TEDxMidAtlantic post-show report

Andy Carvin (NPR's social media guru) takes a picture of the infamous timer that ruled the day. (Photo by the Baltinerd)

It was a fantastic day down at the Brown Center, to say the least. TEDxMidAtlantic was a resounding success. Never having been to a TED conference before, I learned that TED isn’t so much about its acronym (Technology, Entertainment, Design) as it is a conference of ideas, thinkers and dreamers. The people who spoke were exactly that. You had Tony Geraci, who is helping to change the way students in city schools think about food. You had Sonja Sohn talking about taking a year away from her work for something she really believed in. You had Mark Walsh delivering a “modest proposal” on how to fix a broken Internet.

The theme of TEDxMidAtlantic, specifically, was “The Power of Stories,” and some of the stories told today I’ll have trouble forgetting. Like the diabetic child Geraci met in New Hampshire who motivated him to make a difference. Like the Sarajevo teen who moved Scott Simon. Like the funny and heartwarming way Peter Agre went from humble beginnings to Nobel laureate. Like Tyler Cowen’s hyper-meta stories about how stories are deceptive and misleading and terrible. But that’s another story. >_>

The lobby was packed during breaks. Like way packed. (Photo by the Baltinerd)

 

You’re probably thinking, “Gee, Tyler, this is all well and good, but I wasn’t there. Can you do anything else to rub it in my face?”

My answer? Sure I can. But I don’t really need to. If you missed anything (as I did, due to work engagements), video from all the speakers is posted right over this way.

And speaking of video, I caught up with curator Dave Troy afterwards to pick his brain…