TED Radio Hour

TED Radio Hour

Exploring the biggest questions of our time with the help of the world's greatest thinkers. Host Manoush Zomorodi inspires us to learn more about the world, our communities, and most importantly, ourselves. Get more brainy miscellany with TED Radio Hour+. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/ted

Episodes

April 25, 2025 49 mins
Forgetting a name, a poorly executed hug, the 7th grade — awkwardness is part of our lives whether we like it or not. But what if we put the embarrassment aside and embraced our awkward selves? Guests include social scientist Ty Tashiro, cartoonist Liana Finck, journalist Melissa Dahl and sex and relationship counselor Erin Chen.

Original broadcast date: April 19, 2024.

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The latest innovations in biotech are upending our approach to disease, longevity and climate change. Are we ready? This hour, TED speakers share ideas at the forefront of this new wave. Guests include co-founder of the Human Cell Atlas Aviv Regev, physical chemist Brad Ringeisen and immunoengineer Aaron Morris.

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Writer Anne Lamott has garnered a cult following with her shockingly honest prose on love, death, faith, writing and more. This hour, her wisdom from a career that has spanned 20 books and 40 years.

Original broadcast date: April 5, 2024.

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April 4, 2025 49 mins
What's the image you present to the world? And do you see yourself the same way? This hour, TED speakers add new dimensions to the idea of self perception. Guests include portrait photographer David Suh, social psychologist Dolly Chugh, journalist Elise Hu and science writer Anil Ananthaswamy.

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Thirty years into the opioid crisis, we still struggle to find other options for pain relief. This hour, TED speakers explain new understandings of how the brain interprets pain and new ideas to cope. Guests include equestrian Kat Naud, physician and researcher Amy Baxter and opioid reform advocate Cammie Wolf Rice.

Original broadcast date: June 7, 2024.

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March 21, 2025 49 mins
Can otters be city dwellers? Are aliens real? Do we have to experience misery to understand happiness? On this episode, we investigate how strange bedfellows can lead to radical realizations. Guests include evolutionary biologist Philip Johns, astrophysicist Avi Loeb and author Laurel Braitman.

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It's easy to focus on the nuances that get lost in translation, but what about the insights that are found? This hour, TED speakers reveal what we gain by adapting and translating information. Guests include textual scientist Gregory Heyworth, economist Ralph Chami, microbiologist and nanotechnologist Fatima AlZahra'a Alatraktchi and polyglot Lýdia Machová. Original broadcast date: May 19, 2023

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Emotions sometimes feel overwhelming and debilitating—but science-backed tools can help us wrangle them. This hour, neuroscientist Ethan Kross shares research from his Emotion and Self-Control Lab.

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February 28, 2025 49 mins
"The birds and the bees" may be a euphemism for human reproduction, but procreation of actual winged animals is far wilder. This hour, TED speakers explore how birds, bees and bugs multiply. Guests include beekeeper Noah Wilson-Rich, biologist Carin Bondar, behavioral ecologist Marlene Zuk and comedian Julia Sweeney.

Original broadcast date: July 15, 2022.

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February 21, 2025 49 mins
From our favorite songs to our own voices, we're surrounded by sound all day. But how does all this noise affect our emotions and behavior? This hour, TED speakers explore how sound shapes our lives. Guests include musician and professor of songwriting Scarlet Keys, AI CEO Pierre Barreau, voice expert Rebecca Kleinberger and musician Snow Raven.

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February 14, 2025 49 mins
To move forward, the United States must confront its history of racial inequality. This hour, three perspectives on looking to the past to build a better future for Black Americans. Guests include author Joseph McGill Jr., Code Switch co-host B.A. Parker and opinion columnist Charles Blow.

Original broadcast date: February 23, 2024.

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February 7, 2025 49 mins
Finding "the one" can seem like life's ultimate goal—but should it be? This hour, TED speakers expand the definition of life partnership, whether it's with a friend, a spouse, a pet, or no one at all. Guest include journalist Rhaina Cohen, marriage and family therapist Stephanie Yates-Anyabwile, social psychologist Bella DePaulo and photographer Elias Weiss Friedman of "The Dogist."

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January 31, 2025 49 mins
Original broadcast date: February 24, 2023. You don't need to be big and boisterous to pack a punch. This hour, TED speakers explore the surprising strength of all things minuscule and fleeting. Guests include microbiologist Anne Madden, cognitive scientist Lera Boroditsky, former educator YeYoon Kim and former industrial engineer and Zen Buddhist monk Bart Weetjens.

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January 24, 2025 49 mins
From creating "synthetic" memories to reviving ruined monuments, tech no longer simply stores the past—it can enhance it. This hour, we explore new ways to capture, share and even recreate our past. Guests include technologist Pau Aleikum Garcia, cartoonist Amy Kurzweil and digital archaeologist Chance Coughenour.

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January 17, 2025 49 mins
We're entering a new era of brain monitoring and enhancement, but what are the ethical implications? This hour, TED speakers explore the potential and pitfalls of merging our minds with machines. Guests include legal scholar and AI ethicist Nita Farahany, neurotechnologist and entrepreneur Conor Russomanno, neuroscientist and physician Sergiu Pașca and sous chef Kate Faulkner.

Original broadcast date: January 26, 2024.
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January 10, 2025 49 mins
In unpredictable times, how can we stay calm, grounded, and on course? This hour, TED speakers lead us through uncertainty. Guests include former medical clown Matt Wilson, psychologist Jamil Zaki, writer and filmmaker Hrund Gunnsteinsdóttir and human rights activist Yifat Susskind.

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January 3, 2025 50 mins
For millennia, humans have created artifacts of their lives — from art, to books, to music. This hour, we explore ideas about capturing the ephemeral human experience for future generations to find. Guests include paleoanthropologist Genevieve von Petzinger, museum curator Ariana Curtis, music curator Alexis Charpentier and artist Katie Paterson.

Original broadcast date: November 4, 2022.

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December 27, 2024 51 mins
We often view paradise as a place of safety, beauty, tranquility. It's an ideal we long for, but one we can rarely find. This hour, TED speakers search for utopia and come to terms with reality. Guests include wildfire expert George Whitesides, author Pico Iyer, physicist Ramón Méndez Galain, and tech entrepreneur Ramona Pierson. We also hear from two residents of Paradise, California, Richard and Zetta Gore.

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Writing can help you process thoughts, preserve memories, chronicle the stories of you and your loved ones. But that's only if you can get past the blank page. In this bonus episode, best-selling memoirist Kelly Corrigan offers advice for putting pen to paper. Corrigan has written four New York Times-bestselling books about her life and family in the last decade, including Tell Me More and The Middle Place. She was featured in the ...
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To understand AI, you need to hear Mustafa Suleyman's story. From youth hotline founder to DeepMind creator and Microsoft AI chief, his journey explains AI's evolution and his plans for its future.

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