"What product to launch do you have in mind?", questioned one of the participants on the table during a TEDx coffee break. Though I was not completely perplexed at the question, I was for sure taken by surprize that the question propped up within the first 5 minutes of confrontation. But then, that has been in sync the spirit of TED, isn't it? So informal, for sure informative, very ingenious and above all steadfast. It was just an amazing feeling just to be with a bunch of diverse minds, those were open to listen to new ideas, ponder over their repercussions and delve into the complexities to realize them.
A Networking Heaven
But then I normally get these feelings whenever I spend time with Sneha - A biochemist and Naveen - A chemical engineer. First of all, these guys never talk anything less than a Nature publication. With all the bargain, they end up falling down to Science publications and with my entire PhD publication focus on IEEE (and nothing beyond IEEE) I give myself a huge condolence saying, "All is not lost dude. For sure better days are ahead of you :-)" Jokes apart, if at all you want to derive some motivation for science and achieving greater heights in science and technology, talk to these bunch of guys. Most of TED talks are at their finger tips and Naveen can narrate you the biography of most of the famous TED speakers on (and off) demand. It was a fabulous experience to be with them for the conference and meet others from diverse backgrounds as well. If there is only one reason you should to attend TED, it's networking. TED is a networking heaven. You can seemlessly talk to anybody and everybody at the conference and the best thing is they are all willing to talk and talk their minds. As soon as we entered the EU Parliament building, I was confronted by an MBA from Columbia saying, "I would like to talk to you as we are supposed to talk to each other." After exchanging the pleasantries and what brought each of us to TED etc., we had to rush for the session and although I could not locate him again, I ended up having discussions with a variety of people throughout the day. Now the crux is to keep those discussions moving. History suggests that I have been poor at this but I am going to restructure this time.
Burn the Box
The theme of the conference was Burn the Box and some speakers did just that with their splendid speeches and in some case brilliant performances. But, some speakers (you may not believe) were not as good, not at par at all. Some of them even chose to read their speeches. Could you believe that? So boring... In my opinion, they squandered a very good opportunity, rather denied an opportunity to another deserving candidate to make an impression. I am sure there must be plenty in the waiting list.
Some speakers did not (or may be could not) turn up and that was disappointing. Also, some speakers were not really available for discussions afterwards. TED does not have any Q&A time and it's believed that the audience will interact with the speakers during the breaks. But then it is not certainly easy to locate most of them later. As a feedback, it would not really be a bad idea to include a two minute Q&A session after each talk. The time for Q&A sessions can as well be monitored as meticulously as speeches themselves.
If one carefully dissects and segregates the ideas that are spread through TED, (in my assessment) they fall into the following categories:
0. Education
1. Poverty Eradication through
-- Economics
-- Technology
-- Psychology
-- Others
2. Quality of humanlife improvement through
-- Healthcare
-- Biotechnology
-- Computers, Networking and others
-- Others
3. Environmental Challenges
4. Exotic and way too futuristic like
-- Space travel
-- Time travel
5. Entertainment
In retrospect, what I gained out of TEDx Brussels was not only inspiration and stimulation but also confidence, a huge confidence and I would like to share the same with all of you. If you have an idea that falls to one of the above segments (or other novelties) and looking for a great market place to advertise, do dream about participating and presenting at TED, do dream about burning that Box. Dream Big. I, for one, am waiting for my day...
A Networking Heaven
But then I normally get these feelings whenever I spend time with Sneha - A biochemist and Naveen - A chemical engineer. First of all, these guys never talk anything less than a Nature publication. With all the bargain, they end up falling down to Science publications and with my entire PhD publication focus on IEEE (and nothing beyond IEEE) I give myself a huge condolence saying, "All is not lost dude. For sure better days are ahead of you :-)" Jokes apart, if at all you want to derive some motivation for science and achieving greater heights in science and technology, talk to these bunch of guys. Most of TED talks are at their finger tips and Naveen can narrate you the biography of most of the famous TED speakers on (and off) demand. It was a fabulous experience to be with them for the conference and meet others from diverse backgrounds as well. If there is only one reason you should to attend TED, it's networking. TED is a networking heaven. You can seemlessly talk to anybody and everybody at the conference and the best thing is they are all willing to talk and talk their minds. As soon as we entered the EU Parliament building, I was confronted by an MBA from Columbia saying, "I would like to talk to you as we are supposed to talk to each other." After exchanging the pleasantries and what brought each of us to TED etc., we had to rush for the session and although I could not locate him again, I ended up having discussions with a variety of people throughout the day. Now the crux is to keep those discussions moving. History suggests that I have been poor at this but I am going to restructure this time.
Burn the Box
The theme of the conference was Burn the Box and some speakers did just that with their splendid speeches and in some case brilliant performances. But, some speakers (you may not believe) were not as good, not at par at all. Some of them even chose to read their speeches. Could you believe that? So boring... In my opinion, they squandered a very good opportunity, rather denied an opportunity to another deserving candidate to make an impression. I am sure there must be plenty in the waiting list.
Some speakers did not (or may be could not) turn up and that was disappointing. Also, some speakers were not really available for discussions afterwards. TED does not have any Q&A time and it's believed that the audience will interact with the speakers during the breaks. But then it is not certainly easy to locate most of them later. As a feedback, it would not really be a bad idea to include a two minute Q&A session after each talk. The time for Q&A sessions can as well be monitored as meticulously as speeches themselves.
If one carefully dissects and segregates the ideas that are spread through TED, (in my assessment) they fall into the following categories:
0. Education
1. Poverty Eradication through
-- Economics
-- Technology
-- Psychology
-- Others
2. Quality of humanlife improvement through
-- Healthcare
-- Biotechnology
-- Computers, Networking and others
-- Others
3. Environmental Challenges
4. Exotic and way too futuristic like
-- Space travel
-- Time travel
5. Entertainment
In retrospect, what I gained out of TEDx Brussels was not only inspiration and stimulation but also confidence, a huge confidence and I would like to share the same with all of you. If you have an idea that falls to one of the above segments (or other novelties) and looking for a great market place to advertise, do dream about participating and presenting at TED, do dream about burning that Box. Dream Big. I, for one, am waiting for my day...
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