stories give examples of beating the odds and encouraging others to try too. The lesson? Keep an open mind and work hard to earn a good life.

For pictures of life in the Nairobi Slums click here (Shootback).

Works Cited:

"BBC News | Africa | Picture Gallery: Life in a Nairobi Slum." BBC News - Home. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/509834.stm>.


"Jacqueline Novogratz on Escaping Poverty | Video on TED.com." TED: Ideas worth Spreading. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. <http://www.ted.com/talks/jacqueline_novogratz_on_an_escape_from_poverty.html>.

Sesay, From  Isha. "Young Ballet Dancers Dream of Life beyond Kenyan Slums - CNN.com."CNN.com International - Breaking, World, Business, Sports, Entertainment and Video News. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. <http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/04/13/kenya.ballet.mathare/>.


"Shootback Exhibition - Photo Essays - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Web. 18 Apr. 2011. <http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1739286,00.html>.