[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:03.16,0:00:25.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Music)
Dialogue: 0,0:00:25.12,0:00:27.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Good afternoon.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:27.41,0:00:31.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As you're all aware, we face difficult economic times.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:31.87,0:00:34.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I come to you with a modest proposal
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.32,0:00:36.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for easing the financial burden.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:36.86,0:00:38.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This idea came to me while talking to
Dialogue: 0,0:00:38.39,0:00:41.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a physicist friend of mine at MIT.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:41.36,0:00:44.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He was struggling to explain something to me:
Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.05,0:00:48.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a beautiful experiment that uses lasers to cool down matter.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:48.63,0:00:50.53,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now he confused me from the very start,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:50.53,0:00:52.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because light doesn't cool things down.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:52.89,0:00:56.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It makes it hotter. It's happening right now.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:56.34,0:00:58.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The reason that you can see me standing here is because
Dialogue: 0,0:00:58.88,0:01:02.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this room is filled with more than 100 quintillion photons,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.65,0:01:06.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they're moving randomly through the space, near the speed of light.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:06.19,0:01:07.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,All of them are different colors,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:07.70,0:01:09.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they're rippling with different frequencies,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:09.64,0:01:12.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they're bouncing off every surface, including me,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:12.52,0:01:14.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and some of those are flying directly into your eyes,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:14.93,0:01:18.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that's why your brain is forming an image of me standing here.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:18.13,0:01:19.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now a laser is different.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:19.78,0:01:23.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It also uses photons, but they're all synchronized,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:23.79,0:01:26.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and if you focus them into a beam,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:26.49,0:01:28.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,what you have is an incredibly useful tool.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:28.89,0:01:31.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The control of a laser is so precise
Dialogue: 0,0:01:31.02,0:01:33.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that you can perform surgery inside of an eye,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.70,0:01:36.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you can use it to store massive amounts of data,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:36.34,0:01:38.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you can use it for this beautiful experiment
Dialogue: 0,0:01:38.67,0:01:41.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that my friend was struggling to explain.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:41.15,0:01:44.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,First you trap atoms in a special bottle.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.40,0:01:47.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It uses electromagnetic fields to isolate the atoms
Dialogue: 0,0:01:47.36,0:01:49.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from the noise of the environment.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:49.55,0:01:52.03,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the atoms themselves are quite violent,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.03,0:01:56.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but if you fire lasers that are precisely tuned to the right frequency,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:56.07,0:01:58.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,an atom will briefly absorb those photons
Dialogue: 0,0:01:58.70,0:02:00.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and tend to slow down.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:00.58,0:02:03.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Little by little it gets colder
Dialogue: 0,0:02:03.90,0:02:08.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,until eventually it approaches absolute zero.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.41,0:02:11.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now if you use the right kind of atoms and you get them cold enough,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:11.59,0:02:15.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,something truly bizarre happens.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:15.36,0:02:18.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's no longer a solid, a liquid or a gas.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:18.18,0:02:22.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It enters a new state of matter called a superfluid.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.12,0:02:24.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The atoms lose their individual identity,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:24.41,0:02:27.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the rules from the quantum world take over,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:27.24,0:02:31.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that's what gives superfluids such spooky properties.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:31.33,0:02:34.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For example, if you shine light through a superfluid,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:34.79,0:02:37.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it is able to slow photons down
Dialogue: 0,0:02:37.81,0:02:40.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to 60 kilometers per hour.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:47.58,0:02:50.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Another spooky property is that it flows
Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.64,0:02:53.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with absolutely no viscosity or friction,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:53.27,0:02:55.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so if you were to take the lid off that bottle,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:55.54,0:02:57.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it won't stay inside.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:57.63,0:03:00.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A thin film will creep up the inside wall,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:00.41,0:03:04.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,flow over the top and right out the outside.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:04.63,0:03:07.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now of course, the moment that it does hit the outside environment,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.59,0:03:11.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and its temperature rises by even a fraction of a degree,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:11.31,0:03:13.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it immediately turns back into normal matter.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.43,0:03:16.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Superfluids are one of the most fragile things we've ever discovered.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.100,0:03:19.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And this is the great pleasure of science:
Dialogue: 0,0:03:19.36,0:03:23.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the defeat of our intuition through experimentation.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:23.57,0:03:25.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the experiment is not the end of the story,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:25.26,0:03:28.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because you still have to transmit that knowledge to other people.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:28.79,0:03:31.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I have a Ph.D in molecular biology.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.16,0:03:34.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I still barely understand what most scientists are talking about.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:34.70,0:03:37.65,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So as my friend was trying to explain that experiment,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:37.65,0:03:40.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it seemed like the more he said,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.59,0:03:43.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the less I understood.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:43.56,0:03:45.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because if you're trying to give someone the big picture
Dialogue: 0,0:03:45.94,0:03:50.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a complex idea, to really capture its essence,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:50.02,0:03:53.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the fewer words you use, the better.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.60,0:03:56.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In fact, the ideal may be to use no words at all.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:56.92,0:03:58.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I remember thinking, my friend could have explained
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.47,0:04:01.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that entire experiment with a dance.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:01.61,0:04:05.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Of course, there never seem to be any dancers around when you need them.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:05.97,0:04:07.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, the idea is not as crazy as it sounds.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:07.86,0:04:11.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I started a contest four years ago called Dance Your Ph.D.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:11.36,0:04:13.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Instead of explaining their research with words,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:13.98,0:04:16.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,scientists have to explain it with dance.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:16.88,0:04:19.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now surprisingly, it seems to work.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:19.25,0:04:22.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Dance really can make science easier to understand.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:22.52,0:04:24.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But don't take my word for it.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:24.32,0:04:27.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Go on the Internet and search for "Dance Your Ph.D."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:27.20,0:04:30.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are hundreds of dancing scientists waiting for you.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.46,0:04:32.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The most surprising thing that I've learned while running this contest
Dialogue: 0,0:04:32.54,0:04:37.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that some scientists are now working directly with dancers on their research.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:37.83,0:04:39.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For example, at the University of Minnesota,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:39.71,0:04:42.22,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there's a biomedical engineer named David Odde,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:42.22,0:04:45.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and he works with dancers to study how cells move.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:45.38,0:04:47.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They do it by changing their shape.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:47.79,0:04:50.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When a chemical signal washes up on one side,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:50.60,0:04:53.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it triggers the cell to expand its shape on that side,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.73,0:04:57.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because the cell is constantly touching and tugging at the environment.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:57.01,0:05:00.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So that allows cells to ooze along in the right directions.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:00.98,0:05:04.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But what seems so slow and graceful from the outside
Dialogue: 0,0:05:04.92,0:05:07.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is really more like chaos inside,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:07.35,0:05:11.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because cells control their shape with a skeleton of rigid protein fibers,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:11.75,0:05:14.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and those fibers are constantly falling apart.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:14.60,0:05:17.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But just as quickly as they explode,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.17,0:05:19.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,more proteins attach to the ends and grow them longer,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:19.58,0:05:21.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so it's constantly changing
Dialogue: 0,0:05:21.77,0:05:24.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,just to remain exactly the same.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:24.76,0:05:27.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now, David builds mathematical models of this and then he tests those in the lab,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:27.93,0:05:30.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but before he does that, he works with dancers
Dialogue: 0,0:05:30.71,0:05:34.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to figure out what kinds of models to build in the first place.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:34.41,0:05:37.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's basically efficient brainstorming,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:37.50,0:05:39.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and when I visited David to learn about his research,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:39.76,0:05:43.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he used dancers to explain it to me
Dialogue: 0,0:05:43.10,0:05:47.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,rather than the usual method: PowerPoint.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:47.64,0:05:49.100,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And this brings me to my modest proposal.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:49.100,0:05:52.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I think that bad PowerPoint presentations
Dialogue: 0,0:05:52.87,0:05:55.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are a serious threat to the global economy.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:55.54,0:06:03.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) (Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:06:03.47,0:06:08.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now it does depend on how you measure it, of course,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:08.35,0:06:13.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but one estimate has put the drain at 250 million dollars per day.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:13.12,0:06:15.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now that assumes half-hour presentations
Dialogue: 0,0:06:15.30,0:06:17.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for an average audience of four people
Dialogue: 0,0:06:17.35,0:06:19.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with salaries of 35,000 dollars,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:19.67,0:06:21.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it conservatively assumes that
Dialogue: 0,0:06:21.63,0:06:25.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about a quarter of the presentations are a complete waste of time,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.56,0:06:28.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and given that there are some apparently
Dialogue: 0,0:06:28.14,0:06:31.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,30 million PowerPoint presentations created every day,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:31.42,0:06:34.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that would indeed add up to an annual waste
Dialogue: 0,0:06:34.30,0:06:37.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of 100 billion dollars.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:37.40,0:06:39.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Of course, that's just the time we're losing
Dialogue: 0,0:06:39.77,0:06:41.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,sitting through presentations.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:41.99,0:06:46.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are other costs, because PowerPoint is a tool,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:46.31,0:06:49.64,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and like any tool, it can and will be abused.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:49.64,0:06:52.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,To borrow a concept from my country's CIA,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:52.13,0:06:55.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it helps you to soften up your audience.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:55.24,0:06:59.49,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It distracts them with pretty pictures, irrelevant data.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:59.49,0:07:03.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It allows you to create the illusion of competence,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:03.23,0:07:05.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the illusion of simplicity,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:05.99,0:07:10.72,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and most destructively, the illusion of understanding.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:10.72,0:07:14.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So now my country is 15 trillion dollars in debt.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:14.96,0:07:19.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Our leaders are working tirelessly to try and find ways to save money.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:19.94,0:07:24.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One idea is to drastically reduce public support for the arts.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:24.41,0:07:26.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For example, our National Endowment for the Arts,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:26.62,0:07:29.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with its $150 million budget,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:29.20,0:07:32.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,slashing that program would immediately reduce the national debt
Dialogue: 0,0:07:32.21,0:07:35.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by about one one-thousandth of a percent.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:35.57,0:07:37.31,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One certainly can't argue with those numbers.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:37.31,0:07:42.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,However, once we eliminate public funding for the arts,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:42.59,0:07:45.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there will be some drawbacks.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:45.27,0:07:49.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The artists on the street will swell the ranks of the unemployed.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:49.66,0:07:52.07,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Many will turn to drug abuse and prostitution,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:52.07,0:07:55.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that will inevitably lower property values in urban neighborhoods.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:55.19,0:08:00.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,All of this could wipe out the savings we're hoping to make in the first place.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:00.10,0:08:03.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I shall now, therefore, humbly propose my own thoughts,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:03.34,0:08:07.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which I hope will not be liable to the least objection.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:07.12,0:08:09.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Once we eliminate public funding for the artists,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:09.01,0:08:10.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,let's put them back to work
Dialogue: 0,0:08:10.60,0:08:13.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by using them instead of PowerPoint.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:13.62,0:08:17.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,As a test case, I propose we start with American dancers.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:17.10,0:08:19.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,After all, they are the most perishable of their kind,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:19.26,0:08:21.41,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,prone to injury and very slow to heal
Dialogue: 0,0:08:21.41,0:08:24.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,due to our health care system.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:24.23,0:08:27.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Rather than dancing our Ph.Ds,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:27.37,0:08:30.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we should use dance to explain all of our complex problems.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:30.99,0:08:33.85,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Imagine our politicians using dance
Dialogue: 0,0:08:33.85,0:08:37.63,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to explain why we must invade a foreign country
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.63,0:08:40.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or bail out an investment bank.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:40.50,0:08:42.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's sure to help.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:42.46,0:08:46.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Of course someday, in the deep future,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:46.21,0:08:48.59,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a technology of persuasion
Dialogue: 0,0:08:48.59,0:08:52.02,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,even more powerful than PowerPoint may be invented,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:52.02,0:08:55.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,rendering dancers unnecessary as tools of rhetoric.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:55.57,0:08:58.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,However, I trust that by that day,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:58.14,0:09:01.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we shall have passed this present financial calamity.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:01.46,0:09:04.82,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Perhaps by then we will be able to afford the luxury
Dialogue: 0,0:09:04.82,0:09:07.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of just sitting in an audience
Dialogue: 0,0:09:07.94,0:09:09.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with no other purpose
Dialogue: 0,0:09:09.78,0:09:14.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than to witness the human form in motion.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:14.35,0:10:25.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Music)
Dialogue: 0,0:10:25.19,0:10:54.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)