An idea is the one gift that you can hang onto even after you’ve given it away. Welcome to TED Radio Hour hosted by Guy Raz – a journey through fascinating ideas: astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, new ways to think and create.
Based on Talks given by riveting speakers on the world-renowned TED stage, each show is centered on a common theme – such as the source of happiness, crowd-sourcing innovation, power shifts, or inexplicable connections – and injects soundscapes and conversations that bring these ideas to life.
TED Radio Hour is a co-production of NPR and TED.
About TED
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California 25 years ago, TED has grown into a global platform for identifying and spreading those world-changing ideas. The annual TED Conference and TEDGlobal Conferences invite the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for up to 18 minutes. Their talks are then made available, free, at TED.com and through TED distribution partners. Follow TED on Twitter or on Facebook.
About Guy Raz
Guy Raz is the host of TED Radio Hour, a co-production of NPR and TED that tackles astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems and new ways to think and create. Each radio show is based on talks given by riveting speakers on the renowned TED stage, bound together by a common theme such as the thrill of space exploration, going to extremes, the source of happiness or ‘when rights goes wrong’ in our justice system.
Previously, Raz was weekend host of NPR News’ signature afternoon newsmagazine All Things Considered. Raz was named host of that program in July 2009. During his tenure, Raz transformed the sound and format of the program, introducing the now-signature “cover story” and creating the popular “Three-Minute Fiction” writing contest.
Raz joined NPR in 1997 as an intern for All Things Considered and he worked his way through the ranks of the organization. His first job was the assistant to NPR’s legendary news analyst Daniel Schorr. Raz then served as a general assignment reporter covering stories ranging from the early 2000 presidential primaries to a profile on the Doors’ song “Light My Fire.”
In 2000, at the age of 25, Raz was made NPR’s Berlin bureau chief where he covered eastern Europe and the Balkans. Later, he was transferred to London as the bureau chief and covered the war in Iraq. Raz left NPR in 2004, to work as CNN’s Jerusalem correspondent chronicling everything from the rise of Hamas as a political power to the incapacitation of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. Two years later Raz returned to NPR to serve as defense correspondent where he covered the Pentagon and the US military.
During his six years abroad, Raz reported from more than 40 countries, with a focus on Iraq, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Afghanistan, Eastern Europe and the Balkans. He profiled and interviewed dozens of world leaders, including former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Shimon Peres, General David Petraeus and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen.
For his reporting from Iraq, Raz was awarded both the Edward R. Murrow Award and the Daniel Schorr Journalism prize. His reporting has contributed to two duPont Awards and one Peabody awarded to NPR. He’s been a finalist for the Livingston Award four times. For his reporting from Germany, Raz was awarded both the RIAS Berlin prize and the Arthur F. Burns Award. In 2008, he spent a year as a Nieman journalism fellow at Harvard University where he studied classical history.
Raz’s written work has appeared in Salon, Washington City Paper, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor and the German daily, Sueddeutsche Zeitung.
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Pioneering and controversial psychologist Philip Zimbardo passed away in 2024. In this remembrance, we revisit his talk on how our sense of time plays a powerful role in shaping our outlook on life. -
Cognitive neuroscientist Irena Arslanova says our brain perceives time but our body shapes how we experience it. She shares how our heartbeat influences whether we experience time moving fast or slow. -
Most U.S. cities are designed for cars. But one Arizona community has been designed to be completely car-free. Urban planner Jeff Speck says all cities can build more walkability into their designs. -
Social norms vary dramatically from one culture to another — but why? Psychologist Michele Gelfand unpacks why societies and individuals develop either tight or loose attitudes toward rules. -
Our infrastructure is usually invisible. Not any more. Engineer Deb Chachra explains how climate change is forcing a global reimagining of neglected infrastructure systems. -
Developing new medications can take years. But computational biologist Aviv Regev says AI-powered cell mapping is transforming the process—helping to create life-saving drugs in much less time. -
Psychologist Dolly Chugh says many of us see ourselves as good people, but that idea holds us back from actually trying to be a better person. Instead, she suggests aiming for "good-ish"—open to growth and learning. -
After her father's death, Laurel Braitman chased success as a way to suppress her grief. But she eventually learned that running from pain prevented her from experiencing joy. -
Astrophysicist Avi Loeb is on a mission to prove aliens exist. His peers say he's chasing sensationalism. He reflects on his status as an academic pariah and whether controversial ideas can coexist. -
As otters have taken up residence in Singapore, tensions are rising with their human neighbors. Biologist Philip Johns argues that with some effort, these two species can live side-by-side.
