TED Talk Analysis- Cassadi Cordea

Jared Diamond believes the elderly population in America has greater value than they are being treated with. He gave his speech on the elderly in March of 2013 at TED2013. Jared Diamond, an aged individual himself, spoke about how we as a society treat our elderly population today and compares and contrasts that to traditional societies and even tribal societies. This is an issue that is very relevant to the Best Friends Day Center because it is a place for the elderly who aren't staying with their families anymore. He begins with asking who in the audience is 65 years or older or is close to someone who is, and this pretty much covers everyone in the room. The audience doesn’t know what to expect from Diamond, but they know it can be considered credible considering his age and experience. This topic was very relevant to the audience and they politely listened to Diamond. Although there were some light moments, this was not meant to be a funny speech. Diamond wanted to point out all of the things we are doing wrong with our older population.

Jared Diamond speaking at TED2013

Diamond decided to deliver his speech in a very simple way. He was very relaxed and kept his tone conversational and persuasive. It was easy to see that he was completely comfortable with his words. Being someone who is also older gave him more credibility. He did not have any visual aids on stage with him other than a podium and a typed copy of his speech, which he occasionally read from. His firsthand experience with this topic and his age made up for the lack of visual aids. Diamond also was able to effectively paint mental images with his words, so no part of his speech seemed lacking or confusing. If he had wanted to use visual aids in his speech, he could’ve provided more statistics or testimonies from people who are experiencing this problem firsthand.

Diamond’s first major point began with a compare and contrast segment. He explained the horrible treatment of the elderly in traditional and tribal societies that we in a modern society would not think to do. He then led into how those societies were good to their elderly. Traditional societies valued their elderly’s wisdom, while our modern society today seems to think that the elderly are not as valuable in that aspect. He also points out that in traditional society the elderly lead much richer social lives because they are not sent off to live alone somewhere with people they don’t know. Nursing homes isolate our elderly and socially inhibit them for the rest of their lives. Another point that promotes the value of the elderly today is that they are able to help the younger people with their lives. Their children grow up to have kids, and since more young women are working now and both parents now are more likely to have jobs, there is a need for babysitters. Grandparents are perfect for this role. Diamond states the obvious: most grandparents love their grandchildren and want to spend time with them, and they can also provide a nurturing environment that the children will learn and grow in.  

The elderly population will continue to grow to the highest it has ever been

To wrap up his speech, Diamond points out that there are more elderly people than ever, so this is a problem that cannot be ignored. He asks the audience to try and understand how we can learn from traditional society and apply it to ours. The elderly have value and to ignore their value is doing a disservice to society.

https://www.ted.com/talks/jared_diamond_how_societies_can_grow_old_better#t-5841

Analyzing a TED Talk - Kalee Fuller

Link to the TED Talk

When we were given the assignment to analyze a TED Talk, I was excited to see what was out there that had any relation to the Best Friends Center. I found a very interesting Talk by Samuel Cohen from June of this year called “Alzheimer’s is not normal aging—and we can cure it.” 

Cohen delivering his TED Talk.

Cohen began his TED Talk with a story about a woman who goes to the doctor with a brain issue, 114 years ago. As he explains the story, the audience finds out that the doctor was actually Dr. Alzheimer, and this was the first discovered case of Alzheimer’s. This was the only story that Cohen told through his TED Talk, yet he incorporated it throughout the entire thing, making sure to relate points back to it. Sometimes in the video, the cameramen would show the audience, everyone seeming so intrigued by what Cohen had to say, waiting for what he was going to inform them about next. 

While the story about the discovery of Alzheimer’s was interesting, Samuel Cohen went so much farther, explaining the effect that Alzheimer’s is having on the world today and the effect it can have in the future. Even though I’ve been working at Best Friends now for the entire semester, there was some much about the disease and the effect that it is having that I did not know. For example, the money spent on cancer research is five times greater than that spent on Alzheimer’s, yet the money spent on the care of people with Alzheimer’s is double the amount that is spent on cancer patients. Similarly, he mentions that of the top 10 death-causing diseases in this country, Alzheimer’s is the ONLY one that does not have something that has been created to stop it, control it, or at least slow it down. 

Cohen used this graphic to display the costs of
Alzheimer's research in comparison to cancer research.

So why are we as a country so unaware of Alzheimer’s, yet so aware of so many other diseases? Because awareness is not being raised. Cohen explains to audience that while the cancer patients and their families can be out promoting studies for their disease and raising awareness, people with Alzheimer’s cannot. And their families and loved ones are exhausted from the amount of care that the Alzheimer patient must receive. So, Cohen explains, that leaves the raising of awareness up to those who were listening to him; if a cure is not worked towards, Alzheimer’s is going to effect 1 in 2 people by the year 2050, when the generation of baby boomers has reached old age. 

Cohen stayed in this spot through his whole TED Talk. 

These jaw-dropping facts and realizations that Samuel Cohen delivers are very eye opening. Even though he stayed in the same position through his thoroughly effective 8 minute presentation and used very little hand gestures, the impact he had on his audience was huge. It was interesting to see that in Cohen’s situation it was more effective for him to deliver the hard facts and inform his audience than to really “paint a picture” for them, since the topic is so fact driven. Nevertheless, when he asks for the audience to help him raise awareness at the end of his TED Talk, I at least felt compelled to take some kind of action. 

After working in Best Friends and watching this TED Talk, I have found such an interest in Alzheimer’s and the research that is going into it. Working in the organization, I am seeing how it is directly effecting the patients and their families, so I am seeing how needed the additional support for the research is for them and their families. 

Ted Talk Analysis- Grant Guenther

Ted Talk Analysis
https://www.ted.com/talks/tony_robbins_asks_why_we_do_what_we_do?language=en

.Image of Tony Robbins next to the Ted logo.

          As I near my Ted Talk, I am starting to look into  well- known talks to see  methods that are effective. Relating to “Best Friends”, I have analyzed a talk given in June of 2006 at the annual Ted Conference by Tony Robbins titled “Why we do what we do.” In his nearly twenty-two-minute speech he describes the six basic human needs, and how they relate to the reasons an individual acts the way they do.

Tony walking around stage energetically
with a smile. Notice he has his hands
in his pocket and is wearing jeans. This
shows an action shot of his great speaking skills.

          Tony Robbins truly did release his mastering speaking skills throughout the speech. As I analyzed his clothes, I noticed Tony was dressed casually in jeans and his hands often in his pockets (showed in image on right), showing the audience that he is a normal human. Throughout the talk he engages the audience by allowing them to answer questions and he makes eye contact throughout the whole audience during his talk, causing exceptional conversational skills. As Tony walks around the room he talks at a lightning fast pace using his booming voice, making the audience think and pay attention. Lastly, he grabs the audience’s attention through stories, humor, and exceptional insight. Tony truly has mastered his speaking skills in this talk.

          Coming into the speech, the audience knew everything Tony said but did not really know they knew it because his topic was on a subject that most people do not typically think about. Coming into the speech, he audience expected that he was going to be a motivational speaker since that is Tony's profession; however, Tony arrives and immediately states that he is not a motivational speaker, but rather the why guy: why we do what we do. What he taught the audience was the six basic human needs including certainty, variety, needing to feel significant, connection and love, growth, and contribution beyond oneself.

Tony's dinner give-away project where he gives away millions of
dinners to those who cannot afford them otherwise. 

 Most Ted Talks contain a jaw-dropping moment in the speech somewhere, but the jaw-dropping moment is uncertain in Tony's speech.  Two stories Tony told could possibly be considered jaw dropping. One story Tony Robbins tells is about how as a young kid he wanted to feed families during Thanksgiving time, so he would go to the store and purchase meals for families in need. At first, he started with a meal a year and gradually increased to millions of families being fed each year now. Another story relates to 9/11 and how a couple broke up recently before 9/11 and while one of the people was far away from New York, they happened to give a nice phone call to apologize. Little did this person know that their loved one would die that day in 9/11 with that message being their last memory. These stories show how humans always have to strive to get better and how something in us just has to try to help others. Because these stories effect emotions, they can be considered jaw-dropping. 

Tony giving Al Gore a high-five. At this point the
audience was lauging hysterically.

          His humor is what really gets the audience going. He opens up by saying the shortest speech he has given was 50 hours, and that 18 minutes would be hard. Then he goes on to asking the audience what hinders them and Al Gore, former vice president, says “the supreme court”. Tony hysterically goes into the audience to give AL a high-five. Throughout the whole speech he often criticizes people using bad language, making it funny. He is an extremely funny guy and uses his humor appropriately throughout his speech.
           Throughout the whole talk, there are only a few things I would change about Tony's talk. One thing I would change would be a better jaw-dropping moment because I feel that is an important part of the speech, but his jaw-dropping moment was not clear or jaw-dropping. Another thing I would do is use more visual aids. Tony used a couple powerpoint slides but no other visual aids. Lastly, his speech could be condensed to under eighteen minutes by removing some parts in the middle of his talk.
           Overall, the speech was very effective. He stayed in his lane the whole time and his organization was well-thought-out.  “Best Friends”  draws relations to Tony's talk because the patients at this daycare are the most down-to-earth people I have ever met. Knowing they have a disease  of dimentia, they still live each day to the fullest by giving back wonderful times to the volunteers. They exhibit growth, love and connection, and contribution to my life through their smiles and stories. This speech by Tony Robbins tells me why these people are so happy all the time; it is because it is in basic human need to act the way they do. Tony's speech was amazing and I would strongly recommend it as I have watched it close to ten times now.

Analyzing a TED Talk - Madilyne McDonald

           I recently watched Alanna Shaikh give a speech entitled How I'm Preparing to Get Alzheimer's on the TED stage. This speech, given on June 6th, 2012, was showing her outlook on Alzheimer's and a different way of looking at the future. She told several stories throughout her speech which established her credibility helped the audience understand her point of view. Shaikh told stories about her father, who had Alzheimer’s; she talked about how he was a bilingual professor before getting the disease and how good his heart was.

Shaikh giving her TED Presentation

Shaikh taught me several things throughout her speech. She told me three ways that I could prepare myself to receive Alzheimer's, which were easier to remember than an overloaded of information. These three ways were: learning to do something with my hands, things that one’s hands would do automatically where memory failed, exercises that improve balance, the loss of balance associated with Alzheimer’s could make a person immobile, and making sure that your heart was in a good place so that when everything else was stripped away it was something to be proud of.  These things would likely help a person be happier and live longer with the disease. Preparing to get Alzheimer’s was a concept that I hadn't heard before. Shaikh delivered several jaw dropping statistics throughout her speech. She informed the audience that 35 million people have this disease and that number is expected to double by 2030. She also said "If the monster wants you, it will get you." She repeated this several times which made people really face the reality of the disease instead of how it’s normally avoided.

Knitting was a suggested hobby to learn.

           The speech was very effective. Shaikh talked like she was in a conversation with the audience. She was talking to me instead of over me. She clearly outlined the main points so that I could easily follow her thoughts. However, she did not move around very much and some of her body language seemed tense, which showed her nerves. Another skill that Shaikh had was that she incorporated humor into her speech. Since her subject was so serious, Shaikh had to be careful about the amount of humor that she used, and she used just enough to lighten up the mood and keep her audience interested. She talked about how she was learning to knit but could only knit a ball and she was learning origami and could make a pretty nice box. This got a chuckle from the audience and lightened up a tough subject.

          Shaikh delivered her speech in six minutes and nineteen seconds. This time was well under the eighteen minute standard. I felt that she explained her topic extremely well, she covered her main points and gave the reasons behind them. She grabbed my attention with her story and incorporated it throughout the whole speech. She challenged my way of thinking by introducing something new. Shaikh told what it was like to love someone with Alzheimer's and what it will be like if you ever get the disease, this connected her and her topic to the audience. She stayed in her lane by not trying to give medical advice or convince us that her way was the only way. She stated facts and explained why she thought preparing for Alzheimer's was important.

          I thought that Shaikh's TED talk was extremely effective. Although brief, it challenged my thoughts on the topic, stretched my thinking, and taught me something new. Her stories and humor that were incorporated made her topic relatable. Volunteering at Best Friends, has made me think about how many people are affected by Alzheimer's and the possibility of getting it later in life. The participants of Best Friends are high functioning, leading me to wonder how much preparation they did throughout their lives. If I got the disease, I would rather be high functioning and happy like they are and would be willing to do anything I could to make this a possibility.
How I'm Preparing to Get Alzheimer's