Roger Ebert, Ver. 2.0

I marvel daily at technology, and struggle to keep up with its opportunities and ramifications, and that's my business. 

There are moments when I forget how powerful and energizing technology is, and times when I just want to jump off the grid into a forest of silence free of USB ports and wifi connectons.

Then I watch things like this TED speech from film critic Roger Ebert, who lost his jaw to cancer and survived several related brushes with death. Ebert, a Pulitzer Prize-winning film critic and longtime PBS star, can no longer speak. But he's wired optimism to technology and the result is an inspiring message that should remind us all that when our backs are against the wall, opportunity lurks. 

Design for change

Check out this inspiring TED presentation from a young woman whose non-profit approach to design is reshaping education in the poorest county in rural North Carolina.

Emily Pilloton is using grants, her own persistance and supportive educators to give students a design-centric educational environment that not only teaches important life skills but leaves lasting evidence of those lessons for the community as a whole to see and cherish.

It's pretty heady stuff to think a young woman can drive this kind of change amid such poor conditions. It shouldn't be surprising, given her TED bio that reads, in part:

"At graduate school, people were starting to talk more about sustainability, but I felt it lacked a human factor," she said. "Can we really call $5,000 bamboo coffee tables sustainable?" Convinced of the power of design to change the world, at age 26 Pilloton founded Project H to help develop effective design solutions for people who need it most.

 I was once told the best design is design you don't see but which makes your life better, easier, more rewarding. This would seem to fit that bill.

"Measuring what makes life worthwhile"

Lots of good messages -- even mixed messages -- in this TED video, but the ultimate takeaway for me: You cannot wait for happiness to come to you, you have to reach out and grab it. Too many people keep waiting ...