TED Prize winners’ wishes revealed here.

TED is overwhelming. These end-of-day summaries do nothing to capture the essence of what goes on here. From early morning to late into the evening, there is non-stop connection and inspiration. Every person you meet is a treasure, a package of gems waiting to be unpacked and shared.

Today’s highlight (among too many to list) was clearly Ben Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic, leading the TED choir (1500 strong) in the Ode to Joy of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. This is the piece of music played during the falling of Berlin’s wall, the protests in Tiananmen Square, and most every Olympic opening ceremony.

Joy, beautiful spark of God,

Daughter of Elysium,

Touched with fire, to the portal,

Of thy radiant shrine, we come.

Your sweet magic frees all others,

Held in Custom’s rigid rings.

All men on earth become brothers,

In the haven of your wings.

Whoever succeeds in the great attempt

To be a friend of a friend,

Whoever has won a lovely woman,

Let him add his jubilation!

Yes, whoever calls even one soul

His own on the earth’s globe!

And who never has, let him steal,

Weeping, away from this group.

All creatures drink joy

At the breasts of nature;

All the good, all the evil

Follow her roses’ trail.

Kisses gave she us, and wine,

A friend, proven unto death;

Pleasure was to the worm granted,

And the cherub stands before God.

Glad, as his suns fly

Through the Heavens’ glorious plan,

Run, brothers, your race,

Joyful, as a hero to victory.

Be embraced, you millions!

This kiss for the whole world!

Brothers, beyond the star-canopy

Must a loving Father dwell.

Do you bow down, you millions?

Do you sense the Creator, world?

Seek Him beyond the star-canopy!

Beyond the stars must He dwell.

Finale repeats the words:

Be embraced, ye millions!

This kiss for the whole world!

Brothers, beyond the star-canopy

Must a loving Father dwell.

Be embraced,

This kiss for the whole world!

Joy, beautiful spark of God,

Daughter of Elysium,

Joy, beautiful spark of God

Crying. I sit here weeping after reading these words again. TED is not a place where one can hide tears. It happens frequently, and often with reckless abandon. How often do we find many of the world’s thought leaders standing arm in arm singing Beethoven (added 3/2: On day four, Al Gore made the same comment – something like “I never thought I would be here singing Beethoven with all of you”). I am awestruck at the thought of what has happened over these last three days.

Amy Tan described her creative process. Daughter of a Baptist minister, she seeks places of liminal uncertainty, moral ambiguity – for these are real stories, not forced to conclusion. She describes the world as narrative, as belief. Creation occurs by questioning, not just answering. Creators straddle imagination and “reality” and are never often dissatisfied with their conclusions. Uncertainty is a high moral ground, for it leaves a door open and does not exclude. Imagination is very closely related to compassion, for it can feel the sufferings of other, and dream of comfort.

Tod Machover from MIT’s Media Lab discussed music and technology, culminating with a performance from Dan Ellsey, a wheelchair-bound sufferer of cerebral palsy. Here is a man in a body that has failed him, but an inner spirit that soars with intelligence, complexity, and passion. It was only the second time Dan had been outside of Boston, flown in by a TED sponsor on a specially outfitted jet. His composition, using MIT’s Hyperscore notation method, is called Eagle Song. Need I say again, not a dry eye in the house. Profoundly moving.

A board game is being collaboratively designed by the TED community during the conference, here. It’s tagged “The Game of Social Awareness” – called “Over There.”

Paul Stammos revealed at TED a number of his recent breakthroughs in mushroom research, showing that mycelium may be our best hope for future vaccines, pest control, and even alternative energy production. For instance, a recent flu vaccine made from spores was 10,000 times more effective than any known vaccine, including M5.

Joshua Klein showed just how smart crows really are.

Tomorrow, Day Four.

This entry was posted on Saturday, March 1st, 2008 at 10:09 am and is filed under Art & Creativity, Aspire, Awe & Mystery. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.