TED Talks

1–48 of 2,913 films, free to watch, from the world's open archives.

Where these films come from, and who sees what

Every film here plays from the archive that keeps it: the Internet Archive, Wikimedia Commons, the NASA Image and Video Library, the Library of Congress and Open Images (the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision). Nothing is copied to this site. Each film's page names its archive, links to its page there, and states its licence or status as the archive does.

Archive films carry no age ratings, so each is placed from the collections it sits in and the subjects the archive gives it, cautiously. Sexual content and nudity are left out altogether.

Little OnesFilms for young children by name: nursery rhymes, lullabies, preschool.
KidsCartoons and animation, children's and family films, and educational films, unless they deal with war, propaganda, crime, horror or drugs, or carry racial caricature.
TweensDocumentaries, science, nature and space, classic comedies, newsreels, commercials and lectures.
TeensEverything else, including anything we cannot tell about; war, crime, horror and westerns go no lower.
AdultSexual themes (such as the old "sex hygiene" films), gore, surgery, slaughter, atrocity footage.
Internet Archive Clayton Cameron: A-rhythm-etic. The math behind the beats 2014 · Talk · 5 min Ready to dance in your seat? Drummer Clayton Cameron breaks down different genres of music—from R&B to Latin to pop—by their beats. A talk that proves hip hop… Internet Archive Aspen Baker: A better way to talk about abortion 2015 · Talk · 11 min Abortion is extremely common. In America, for example, one in three women will have an abortion in their lifetime, yet the strong emotions sparked by the… Internet Archive Amy Cuddy: Your body language shapes who you are 2012 · Talk · 21 min Body language affects how others see us, but it may also change how we see ourselves. Social psychologist Amy Cuddy shows how “power posing” -- standing in a… Internet Archive Michael Anti: Behind the Great Firewall of China 2012 · Talk · 18 min Michael Anti (aka Jing Zhao) has been blogging from China for 12 years. Despite the control the central government has over the Internet -- "All the servers… Internet Archive John Legend: "True Colors" 2013 · Talk · 3 min In a heart-melting moment, Education host John Legend sits at the piano to sing "True Colors," giving the lyrics a special meaning for kids and teachers. "So… Internet Archive Brian Greene: Is our universe the only universe? 2012 · Talk · 21 min Is there more than one universe? In this visually rich, action-packed talk, Brian Greene shows how the unanswered questions of physics (starting with a big… Internet Archive Louie Schwartzberg: Nature. Beauty. Gratitude. 2012 · Talk · 9 min Nature’s beauty can be easily missed -- but not through Louie Schwartzberg’s lens. His stunning time-lapse photography, accompanied by powerful words from… Internet Archive Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action 2010 · Talk · 18 min Simon Sinek has a simple but powerful model for inspirational leadership all starting with a golden circle and the question "Why?" His examples include Apple,… Internet Archive Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story 2009 · Talk · 18 min Our lives, our cultures, are composed of many overlapping stories. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice… Internet Archive Hannah Fry: The mathematics of love 2015 · Talk · 17 min Finding the right mate is no cakewalk — but is it even mathematically likely? In a charming talk, mathematician Hannah Fry shows patterns in how we look for… Internet Archive Susan Cain: The power of introverts 2012 · Talk · 19 min In a culture where being social and outgoing are prized above all else, it can be difficult, even shameful, to be an introvert. But, as Susan Cain argues in… Internet Archive Angela Lee Duckworth: The key to success? Grit 2013 · Talk · 6 min Leaving a high-flying job in consulting, Angela Lee Duckworth took a job teaching math to seventh graders in a New York public school. She quickly realized… Internet Archive Brené Brown: The power of vulnerability 2010 · Talk · 20 min Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk at TEDxHouston, she shares a deep insight from her… Internet Archive Atul Gawande: How do we heal medicine? 2012 · Talk · 19 min Our medical systems are broken. Doctors are capable of extraordinary (and expensive) treatments, but they are losing their core focus: actually treating… Internet Archive Adam Foss: A prosecutor's vision for a better justice system 2016 · Talk · 16 min When a kid commits a crime, the US justice system has a choice: prosecute to the full extent of the law, or take a step back and ask if saddling young people… Internet Archive Ramesh Raskar: A camera that takes one trillion frames per second 2012 · Talk · 11 min Ramesh Raskar presents femto-photography, a new type of imaging so fast it shows the world one trillion frames per second, so detailed it shows light itself… Internet Archive Sebastião Salgado: The silent drama of photography 2013 · Talk · 16 min Economics PhD Sebastião Salgado only took up photography in his 30s, but the discipline became an obsession. His years-long projects beautifully capture the… Internet Archive Elyn Saks: A tale of mental illness -- from the inside 2012 · Talk · 14 min "Is it okay if I totally trash your office?" It's a question Elyn Saks once asked her doctor, and it wasn't a joke. A legal scholar, in 2007 Saks came forward… Internet Archive Shane Koyczan: "To This Day" ... for the bullied and beautiful 2013 · Talk · 12 min By turn hilarious and haunting, poet Shane Koyczan puts his finger on the pulse of what it's like to be young and … different. "To This Day," his spoken-word… Internet Archive Ron Eglash on African fractals 2007 · Talk · 16 min 'I am a mathematician, and I would like to stand on your roof.' That is how Ron Eglash greeted many African families he met while researching the fractal… Internet Archive Brené Brown: Listening to shame 2012 · Talk · 20 min Shame is an unspoken epidemic, the secret behind many forms of broken behavior. Brené Brown, whose earlier talk on vulnerability became a viral hit, explores… Internet Archive Sugata Mitra shows how kids teach themselves 2008 · Talk · 20 min Speaking at LIFT 2007, Sugata Mitra talks about his Hole in the Wall project. Young kids in this project figured out how to use a PC on their own -- and then… Internet Archive Graham Hill: Less stuff, more happiness 2011 · Talk · 5 min Writer and designer Graham Hill asks: Can having less stuff, in less room, lead to more happiness? He makes the case for taking up less space, and lays out… Internet Archive Rita Pierson: Every kid needs a champion 2013 · Talk · 7 min Rita Pierson, a teacher for 40 years, once heard a colleague say, "They don't pay me to like the kids." Her response: "Kids don't learn from people they don’t… Internet Archive Tom Thum: The orchestra in my mouth 2013 · Talk · 11 min In a highly entertaining performance, beatboxer Tom Thum slings beats, comedy and a mouthful of instrumental impersonations into 11 minutes of creativity and… Internet Archive Meg Jay: Why 30 is not the new 20 2013 · Talk · 14 min Clinical psychologist Meg Jay has a bold message for twentysomethings: Contrary to popular belief, your 20s are not a throwaway decade. In this provocative… Internet Archive Nathaniel Kahn on "My Architect" 2009 · Talk · 10 min Nathaniel Kahn shares clips from his documentary "My Architect," about his quest to understand his father, the legendary architect Louis Kahn. It's a film… Internet Archive David Brooks: The social animal 2011 · Talk · 18 min Tapping into the findings of his latest book, NYTimes columnist David Brooks unpacks new insights into human nature from the cognitive sciences -- insights… Internet Archive Amanda Palmer: The art of asking 2013 · Talk · 13 min Don't make people pay for music, says Amanda Palmer: Let them. In a passionate talk that begins in her days as a street performer (drop a dollar in the hat… Internet Archive Celeste Headlee: 10 ways to have a better conversation 2016 · Interview · 11 min When your job hinges on how well you talk to people, you learn a lot about how to have conversations — and that most of us don't converse very well. Celeste… Internet Archive Derek Sivers: How to start a movement 2010 · Talk · 3 min With help from some surprising footage, Derek Sivers explains how movements really get started. (Hint: it takes two.) Internet Archive Ken Robinson: How to escape education's death valley 2013 · Talk · 19 min Sir Ken Robinson outlines 3 principles crucial for the human mind to flourish -- and how current education culture works against them. In a funny, stirring… Internet Archive Pico Iyer: The art of stillness 2014 · Talk · 15 min The place that travel writer Pico Iyer would most like to go? Nowhere. In a counterintuitive and lyrical meditation, Iyer takes a look at the incredible… Internet Archive Maz Jobrani: A Saudi, an Indian and an Iranian walk into a Qatari bar … 2012 · Talk · 7 min Iranian-American comedian Maz Jobrani takes to the TEDxSummit stage in Doha, Qatar to take on serious issues in the Middle East -- like how many kisses to… Internet Archive Pranav Mistry: The thrilling potential of SixthSense technology 2009 · Talk · 13 min At TEDIndia, Pranav Mistry demos several tools that help the physical world interact with the world of data -- including a deep look at his SixthSense device… Internet Archive Seth Godin on standing out 2007 · Talk · 17 min In a world of too many options and too little time, our obvious choice is to just ignore the ordinary stuff. Marketing guru Seth Godin spells out why, when it… Internet Archive ShaoLan: Learn to read Chinese ... with ease! 2013 · Talk · 6 min For foreigners, learning to speak Chinese is a hard task. But learning to read the beautiful, often complex characters of the Chinese written language may be… Internet Archive Daphne Bavelier: Your brain on video games 2012 · Talk · 17 min How do fast-paced video games affect the brain? Step into the lab with cognitive researcher Daphne Bavelier to hear surprising news about how video games,… Internet Archive Guy Winch: How to fix a broken heart 2017 · Talk At some point in our lives, almost every one of us will have our heart broken. Imagine how different things would be if we paid more attention to this unique… Internet Archive Sarah Kay: If I should have a daughter ... 2011 · Talk · 18 min "If I should have a daughter, instead of Mom, she's gonna call me Point B ... " began spoken word poet Sarah Kay, in a talk that inspired two standing… Internet Archive William Kamkwamba: How I harnessed the wind 2009 · Talk · 6 min At age 14, in poverty and famine, a Malawian boy built a windmill to power his family's home. Now at 22, William Kamkwamba, who speaks at TED, here, for the… Internet Archive The design genius of Charles + Ray Eames 2009 · Talk · 15 min The legendary design team Charles and Ray Eames made films, houses and classic midcentury modern furniture. Eames Demetrios, their grandson, shows rarely seen… Internet Archive Rebecca Saxe: How we read each other's minds 2009 · Talk · 16 min Sensing the motives and feelings of others is a natural talent for humans. But how do we do it? Here, Rebecca Saxe shares fascinating lab work that uncovers… Internet Archive Jon Ronson: Strange answers to the psychopath test 2012 · Talk · 18 min Is there a definitive line that divides crazy from sane? With a hair-raising delivery, Jon Ronson, author of The Psychopath Test, illuminates the gray areas… Internet Archive Michael Pritchard's water filter turns filthy water drinkable 2009 · Talk · 9 min Too much of the world lacks access to clean drinking water. Engineer Michael Pritchard did something about it -- inventing the portable Lifesaver filter,… Internet Archive Dean Kamen on inventing and giving 2007 · Talk · 20 min Inventor Dean Kamen lays out his argument for the Segway and offers a peek into his next big ideas (portable energy and water purification for developing… Internet Archive Apollo Robbins: The art of misdirection 2013 · Talk · 8 min Hailed as the greatest pickpocket in the world, Apollo Robbins studies the quirks of human behavior as he steals your watch. In a hilarious demonstration,… Internet Archive David Christian: Big history 2011 · Talk · 17 min Backed by stunning illustrations, David Christian narrates a complete history of the universe, from the Big Bang to the Internet, in a riveting 18 minutes.…