Yo Chewbacca. I bet the club hopping invites are flooding in now.. (or yet another reason why TEDx Terry Talks rocked).
Terry readers, TEDx Terry talks 2009 is over! October 3rd came and went, and it was amazing. Everything I was daydreaming about beforehand was there: stimulating discussions, wonderful booths, terrific company, great food, and just the most delightful speakers ever.
Thanks for making it such a special day-for staying for each session, tweeting throughout, and bringing your energy and enthusiasm to each and every part of the day. It was awesome. And it’s not quite over either! Stay tuned for more Terry* events soon, and in particular our new storytelling sessions called Terry Tales.
From TEDx Terry talks 2009 though, here are a few resources and questions and ideas I stowed away in my take away box to think about and explore further. What did you store away in yours?
Jennifer Gardy: Public health 2.0 is rapid and collaborative. Due to technological advances and shifts in scientist attitudes, H1N1 research has developed and been shared widely in an unprecedented way. Advice: Embrace new technologies, embrace open access, but don’t embrace anyone this flu season. Check out Open Access Week from October 20-22nd 2009.
Azim Wazeer: Next time you’re at an Indian restaurant, maybe don’t order the butter chicken and instead, ask the server about other possibilities.
Jennifer Kaban: You can take a complex equation, and make it come alive through origami. (The sharp intake of breath in the room once we saw the parabola was very cool too).
Eric Ma: At MIT, the school motto is mens et manus (mind and hand) a philosophy that could transform the way we do life sciences education at UBC.
Iris Amuto: Book recommendation: Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles by Richard Dowden.
Alexander Cannon: What decisions would you feel pressured to make if you didn’t feel constrained by your gender identity? We’re all on a spectrum, and it is less about gender, and more about what makes us comfortable in our own skin. Imagine if instead of having gender being the first question we ask about a child, we focus on the accomplishments and interests of that future person..
Carl Saigmeister (TED video): If we reduce our retirement by five years and disperse those five years as sabbaticals in our working life, that could do a lot more for our work and productivity than simply benefiting a grandchild or two.
Nadine Qureshi: The organisation she founded: Mission Against Malaria. Malaria isn’t so much about treatments, but about accessibility and socio cultural factors.
Tahira Ebrahim : Tolerance implies a gratuitious assumption of the inferiority of other faiths to one’s own.” (Gandhi). A writer I want to read up on: Naomi Lakritz. Also, Newton’s First Law of Motion can be applied to ideas, and we learn something to be true unless told otherwise.
William Kamkwamba (TED video): Persistence and courage produce tremendous results.
Camille Israel: A question I took away: What is the purpose of our university education? Are we just on a conveyor belt?
Dan Ariely (TED video): When you go club hopping, you want to invite along a slightly uglier version of yourself.
