TED Talks
How centuries of sci-fi sparked spaceflight | Alex MacDonald
Long before we had rocket scientists, the idea of spaceflight traveled from mind to mind across generations. With great visuals, TED Fellow and NASA economist Alexander MacDonald shows how 300 years of sci-fi tales — from Edgar Allan Poe to Jules Verne to H.G. Wells and beyond — sparked a culture of space exploration. Get…
Chuck's Astrophotography
April 18, 2019 at 12:40 am
It’s amazing in the history of science how so few people have pushed the human race forward, but when they did it was in a major way.
x o
April 18, 2019 at 1:24 am
And even more people have pushed in minor ways.
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 3:39 am
When they own the public teaching centers and teach you their lies and entertain you through TV programming your entire life… Then make you believe they are amazing with fake awards so you idolize them… Reseach the first video of the astronauts being interviewed right when they returned from the “moon.” Do you think they are acting like they just went to the moon? Let me know once you view the video..ok? Having Discernment will set you free.
ART BY ACT
April 18, 2019 at 12:42 am
Centuries of sci fi was propaganda for the false heliocentric mythos. Theoretical science is not reality.
Jacob Hansen
April 18, 2019 at 12:44 am
A proper TED talk?
What is this wizardry!
Tuba Jesus
April 18, 2019 at 12:46 am
Go sci fi!
x o
April 18, 2019 at 1:21 am
But where…
Jose Villegas
April 18, 2019 at 12:49 am
this is inspiring for me as a writer
Jose Villegas
April 18, 2019 at 1:44 am
+x o haha I sure do hope so too
border lands
April 18, 2019 at 2:30 am
+x o ?? I like the way he talks. He’d be awesome in rod serlings part if Twighlight Zone rebooted.
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 2:54 am
A writer should do his own research.. Say.. von braun tombstone? This is your first lead…
Jose Villegas
April 18, 2019 at 2:57 am
+Peace be with you. Godspeed. thanks 🙂
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 3:11 am
Jose Villegas Let me know when your ready for your next lead…
Gary Hubbard
April 18, 2019 at 12:50 am
What else do you think our intelligence would do ?
x o
April 18, 2019 at 1:19 am
Elect capable presidents.
GamingTV
April 18, 2019 at 12:51 am
centuries of science not sci-fi
Corey Suffield
April 18, 2019 at 12:58 am
that is great but he left out probably the most important name, Von Braun and other german rocket engineers that pioneered rocketry with the V2, and the true driver of space travel which was war. if Russia didn’t put up sputnik would the U.S. even have bothered creating NASA?
Bill
April 18, 2019 at 1:03 am
Even comic book writers.. If anyone is old enough to remember Flash Gordon.
x o
April 18, 2019 at 1:11 am
When you practice your speech too much…
O the artificial pathos, o the robotic lifelessness, o the obamaesque hand gestures,… 🙂
Bryan Teh Su Yang
April 18, 2019 at 1:20 am
Stories are not just human imagination, but they’re references and ideas that keep pushing humanity foward
Victor ST
April 18, 2019 at 1:42 am
It’s all Operation Mockingbird anyways
Ethan Krauss
April 18, 2019 at 1:42 am
If you click on the purple channel icon to the left, you can see a patented ion thruster that can lift its onboard power supply from the ground, just like in sci-fi! This one is just a rough prototype, but it is a working model.
Patrick J Dougan Sr
April 18, 2019 at 1:44 am
They don’t invent things after and programs like space travel and high tech inventions they use programs like these to try to break to the public easy so that everyone doesn’t panic if we had any idea of what is really going on this planet would be in total chaos
Witch Hunter
April 18, 2019 at 3:26 am
that is what i have been saying for years. the technology that is published to us today was invented decades ago but people only saw it from movies and when its shared people are already used to the idea, i think thats also whats going on with aliens. why would everyone share the same vision of the alien if no one ever saw one right ?
Axel M Tanquino
April 18, 2019 at 1:49 am
????
Sheila Blake
April 18, 2019 at 1:50 am
If only NASA could remember how to get us back there! ?
Stephen Stilwell
April 18, 2019 at 3:09 am
It won’t happen because they’ve never been there.
2garv2
April 18, 2019 at 1:55 am
Yas
Kavita Khush 24
April 18, 2019 at 2:00 am
Wonderful
paul bruce
April 18, 2019 at 2:04 am
NASA needs to use there imagination like the science fiction writers because they definitely have a vision
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 2:50 am
paul bruce A Satanic vision… of lies… Don’t be the last to find out… Secrets cults taught you to love their lies… What’s on Von Bran’s tombstone? Why would he choose that quote? Do you think perhaps you’ve been lied to about space?
Charles Dickens
April 18, 2019 at 2:18 am
Only it’s all lies – the rockets could never penetrate the Val Allen belt, the equipment would be fried from the radiation. Also, we couldn’t livestream from the moon today, let alone in 1969.
Syn's Arcade
April 18, 2019 at 2:22 am
Anyone who learned how to mimic Sagan in their presentation and style will always have my ear.
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 2:53 am
Syn’s Arcade Even a paid shill who supports a secret cult? What’s on Von Braun’s tombstone? Your not going to like it when the truth comes out.. Perhaps you might want to start doing your own research…and figure it out before you trust the people stealing 50 mill a day from your country..
Claudette S
April 18, 2019 at 2:40 am
I really liked that. Thank you.
Peace be with you. Godspeed.
April 18, 2019 at 2:44 am
Ted was taken over by DS a couple years ago… Resist! This platform has been compromised…
Oscar the golden toy dela Hoya
April 18, 2019 at 3:16 am
Ted talks are full of posh wankers… Zzz
ABD ALRAHMAN BOUZO
April 18, 2019 at 3:21 am
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️?????
Tyler Welch
April 18, 2019 at 1:33 pm
TED talks aren’t what they use to be, they should do a talk about organizations giving talks and sticking to bias.
Bjørnar Iversen
April 18, 2019 at 2:11 pm
Finally a sane speaker.. so tired of the twisted feminist sjw activists.
Miles Coverdale
April 18, 2019 at 2:25 pm
Nothing ever grows from dull people. Only those who imagine to dream a dream sow the seed of what is, and what shall be, and the seed grows.
raphsere
April 18, 2019 at 2:26 pm
“You need to believe in things that aren’t true. How else can they become?”
– Terry Pratchett
Constantine B
April 20, 2019 at 4:29 pm
Correct. This is evident through the amount of technology that never came from scientists. Scientist formally trained in science subconsciously become bound to the parameters of there education. Thinking outside the square is more likely to come from those who are not formally trained or educated
Make Brooklyn
April 18, 2019 at 2:50 pm
Has NASA even tried geese? I think not!!
David Furr
April 18, 2019 at 3:18 pm
This guy has the same rhythm and sound when he speaks as Barack Obama
Seeyay
April 19, 2019 at 6:30 am
Also similar to Carl Sagan.
DubQWST
April 18, 2019 at 4:01 pm
Even Einstein said imagination is more important than knowledge.
Roland Felice
April 18, 2019 at 4:52 pm
A truely worthwhile video.
Ruby Moon
April 18, 2019 at 5:30 pm
*in the grim dark future there is only war.* *There is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and slaughter, and the laughter of thirsting gods* *WarHammer 40k*
Николай Каретников
April 19, 2019 at 5:18 pm
Steven Pinker certainly does not think so
Ruby Moon
April 19, 2019 at 11:21 pm
+Николай Каретников Steven Pinker is a heretic according to the Inquisition Acolytes rule book XD
am joking of course
graphicism
April 18, 2019 at 10:03 pm
Maybe spaceflight is sci-fi to this day.
JustWasted3HoursHere
April 18, 2019 at 11:04 pm
Storywriters don’t get bogged down with the details of how things would or could be accomplished, which is why they work so well as inspirations to the scientists that would come later.
dunoze
April 19, 2019 at 8:07 am
Space travel is still science fiction . We never went to to the moon and still can’t .
Tiberiu Vicol
April 19, 2019 at 12:07 pm
Conrad Haas (1509–1576) a pioneer of rocket propulsion. His designs include a three-stage rocket and a manned rocket.
Brendan K
April 19, 2019 at 1:24 pm
His mannerisms remind me so much of Obama
Jaime Castro
April 19, 2019 at 4:22 pm
Buenas tardes sería posible poner subtítulos en español gracias
yexela
April 19, 2019 at 4:26 pm
This talk overrates the sci-fi as a driving force of technological progress and undermines the actual effort of millions of scientists and engeneers involved into the R&D. It’s not some “passion” and “dreams” that drives the progress, but rather hard work of millions of people funded mainly by the government. Space technology was developped for well known reasons: political and military competition between the US and the USSR which had nothing to do with early sci-fi dreams of spaceflight. “Passion” sci-fi motivation is just a wishful thinking.
Николай Каретников
April 19, 2019 at 5:19 pm
well noted!
John Arnold
April 19, 2019 at 5:30 pm
Yes ..we may have accomplished space flight but the middle East has surpassed us, they have developed time travel….they can in a matter of minutes transport you back to the middle ages…it’s called Islam…..???
Lindenlc10
April 19, 2019 at 8:29 pm
” The stories we tell ourselves can transform the future.”
John Collado
April 19, 2019 at 11:47 pm
Alex MacDonald’s mannerisms and his voice remind me so much of Carl Sagan when he spoke.
Tom Foolery
April 20, 2019 at 1:16 am
He talks like Obama
chellya2004
April 20, 2019 at 3:37 am
Should start with the bible. The concept of the heaven where gods live and is a place that’s too forbidden for us to enter. In there, there’s a lot of stories! And how the ‘heaven’ slowly transformed into an ’empty space’ worth exploring. That’s a huge shift!
Aura Sheet Metal
April 20, 2019 at 11:28 am
The moon, we’ve never been . Keep imagining we did. Hahahha
Constantine B
April 20, 2019 at 4:14 pm
The story that I have been thinking is about colonisation which has occurred through human history. Most colony’s resolved in becoming independent. I believe that if colonisation occurs on Mars eventually within a 200 hundred year period of colonisation. Residents of Mars will debate there independence from Earth ?. This may be the first War of the World’s for human beings in there history depending if Earth is dependant on resources of Mars. Anyone agree with my statement?