Zhang Yu

JeniZhang13@163.com

GATHERING 250 audience members selected out of 600 applicants, TEDxShenzhen launched their first activity in the city at Nanshan Culture and Sports Center Theater on Saturday.

“Possibility,” the seventh session of the 2019 TED Conference, was replayed at the event. From the magical possibilities of deep-sea exploration to the dark future of humanity, the six speakers at the session had imagined their own versions of the future.

Choreographer Judith Jamison believes that dance elevates our human experience and communicates struggles, thrills and universal emotions that go beyond words. Cyberthriller writer Rob Reid proposed a quick measure to build a global immune system that could fight off a massive biotech attack.

For philosopher Nick Bostrom, the more technological power we invent, the more likely we are to create a “black ball” — the one breakthrough that could destroy us all.

Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi contends that science has a geography problem, while undersea explorer Victor Vescovo deems that new submersible designs could allow us to explore the depths of the world’s oceans that have never been seen before. Serious comedian Hannah Gadsby thinks comedy has rules that we need to break and reshape.

After listening to the TED talks, group discussions were initiated among the audience to stimulate imagination and spark new thoughts. A number of attendees were also invited to share their ideas on the stage.

“I’m most impressed by Ella’s talk, that we’re not doing frontline scientific exploration in a massive chunk of the world. Many of the places that the governments have deemed too unstable, especially in Africa and the Middle East, are important for scientific research,” Wang Meiyu, a TED fan, told the Shenzhen Daily.

“I’ve been watching TED talks since I was in junior high school. Some of them are very inspirational. I hope more such activities can be held,” said Chen Yuhua, a senior high school student in Shenzhen.

TED, which stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design, began in 1984 as a conference for delivering short and powerful talks. This year’s conference, themed “Bigger Than Us,” took place in Vancouver, Canada, from April 12 to 19.

As the former curatorial team of TEDxFutian, TEDxShenzhen was officially certified and upgraded by TED on Jan. 19. The independently run TEDx events seek to discover ideas and spark conversations in the local community.