One thing you should know about me: I’m a science and technology geek.  In fact, when I first started looking for speakers for the first event, I started with the scientists at the University of Rochester to see who might have some cool stuff to present.  Tim’s talk marries both of my favorite things together in this fascinating talk which starts by explaining the complexity behind the immune system.  He then goes on to tell...

As a science geek, TED’s primary draw for me is the innovators and researchers. As a Rochester-based TEDx, with lots of research facilities in the area, we have so many choices we could put up on our stage. Ben Miller’s work is as awesome as it is potentially world-changing. Ben starts off telling us that he views the adage of “work before play” as being over. He introduces us to new memes starting with...

Author Steven Johnson (The Invention of Air, Everything Bad Is Good For You) has for many years pursued the notion that our modern, fast-paced, pop-culture learning has actually fostered higher learning skills instead of the popular notion that it erodes our tolerance for deeper understanding. He has a new book coming out on October 5th, called Where Good Ideas Come From which argues for incubation, collaboration and interaction. Below is a...

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 so much larger than what I thought it to...