TED
David
TED is awesome.... If you haven't checked it out, you should. They have an iPhone app, too :-)
That said, it could be better.
Here are the things I would like to see:
-on the app, they have file size but not length in the preview - please add length of video/audio
-Please get more granular than, "This is a highly visual talk, please visit TED.com to see the video..." This simply implies a binary audio/video value. Rating each talk from 1-10 in terms of how much the value adds would be helpful. This would be a welcome addition to the user rating system.
-Transcripts! They're finally doing closed captioning, but still not transcripts -- people search the internet for text: it's what you enter into your search engine. The likelihood that you come across the TED talk as a resource will increase if the transcript is made available. The hard work has already been done by creating the CC text; please make PDFs / searchable texts available, attached to each talk to increase the search engine placement of these valuable resources!
Favorite TED talks:
NPV / retional decisions / opportunity cost calculations - entry pending
Rachel Armstrong - Architecture, biochemistry
Pandemic talks worth watching:
- Laurie Garrett on lessons from the 1918 flu : wow.
- Larry Brilliant wants to stop pandemics : early detection, early response. GPHIN -- (why don't they use twitter?)
David McCandless on Data Visualization
random-idea-of-the-card:
Would it be prudent to develop a pest alert department? How concerned should we be about rats in our garbage? How vigilant? Is this a case where we want to develop an early warning system? Human history with rats, for example, bears them out as disease carriers. These days they might just as soon be pets... Well, maybe not just as soon, but should we improve measures in place againsts 'pests'? Should we escalate pest countermeasures before the danger from them escalates or is that brinksmanship?