Post Ax0kB5GeI11hyIIqrA by donray@mastodon.online
(DIR) More posts by donray@mastodon.online
(DIR) Post #Ax0RCKne81SbIvcVXc by interfluidity@zirk.us
2025-08-09T21:41:28Z
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were TED talks a net positive or net negative for our collective cognition and deliberation?
(DIR) Post #Ax0ScJyDw0BeDPWTs8 by jawnsy@mastodon.social
2025-08-09T21:57:20Z
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@interfluidity yes
(DIR) Post #Ax0Skp6c3f2162V7c8 by interfluidity@zirk.us
2025-08-09T21:58:54Z
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@jawnsy we have a disagreement! https://bsky.app/profile/davitivan.bsky.social/post/3lvyqdvhrur2q
(DIR) Post #Ax0ToOvtPUP12EkyPI by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-08-09T22:10:42Z
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@interfluidity Net negative. It was so often a forum for "smart washing" nonsense almost science and bad investment opportunities. The format that centered around individual genius and "wow factor" encouraged hype, but that academic gloss meant people were taken in who had no business being taken in. Friend of mine way back in like 2012 was invited to give a TED talk about her community gardening work. Then the *uninvited her* because her talk was critical of one of the corporate sponsors.
(DIR) Post #Ax0TwssBybyyD54RfM by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-08-09T22:12:15Z
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@interfluidity This despite her agreeing to NOT mention the sponsor directly in the talk. No, they just found some of her blog posts and told her she wouldn't be speaking. Her criticism was constructive, and frankly kind of mild. I was shocked by how uptight they were.
(DIR) Post #Ax0UPAocrPKFxwtMci by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-08-09T22:17:19Z
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@interfluidity That is the kind of filter they have for their "amazing ideas" ... so it's not surprising that there have been so many instances of hucksters getting through. They like the "feeling" of activism and "making the world a better place" but want none of the hard parts that make that kind of work complex and challenging. I was a bit taken in at first. But seeing how they "handle" presenters made me change my mind.
(DIR) Post #Ax0UWIYGUorpzCdXUG by drahardja@sfba.social
2025-08-09T22:18:39Z
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@interfluidity Negative.While there are some very good TED talks, the time-limited format creates an environment where suspension of disbelief is normalized, and trusting claims with insufficient evidence is encouraged.I think the majority of TED (and especially TEDx) talks are filled with oversimplified and overreaching conclusions, made to impress rather than inform.Some topics cannot and should not be condensed into a 5-minute talk.
(DIR) Post #Ax0Ut8K2h8qwv8sAuO by mikeolson@mastodon.social
2025-08-09T22:22:45Z
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@interfluidity @futurebird For a while, a lot of the folks I hung out with in Silicon Valley craved an invitation and the validation they thought it would bring. Invariably, “what I want to say,” not “what you want to know.” It was kind of influencers before YouTube and TikTok.I did really enjoy a bunch of TED talks.
(DIR) Post #Ax0V2GGkWAWgApgXM8 by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-08-09T22:24:25Z
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@interfluidity They REALLY missed out not having her speak. I was very mad but she was more like "their loss" and went back to doing the work she does and is still doing. We are so lucky to have here here in the Bronx.
(DIR) Post #Ax0XtnEWt7uvfOIgYC by GroupNebula563@mastodon.social
2025-08-09T22:56:31Z
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@interfluidity I prefer to call them “Theodore Conversations”. it’s funny.
(DIR) Post #Ax0ZPlFLuUHaj3UbgW by lritter@mastodon.gamedev.place
2025-08-09T23:13:30Z
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@interfluidity ±0
(DIR) Post #Ax0ZzE1ut18u8B7QXY by tanepiper@tane.codes
2025-08-09T23:19:52Z
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@interfluidity Neutral. Like any cultural phenomenon, its corpus will likely contain more bad than good - but one question could be "does the good outweigh the bad?"Likely I'd caution yes, TED talks have brought some wonderful, insightful and inspiring people, along with some of the worst and strange ideas, especially at their less covered TedX talks - I've been to one, and it was mostly OK, but it had some of the rationalist and skeptical groups that tended themselves to be a bit fringe
(DIR) Post #Ax0aWGSerrQ3EBNhYW by icastico@c.im
2025-08-09T22:54:58Z
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@interfluidity Negative - case in point https://youtu.be/SX7ec3uDlhs
(DIR) Post #Ax0andG9MELerGoQ5I by vfrmedia@social.tchncs.de
2025-08-09T23:28:58Z
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@futurebird @interfluidity maybe its because I'm British, but I was always cynical of TED talks right from when they became popular about 15(?) years ago, they always seemed like some kind of neoliberal corporate sales pitches with added "positive thinking" spin
(DIR) Post #Ax0bu3tVLKLn9jqkMa by schmidt_fu@mstdn.social
2025-08-09T23:41:22Z
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@interfluidityI once read a good takedown of the whole TED circus, and while I personally enjoyed some of them, I tend to agree with it in total.TED Talks have a certain way of catching you with an "inspiresting" story - but the more you set your hope on it, the more you'll be let down.https://www.thedriftmag.com/what-was-the-ted-talk/
(DIR) Post #Ax0cJj3RRmdy3HjeEq by gimulnautti@mastodon.green
2025-08-09T23:46:02Z
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@interfluidity Started out good, but quickly became such a staple that the format itself was stripped of life and inspiration.Just boring clones of company keynotes for the most part after a couple of years. But there were some great ones in the mix too.
(DIR) Post #Ax0cjEsUGXsTzQmEng by hugoestr@functional.cafe
2025-08-09T23:50:35Z
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@interfluidity Negative. It taught us that the a speech style matters more than its content. We are only allowed to be optimistic about the future. This simple hack can save us from global warming.
(DIR) Post #Ax0gcAZsFst4RUxIhc by oberstenzian@mastodon.social
2025-08-10T00:34:11Z
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@interfluidity They were useless circlejerks.
(DIR) Post #Ax0hGjvoEJnnfpYpYu by cjpaloma@mas.to
2025-08-10T00:41:29Z
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@interfluidity some really good stuff here and there, but overall, bad due to -what- info was "allowed"*…I watched them pretty regularly for a while, despite always being somewhat uneasy that they were sponsored by rolex, and more so once the "in crowd" factor picked up. *I had an account and made a few comments on talks I liked, but my account mysteriously got really hard frozen… In hindsight it was most likely after I questioned the need for bloated US defense budgets. Sighs.
(DIR) Post #Ax0kB5GeI11hyIIqrA by donray@mastodon.online
2025-08-10T01:14:03Z
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@futurebird @interfluidity Makes me glad that I watched almost none of those TED talks.
(DIR) Post #Ax0kkPxFMqMQGb4nIm by xyhhx@438punk.house
2025-08-10T01:20:27Z
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@futurebird i definitely agree for TEDx, but i think i agree for TED tooa former colleague did a TEDx talk and holy shit it sucked@interfluidity
(DIR) Post #Ax0v8JG0v0jRzFsyTg by geonz@mathstodon.xyz
2025-08-10T03:16:51Z
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@interfluidity Yes.
(DIR) Post #Ax1T386eLamkOdCuy8 by dahukanna@mastodon.social
2025-08-10T09:36:53Z
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@interfluidity TED talk consists of 2 parts:1. Form: The packaging/branding/format of storytelling i.e. a single person speaking for max of 20 mins:- as a staged, polished performance with a memorized script after months of rehearsals.- with 100% certainty, accuracy not mandatory.- without audience interaction, only rapt adulation.2. (Function) The useful topic information, knowledge, wisdom shared with audience during the time interval.Talking about “form” without “function”=aesthetics
(DIR) Post #Ax3tDYTy7euUDjfN9E by mansr@society.oftrolls.com
2025-08-11T10:54:19Z
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@vfrmedia @futurebird @interfluidity Here's some commentary from 2012. It certainly didn't improve since then.https://www.petergeoghegan.com/2012/08/14/ted-a-strange-way-to-talk-about-openness/Now what did I miss that's causing people to talk about them in the past tense?