"Just by saying double-dactylical I've sent the geek meter all the way to the red." For me, Erin McKean, has been the most charming presentation at TED this year (it's mid-day three and I'm confident this will hold true). As editor in chief of US Dictionaries for Oxford University Press, editor of Verbatium and blogger at Dress a Day, Erin is on a mission to change our concept of the dictionary. Highlights:
- Imposed searchability takes away serendipity.
- The current form factor of the dictionary is a Victorian design with good propulsion. Essentially, it's steam punk.
- Lexicography is a material science ... words are the building blocks of our creative expression.
- The internet = words + enthusiasm
Erin's charm and brilliance is in her embracement (is that a word?) of the evolution of language - not just the dominant strains, but all of them. She views her job as a lexicographer to simply capture all the instances of words. Usage and love will be what determines which ones stick around.
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"If we could make new constellations (ones not based on greek myths) what would they be?" Jonathan Harris, creator of We Feel Fine, showed off both it as well as his new project, Universe. We Feel Fine captures emotions expressed via the phrase "I feel ... " on blogs around the world. His visualization techniques as well as the profound intimacy felt after spending time on the site work to close the gaps that isolated human beings feel. We *all* experience the same core set of emotions; we are more alike than different. Universe, an enhancement of Daylife, will offer a "universal" view of someone or something in the news. You'll be able to see the stars, stories, ideas and issues that form constellations around a person or a topic. It's an incredible interface to a massive infospace. It hopefully launches next week.
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Ted Sargent (Canadian!!) is attempting to choreograph the dance of the molecule .. he's coating surfaces with quantum dots that are not perfect, but perfect enough to take advantage of energy from the sun. Its not quite a liquid solar panel .. but one day, it could be. :-) This was a sciency talk .. Ethan Zuckerman explains it much better.
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"I have this picture up on my computer screen, and a woman comes up and asks whether that's a Jackson Pollock painting, but no, it's a picture of penguin shit on rocks." Former Microsoft CTO, Nathan Myhrvold. That's kinda how Myhrvold's whole talk was.
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Oh, this is totally out of order .. but another of the great talks of Thursday was Ngozi Okonju-Iweala. She is the former finance minister of Nigeria and gave an inspiring talk on "the Africa of Opportunity":
- There is a will in Africa to take charge of its reserves. The battle is ongoing and being won.
- Corruption is a two-way street. When money leaves Africa and goes to a developed country .. who is allowing that to happen!?!
- There is a will to reform; Africa is tired of being the object of everyone's charity.
- The best way to help Africa is to create jobs!
- Women and their entrepreneurial efforts are rocking the African continent. These stories are chronicled in Africa: Open for Business
Tags: TED2007, TED 2007, erin McKean, lexicography, Ngozi Okunju-Iweala
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