TED books

Go learn something from TED!

What if books were all made into TED talks by the authors (or by their passionate readers) and we could watch them instead of reading them?  I mulled the thought over as the miles crunched beneath my feet and the icy wind blew against me.  The beauty of TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design ) talks is that they are incredibly engaging because the speakers are so passionate and knowledgeable about their subjects.  Honestly, it doesn’t even matter what the subject is because the presentation is so good (just like the articles in The New Yorker).  That got me thinking about the books on my bedside table...how would the experience of learning about a subject be changed by watching it instead of reading it?  I hate to admit that I’d probably get a lot more out of Billy Collins’ ‘180 More’ book of poetry if he read the poems and helped me grasp their meaning.  I’m also pretty sure that a few 18 minute talks by Matthew Battles would open up my eyes more than trying to make meaning of his library history (fascinating but dense, as it is) about the library.  

So what exactly is a library?  If you take away all the trappings and strip it naked, what is the idea of a library?  It’s not the building, the furniture or the cafe, that’s certain.  But maybe its not even the people, or the history or the books.  At its core the library is just a collection of ideas.  A public library is free access to ideas for all people who can read.  That is what got Carnegie so excited a century ago, he was turned on by the ideas he read and the possibilities they opened up in his life.  He wanted to help communities make safe places for ideas so no one would be trapped by their background, so that everyone could learn if they wanted to - the library lets you open the door into the world of thinking - if you can read and understand the books.  If you can’t read (or comprehend what you’re reading) well then, the library is just like a yummy chocolate cake  perched on top of the fridge but just out of reach.

Back to TED -  Chris Anderson was ‘On Point’ with Jane Clayson today and the more I listened, the more I thought about how talks are really a summary of a cool idea expressed in a powerful, passionate, brief way.  In fact many of the speakers have written books on their subject, or lived through their experience and are sharing the best part, the kernel - they are opening the door of the listener’s mind and letting them into their thinking, just like a book.

One big difference between the library and TED is that the library has millions of volumes of information about everything, and TED only has 900 talks.  I have to admit I’ve never been disappointed by a TED talk, but I don’t usually watch to learn a specific thing so everything I learn and hear is gravy.  Certainly we could create a little “Dewey” magic and create a more complex system of scaffolding clips that would provide the basics in every subject and then build up into a network of complexity.  But sometimes I wonder how much information we need, at some point the stampede of knowledge is more of a hindrance then a help and a rancher at the gate would be a blessing.  This, of course, brings up all sort of problems, for instance,  who decides what ideas are worth spreading and what are not, who is an expert, and how can we ensure equity across racial, religious and ethnic groups?  

TED talks and library books are similar because they are free to everyone (with access to a computer, which is free at the library) and they can be watched publicly or privately.  A talk can be an introduction to a group discussion or a business meeting or it can be watched in your jammies in bed on your laptop.  The talks can be serious or silly, and are often both.  They can be mind blowing or entertaining and they can be different things to different people.  It’s easy to envision clubs coming together over wine and talking about a TED idea just we do for books.  

TED’s mission is “Ideas Worth Spreading” but on their website they expand their thinking:  “we believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we're building a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world's most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.”

Curious souls, inspired thinking and free knowledge is the recipe for TED and the library.  Personally, I’ll take both.