E-Paper
TED comes to India!
The milestone conference’s first-ever edition in South Asia is taking place in Mysore.
IT Company Infosys’ Mysore campus will be abuzz with unprecedented activity till November 7, for a world-renowned conference that has surprisingly received little coverage in mainstream Indian media. But TED is here, and we are very excited!
TED, short for Technology, Entertainment, Design, started off as a small, non-profit organisation, aimed at discussing ‘Ideas Worth Spreading’ through conferences, in 1984. But 25 years since, it has evolved into one of the biggest and most prestigious gatherings of inspired individuals, to use the “power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world,” its website states.
The roll of honour of speakers who have presented their ideas at TED conferences include celebrated world leaders such as ex-US President, Bill Clinton, current UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.
What makes TED cool?
The 18-minute long addresses of many more such dignitaries, illustrious and renowned personalities, as well as extraordinary stories of ordinary people, and all sort of “jaw-dropping” live acts and performances can be viewed online on TED’s website, ted.com. These webcasts are the prime reason behind TED’s immense popularity, with TEDTalks having received over a 100 million views by more than 15 million people across the globe.
The TED conference in Mysore, TEDIndia, is also its first conference in the South Asia region and features eclectic ‘though leaders’ from all walks of life—from a marine biologist to a visual neuroscientist, from an education activist to an MIT entrepreneur, from a spiritual Guru to a philanthropist, apart from well-known entertainment faces like Abhay Deol and Shekhar Kapur.
The registration for the event, that will be attended by over 800 delegates is long over. Even with a Rs 1 lakh fee, the event attracted twice as many attendees from what was anticipated earlier. However, ted.com will feature free live webcasts of the talks over the three days, which will be later archived and transcribed, to make them accessible in 57 languages, including Indian regional languages.
