TED talks epitomize our golden age

Modern conference speeches help spread the knowledge of information

This past Saturday, unbeknownst to the majority of the city, the first ever Edmonton TEDx event was held. A limited number of people who applied to attend were present to share the insights and ideas of some of Edmonton's best and brightest.

For those who aren't already tuned in, Technology, Entertainment, and Design (TED) talks are a hot topic since they started being recorded and dispersed via the internet in 2006. You've more than likely seen a friend post a link to one on Facebook or Twitter attached with an insightful comment: along the lines of "Amazing!" Although they've been going on since the ’80s, TED talks are starting to be shared among the masses. It’s a wholly good thing, since they unite under the tagline "Ideas Worth Spreading."

There is a point to this blowhard TED talks jerk off explanation. These speeches are actually a sign of a greater movement in our population. It's a movement that society has seen before, with the emergence of the internet and globally-shared ideas. What's exciting about this, though, is that we're a witnessing an intellectual movement similar to the Age of Enlightenment. Now, maybe I'm just under the influence of the last 600 pages of Parisian enlightenment history, which I read to satisfy my unusually cruel history prof, or maybe there's something to be seen here.

The enlightenment was sparked in part by a reading revolution. Prior to this period, those who read owned few books and read them in depth, often to the point of memorization. Around 1750, this changed, and those who could afford to built extensive libraries, using them as resources, and soaking in as much knowledge as possible. Compare this to modern times; with the dissemination of information over the internet we have gone from a few sources of knowledge to an almost unlimited access to world knowledge. Knowledge is available on demand, especially with modern smartphones.

Much like the spark of the enlightenment period, we've also started to contextualize almost every field in a new way of thinking. While back then it was the application of reason, logic, and the emergence of scientific thinking, we are now moving from a single-minded knowledge specialization to a global and interdisciplinary approach. You’ll even notice this on campus with the creation of new interdisciplinary courses that blend traditional academic specialties in new ways.

But we were talking about TED talks. The enlightenment was characterized by events called salons, at which the aristocrats invited intellectuals, who were often natural philosophers, to attend and speak. This was one of the primary focal points of intellectual discussion during that time. It’s clear that these TED Talks are the salons of our modern intellectual movement. They encourage the discussion of ideas from a globally-minded broad approach.

The inevitable shift towards a technology-oriented mindset means that it is no longer natural philosophers who are being embraced as intellectuals (in fact most just find us philosophy students annoying and arrogant), but rather the computing science students and those who are interacting with technology in new and exciting ways (and no, I'm not talking about those things you do with your new sex robot).

What it comes down to is that we are amidst an intellectual revolution, one that here in a centre of academia we should fully embrace and be aware of. It seems that these TED talks are bringing about positive discussion on world issues, which can only be a good thing. And as we move further into the information age, I look forward to having more of these discussions in our community unleashed by technological change and the democratic Internet.