Blacklisted TED Talks - Ones You Shouldn't Waste Your Time On

There might be something in them, but the ethical thing to do is to reduce them to a single slide so that people can spend 30 seconds on them rather than 10 minutes!

Culprit: Engineering the Human Nervous System: Megan Moynahan at TEDxBrussels

Takeaways:

1. We can restore movement after paralysis using existing technology.
2. Muscles still work — we just need to reconnect the signals.
3. Engineering alone isn’t enough without access and support.
4. Small patient groups get left behind by profit-driven models.
5. Nonprofits and new ideas can finally close the gap.

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What is a Thought? How the Brain Creates New Ideas | Henning Beck | TEDxHHL

Statements are outdated - in fairness, chatGPT was more recent than eight years ago..

✅ Do's

1. Focus deeply, then step away — Engage with the problem fully, then take a break with something unrelated to spark new connections.
2. Create space for inspiration — Like the ancient idea of the muse, set up a relaxed, open mindset to invite creativity.
3. Welcome boring or automated tasks — These give your mind room to reframe ideas in new contexts.
4. Escape your echo chamber — Seek out viewpoints that challenge your beliefs.
5. Have productive disagreements — Talk with people who see things differently.
6. Provoke your thinking — Read things you disagree with; challenge your mental routines.
7. Appreciate your imperfect mind — Embrace being slow, irrational, and human — it's an advantage, not a flaw.

❌ Don’ts

1. Don’t stay stuck in focused mode — Constant immersion doesn’t allow for creative breakthroughs.
2. Don’t surround yourself only with like-minded opinions — It limits perspective and stifles innovation.
3. Don’t consume media that only confirms your beliefs — It reinforces cognitive bias.
4. Don’t think like an algorithm — Avoid rigid, rule-following mental habits.
5. Don’t fear imperfection — Reject the myth that perfection is the path to insight.

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TBC.. Oh, yes, Roger King definitely makes the cut :)

Julian Treasure : Speak So They'll Want to Listen

Avoid	Use	Tools	Warm Up
Gossip	H : honesty	Register - use chest, not throat	1. Arms up, deep breath, sigh out
Judgement	A : authenticity	Timbre - you may need to train (breath, posture) with a voice coach	2. Warm up lips with "bock" without the "ck"
Negativity	I : integrity	Prosody - (avoiding)	3. Raspberries
Complaints	L : love	Haste - (avoid)	4. Tongue, with exaggerated "la la…"
Excuses		Silence -	5. Roll the "r"
Lies		Pitch	6. Siren - starts with low tone and gets to eeee
Dogmatism		Volume

You're Smarter Than a Chimp? Yes, but..

The chimp sees the numbers 1–5 for only 200 milliseconds. They are then covered by blank squares, and the chimp has to touch the locations in numerical order to receive an apple reward.

You can't beat the Chimp at this game because your brain has filters that do processing on incoming information. That inherently limits your speed.