TED pt 1 – Ideas worth Spreading?

1) What is the TED organization about?

The TED organization is all about sharing information with the world through their website.

2) What is the purpose of their website and how does the functionality of their site support that?

The purpose of the website is to spread new ideas/ways of thinking. It was originally meant to bring 3 groups of people together, the technologically inclined, the entertainers and the designers. The function of their site supports this by containing short informative videos, usually no longer than 20 minutes.

3) As Engineers and Problem Solvers, which topic areas (the choices from the “Show talks related to:” section on the sidebar) are of most interest to us? Justify your answer

TECHNOLOGY – Because as engineers we would be inventing the technology that moves the world forward.

DESIGN – Because engineers are not only focused on the function of something they also focus on the visual aspects.

SCIENCE – Because an engineer needs to know the physics/biology behind whatever they are engineering.

4) Based on your previous answer, what are 3 talks (videos) on the site that appear like they would be of most interest to you as an Engineer/Problem solver? Justify your answer.

ALI CARR: GAMING TO RE-ENGAGE BOYS IN LEARNING – Because they are trying to use technology to get male students interested in learning. By using video games that are both educational and entertaining boys will be more inclined to learn.

MICHAEL PAWLYN: USING NATURE’S GENIUS IN ARCHITECTURE – Because it uses aspects from nature to create environments that are “green”. For example using solar energy instead of energy produced from oil that is NOT reusable.

DANNY HILLIS: UNDERSTANDING CANCER THROUGH PROTEOMICS – Because it will be informative about how cancer behaves and puts us on step closer to engineering a cure.

Follow this link to Danny Hillis' video:

http://www.ted.com/talks/danny_hillis_two_frontiers_of_cancer_treatment.html

Or view Danny Hillis' video here:

5) Each student will watch a unique video. Select a video to watch and inform Mr. Olson of your choice. If no one else has “claimed” the talk, you will be allowed to proceed with it. If someone else has already chosen the talk, you will be asked to pick another one. Watch the video. Create and post a bulletized outline of the key issues presented in the talk.

• Genomics shows a list of ingredients (genes) of the body, we can identify those genes with a predisposition for cancer – a supply list without instructions
• Proteomics is the study of proteins. It is the instructions for the “supply list”. The instructions of life.
• How you understand what’s going on in your body
• Conversation between cells, with cancer something is going wrong. Cells tell each other to live, function and die.
• Building robots to measure the body’s proteins through blood samples.
• Proteins responses to various diseases are studied.
• The beginning of how we will treat cancer.
• Hillis says we are treating cancer like an infectious disease, as if it has invaded your body.
• Cancer is a failure in the human cell system. A malfunction of our body.
• Proteomics gives us the ability to build a predictable model for cancer. Find solutions by identifying what’s happening and then giving the patient treatment based on their specific DNA sequence.

6) How could you get involved in the field/technology/issue you chose to hear about? What experience/skills/training/education would you need to learn to get involved with this field?

To get involved I could contact Danny Hill and his team via eMail for more information. Search the web for more information and people to contact about the field. The education you would need would be at least college level biology and experience working in hospitals or research labs.