Ideas Worth Spreading
Rochester has a number of sites that are representative of our cultural heritage, not just that of Rochesterians, but that of our nation as well. None more exemplifies that than the George Eastman House. An independent museum, the Eastman House is the legacy of George Eastman, founder of Kodak. It houses one of the world’s oldest film archives, which is well known. What is not as...
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As mentioned, Rochester has some unique iconic landmarks. Not least of these is the Strong Museum of Play. As the father of a young daughter, I’m familiar with Strong Museum and a huge fan. Growing up in Philadelphia, I have fond memories of such places as the Franklin Institute and the Please Touch Museum, and am glad we have equally inspirational and memorable spaces for my...
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I am always interested in people’s migrations and life-journeys; how they might end up half-a-world away from where they started, doing things they couldn’t have imagined only a few years before. I was particularly excited to hear one of these unique life-stories as I was driving through the rolling farmlands south of Rochester on a warm indian summer day. I was to meet Ali Yapicioglu...
read moreEarlier this year, Pepsi made a responsible decision: instead of spending $20 million on Superbowl ads, they would spend that $20 million on projects and charities that needed it. The project is called Refresh Everything. Every month, they’re going to give out grants to community projects and they expect to fund thousands of local efforts this way. In my own opinion, it’s a...
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Seeing as we knew that it would be a long, exciting day, we decided it might be fun to have Geva’s own Improv group take us all home with a smile. And, they didn’t let us down. Building on the theme of innovation, they worked with the audience in their research to find the Ultimate Comedy Formula. And, so, in 5, 4, 3,...
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Continuing on with a dance theme, we have Geomantics performing “Surveillance”. It’s an interesting piece that is a physical representation of the scariness, the oppression and the creepiness of society being so aware of everything people do now. Why is it news that Tiger Woods had an affair? You’d think it would really only matter to his wife and kids, but every Joe...
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This was easily one of the more interesting talks presented at TEDxRochester, but that was diminished by a simple fact: we could’ve been a little clearer as to what was going on…. A lot of TEDx talks, I’ve noticed, have revolved around the changes in society most notably the education of the latest generation of students (tentatively dubbed “Gen M” for...
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Marla is the Chair of 3D Digital Graphics department at RIT. In this heartfelt speech, Marla takes us on a journey through her life where she started with the lofty goal of being a housewife. She discusses the various influences on her who taught her not only how to be as a person, but how to be worldly. She discusses how even though you think you might know what you can learn from a topic,...
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I’m so glad to finally get to post this video as Todd was not only our first confirmed speaker, but one whose talk I was looking forward to most. As a science geek, any new technology gets my blood pumping, and nanotechnology is one of those that has tremendous potential to literally reshape the world in which we live. During the talk, Todd refers to a quote about lasers made in the 60s...
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Easily the most emotionally charged talk, Luis shared with us the story of his life, starting as a young boy in Cuba. His parents made a difficult choice to ensure he did not become conscripted into Castro’s militia, and sent him to America and freedom. Luis talk is poignant, funny and thought provoking as he weaves a tale of the choices that made him who he is today. He shares his story...
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Those who were there can tell you: the first few minutes of TEDxRochester did not go so well. We had a flawless rehearsal, which of course meant we’d have issues during the actual show. These started immediately when our projector started giving us a hard time and refused to accept the proper resolution for display. Twelve minutes of more or less random button pushing and precise cursing...
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For me, one of the defining moments in my life occurred almost three decades ago when PBS aired a series called “Cosmos” hosted by a charismatic poet named Carl Sagan. I could be found in front of the TV every week motionless and staring as my impressionable little brain was indoctrinated into the realm of critical thinking, the scientific method and a view of the universe that was...
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Geva Theatre Center
RACF
RIT