How your brain decides what is beautiful

Why certain configurations of line, color and form captivate us. Open in browser

This week on TED.com August 12, 2017

Anjan Chatterjee: How your brain decides what is beautiful 14:47 minutes · Filmed Nov 2016 · Posted Aug 2017 · TEDMED 2016 Anjan Chatterjee uses tools from evolutionary psychology and cognitive neuroscience to study one of nature's most captivating concepts: beauty. Learn more about the science behind why certain configurations of line, color and form excite us in this fascinating, deep look inside your brain. Watch now »

Playlist of the week Blueprints for the next generation Great ideas and practical advice on what the newest generations need to succeed. Watch » 8 TED Talks • Total run time 1:45:35

This week's new TED Talks It's not the passage of time that makes it so hard to get older. It's ageism, a prejudice that pits us against our future selves -- and each other. Ashton Applewhite urges us to dismantle the dread and mobilize against the last socially acceptable prejudice. "Aging is not a problem to be fixed or a disease to be cured," she says. "It is a natural, powerful, lifelong process that unites us all." Watch » On August 21, 2017, the moon's shadow will race from Oregon to South Carolina in what some consider to be the most awe-inspiring spectacle in all of nature: a total solar eclipse. Umbraphile David Baron chases these rare events across the globe, and in this ode to the bliss of seeing the solar corona, he explains why you owe it to yourself to witness one, too. Watch » "Every time a machine gets smarter, we get smarter," says Tom Gruber, the co-creator of Siri. He shares his vision for a future where AI helps us achieve superhuman performance -- from turbocharging our design skills to helping us remember everything we've ever read and the name of everyone we've ever met. Watch » Behold the microscopic jungle in and around you: tiny organisms living on your cheeks, under your sofa and in the soil in your backyard. We sanitize, exterminate and disinfect them, but maybe we should take another look, says microbiologist Anne Madden. In fact, they could be sources of new technologies and medicines waiting to be discovered. Watch »

Read more on ideas.ted.com Work: 5 interview question to help you hire better people >> (Sorry for the bad link last week! This article is so interesting and useful) Learning: The fascinating reason why children write letters backwards >> Hint: It's related to why we think the earth is flat until told otherwise ...

Quote of the Week “ People with more positive feelings towards aging walk faster, they do better on memory tests, they heal quicker, and they live longer. Even with brains full of plaques and tangles, some people stayed sharp to the end. What did they have in common? A sense of purpose." Ashton Applewhite Let's end ageism

Sincerely, x: sad in silicon valley In the latest episode of TED's anonymous podcast, hear from a tech CEO who couldn’t tell his peers when he suffered from depression. He asks why we’re so afraid to talk about mental health. Listen now on Apple Podcasts, on the TED Android app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

One night only: TED Talks live in New York city! Wednesday, September 20, 2017, 7pm  The Town Hall, New York, NY TEDGlobal>NYC happens in Manhattan on the evening of Wednesday, September 20, 2017, with a mission to catalyze new thinking about world issues. Speakers include a best-selling novelist, a crime expert, a world-famous journalist, a global competition expert and more, thinking on the big problems we face -- which are collective in nature and global in scope. Learn more and get tickets at two pricing levels >>

 

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