TEDxNSU

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Now, Are We Here?

Brendan Eldom

How many of us actually tune in to our internal and external environments? And how many of us are moving through each day, but not really present in our own experiences? “The now” is a mysterious, complex piece of time we all struggle with. And yet, we are all connected to one another in this very moment. Is “the now” life? And if it is, and we are not fully present, are we truly living?
Time, Trauma, and Transformation

Steven Gold

A powerful example of the disparity between regimented clock-time and experiential lived-time is the odyssey into, through, and out of the nightmare of traumatization. For many trauma survivors, recovery brings on an entirely new sense of time. Time is now a gift to be unhurriedly and luxuriantly savored as a quality of life that was previously unimaginable reveals itself—one imbued with rich awareness of the present and hopeful anticipation of the future.
Time: A Combat Leader’s Perspective

Robert R. Hayward II

Throughout history, leaders have brought together members of diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds to accomplish shared goals. In these situations, time is the most precious resource because leaders must prioritize actions within finite time constraints. Synchronizing time-to-quality organizational development can be accomplished with the practice of tenants developed by Hayward during his combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The State of Time—A Spoken Word

Stephen Rafferty

At 15, Rafferty started scouting local open mic establishments, trying to get as much comedic exposure as possible. Within five years, he became an entrepreneur of sorts by creating a best-selling book, a YouTube interview miniseries, and two podcast series. His works have collectively garnered over 40,000 views. Rafferty will be unveiling a new spoken word performance at TEDxNSU.
What Do You Do With Your Time?

Isabel Rimanoczy, Ed.D.

What if we were tasked with making a difference, so that our time on this planet leaves it better than we found it? Rimanoczy has researched leaders who champion initiatives that have made a positive impact on the world, hoping to find ways to actively develop a new generation of responsible, purposeful leaders. The surprise: the solution is about the knowing, the being, and the doing. It is about connecting head with heart and hands, and connecting spiritual and emotional intelligence with action.
Do You Really Qualify for Divorce?

Michelle Rozen, Ph.D.

Divorce is an epidemic with 45–50% of first marriages and 60–67% of second marriages ending in divorce. Too often, couples don’t take the time necessary to determine if divorce was right for them. But there is a research-based approach that offers couples the time, insight, and tools to empower them to better assess their unique situations based on a series of applicable questions.
Little Steps and Giant Leaps: Time Is Limited, Possibility Is Not

Rheanna Rutledge, Ph.D.

During a yearlong tour in Afghanistan as a Lead Social Scientist with the U.S. Special Forces, Rutledge was reminded that time is no guarantee. By the end of her tour, lives were changed and many were saved, while her own life gained new perspective. In her talk, she explores the psychological connections between attitude and behavior that can take us from little steps to giant leaps.
Now or Never

Qaas Shoukat

In the fast-paced, technology-saturated world we live in today, many resources and services are readily available through the internet. What may have taken a long time in the past is now achieved in mere moments. Yet, technology has not been able to speed up everything. It is within this gap that we are living—in a state of increasing impatience—as we seek instant gratification in every facet of life, yet are forced to wait for those beyond our control.
Journey or the Milestones: Epigenetic Changes as Timestamp Along the Way of Human Evolution

Malav Trivedi, Ph.D.

Epigenetic changes are an epi-phenomenon that happens on—not in—the genetic code of an individual. These marks regulate cellular and physiological phenotypic trait variations caused by external or environmental factors, which switches genes on and off without changes in the DNA sequence throughout evolution. Epigenetic changes may not only serve as a memory timestamp for the day-to-day lifestyle of an individual, but are also an evolutionary timestamp and have contributed to who we are as a species.
Breaking Bias

Sarah Bramblette

With just one look at my 430-pound body, people instantly have a negative perception about the status of my health and nature of my character. When I arrive at a job interview or doctor’s office, my fate is often sealed as soon as I’m seen. But, my excess weight is due to a medical condition called Lipedema, not poor lifestyle choices. The obesity epidemic affects one-third of American adults, yet research shows that weight bias in the healthcare industry actually hinders patients’ ability to receive quality care, which creates a cycle that leads to poorer overall health. The cost of obesity-related illness is nearly 21 percent of annual medical spending in the U.S. The rising cost of healthcare affects everyone. Therefore, everyone should play a role in breaking the bias that inhibits the efforts to reduce obesity.
Rising Above the Magazine Covers

Brittany Calaluca

After a series of events including preparing for a bikini competition, taking a Photoshop class, and dealing with food obsessions, Brittany Calaluca realized that bodily perfection is not reality. Anything close to it is short lived and technologically created. As a fitness professional, she has adopted a personal mission to air out the industry’s dirty laundry of unhealthy diets, food and body-part obsessions, and a reliance on Photoshop to create the ideal images of a fitness model. This talk will include Calaluca’s personal experience, statistical data, and examples of the power and influence of digital photo editing. Where is the real work being done—in the gym or on a computer?
Uncovering Truth with Faith and Reason

Joshua Loomis, Ph.D.

Few topics have historically raised as much hostile debate as the apparent incompatibility between faith and science. As science continues to unravel the mysteries of the natural world at an unprecedented pace, many in the faith community have responded by rejecting any finding that they perceive as contradictory to what is found in their religious texts. This has unfortunately created a situation in which many feel forced to make a choice to either follow the word of God or embrace the theories and findings of science. The purpose of this talk is to dispel the myth that faith and science are contradictory and to instead show that they actually complement one another as they both seek to find truth.
Systematic Biases in Understanding Ourselves and Others

Weylin Sternglanz, Ph.D.

People like to think that their perceptions of themselves and of other people are reasonably logical and accurate.Yet, it is easy to demonstrate that we are not only irrational—but systematically so—in our interpersonal perceptions.We are surprisingly poor at figuring out (a) whether other people are truthful or deceptive, (b) what other people are feeling and thinking, and (c) even whether other people notice our own behavior and appearance.We are also somewhat clueless when it comes to judging our own personality traits and evaluating our own performance. While we are actually quite savvy at noticing other people’s misguided interpersonal perceptions, we tend to be overly confident in our own self-awareness.This talk will explore why most of us just know that our own interpersonal perceptions are so much more rational and level-headed than those of the silly people around us.
Trick Your Mind into Being Creative

Aadil Vora

Why is facing a blank canvas so difficult? Is it the blinding glare of the paper that makes your eyes squint, or is it the perplexity of countless possibilities? Time and time again, when facing problems that require our creative best, we simply don’t know where to start and, instead, get stuck with obvious and boring ideas. Inventing the ingenious can seem insoluble! But there is a simple mindhack anyone can use to get over this “writers block,” spark the mind, and ignite the creative process. In this talk, Aadil Vora will demonstrate how we can trick ourselves into thinking more creatively while filtering out the cliché.
An ‘F’ Word Revival in the New Millennium

Kate Waites, Ph.D.

Declared dead on Time magazine’s June 1998 cover, feminism has been standing on wobbly legs since the 1980s, thanks to public misperception and media-spin. In 1968, a Miss America Beauty Pageant protest in Atlantic City dubbed feminists as radicals and gave feminism a longstanding black eye. However, today’s social-justice-oriented and media-savvy generation, led by millennial celebrities—including Emma Watson, Lena Dunham, and Beyonce—is creating a more feminism-positive environment. If second-wave feminism rode the coattails of the Civil Rights and Peace movements, today’s surprising feminist revival may well be riding the wave of the gay rights and same-sex marriage movement. Feminism remains a controversial term, inspiring vitriol as well as celebration. But millennials, having outed the media-produced bogeyman, recognize that women’s rights are human rights, that men have a place in the movement, and that there is still much collective work to be done to realize the goal of sex and gender equality.
Sharks Like Bubbles Too

Matthew Ware

Man’s misunderstanding of the marine realm has spawned fascinating tales of heroes, sea monsters, adventures, and misery beyond imagination. Sea creatures have terrified and captivated generations the world over—probably none more so than sharks. Their powerful jaws, rows of unending razor-sharp teeth, and immense muscular bodies endow them with incredible speed and strength—all perfectly designed by millennia of “hunt or be hunted” survival skills. Our perception of sharks as terrifying eating machines is among the most persistent stigmas of nature. Our fear of these beautiful creatures has spawned awful legislation and heinous fishing practices. Thankfully, we are beginning to understand their true ecological value as top predators of the seas. Their economic force is also growing, as armies of tourists descend on aquariums, while SCUBA training allows individuals to witness sharks firsthand in their natural environment. These are powerful tools to combat the misunderstanding of sharks and help us remember that we are visitors in their world.
Parasites Lost: The Journey from Woeful Worms to Helpful Monsters

Christopher Blanar

People generally view parasites with horror and disgust, as mere agents of suffering and disease—but recent discoveries are changing that. Biologists are finding that parasites maintain biodiversity and drive ecological processes. Doctors are discovering that a world without parasites can be surprisingly unhealthy. Perhaps it is time to give these much-maligned creatures an image makeover?
A Perimenopausal Blonde Walks Into a University...

Carol Dowd-Forte

Writers know that it’s not always about one big moment. It’s about a series of smaller moments linked together as a narrative, both dramatic and subtle plot points which form an arc and move a story forward, so when the reader reaches The End, she looks back and says, “Ah, now I get it.” We also know how momentous it is to find your “voice” and how important that voice is to a writer’s life and process. Author George Eliot said, “It’s never too late to be what you might have been,” so I guess you can call this a “coming of middle age” tale.
The Eastern Tropical Pacific: One of the World’s Game-Changing Locations

Joshua Feingold

The Eastern Tropical Pacific has inspired many artists, poets, and scientists. This selection of images from above and below the water’s surface was captured by Joshua Feingold during some of his many trips there to study coral ecology.
Recognize Your Habits, Change Your Destiny

Michael P. Kelly

We each have the potential within us to achieve our ideal destiny, whether that vision is defined by personal wealth or being part of something that changes the world. But, our life experiences often leave us with habits of perception and behavior that sabotage our efforts to positively impact our own lives and the world at large. The crucial first step in changing these habits is to identify and understand some of the long-standing, unconscious perceptions and behaviors that drive our daily lives. Recognizing our strengths, which can then be enhanced; our sources of stress, which can then be alleviated; and our blind spots, which can then be dealt with, allows us to make powerful changes in our habits—and ultimately in our own personal destiny.
The Ultimate Teammate: The High Five

Brooklyn Kohlheim

A true competitive advantage in today’s world seems to be few and far between. Everything is accessible, statistically analyzed, and posted for everyone to see with most businesses and sports teams examining the same things across the board. The women’s basketball program at NSU has stepped outside the box to gain a competitive advantage by empowering their student-athletes to communicate non-verbally and, unlike most teams, stat the interactions every single day. As you will see, the result and idea is worth spreading.
Breast Cancer, Premature Puberty, and the Environment

Jean Latimer

In the arena of cancer research, there is much talk about gene-environment interactions. While genetics is the aspect most commonly discussed, only about 15% of breast cancers (the 2nd most common cancer in American women) are due to familial inheritance of a mutation. Reportedly, the other 85% of breast cancer cases are affected by environmental factors including diet. In addition, the phenomenon of premature puberty in industrialized countries is on the rise and is related to an increased risk for breast cancer. This talk will underscore the importance of the environment in breast cancer prevention and introduce steps that can be taken to improve our own environmental factors.
The Gray Area

Natalie Negron

During a medical internship last summer, biology student Natalie Negron was observing a transplant surgery on a brain-dead patient. As the surgery progressed, she began to mentally place herself in the position of the patient on the operating table and reflected upon the life she’s led. She asked herself, Have I done enough? Does my life have meaning? Her answers were game-changing.
Darwin’s Descendants and the Evolution of an Idea

Glenn Scheyd

Life existed on our planet for billions of years before anyone tried to make sense of it. The discovery of the principles of natural selection represents the most game-changing shift humans have made in our ability to understand ourselves. Only in combination with an understanding of genetic inheritance, however, was the more sophisticated work of Darwinian science possible. It is tempting for us, as it must have been for Darwin’s contemporaries, to think we finally have things figured out. The history of science should teach us otherwise.
So There Is No Free Will. Now What?

Robert Speth

With the sequencing of the human genome and advances in neuroscience, along with discoveries in the fields of epigenetics and social sciences, we have opened a Pandora’s Box. An increasingly unavoidable conclusion from the progress of science is that humans do not possess free will. Revealing this knowledge about ourselves challenges every facet of our understanding of who we are. This presentation will describe some of the mounting evidence that precludes the existence of free will. Additionally, this talk will attempt to resolve the paradoxical absence and illusion of free will that is so essential to our humanness.