Professor Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas has a personal passion for animals & a professional passion for the power of technology. She came to Manchester to discuss how she brought these passions together and why the implications of her work for both animals and humans could be profound.Ilyena’s experiments show that animals are quite able and willing to use Internet technologies to interact with digital content, other animals and humans. Her work shows the amazing potential for how an ‘Internet for Animals’ could dramatically improve both human understanding of animal behaviour and overall animal welfare. Ilyena’s talk is an illustration of how the curiosity at the heart of academic exploration can lead us to unexpected places.Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas is a computer scientist and Lecturer at the University of Glasgow who creates interactive computer interfaces that enable animals to access the Internet, connect with each other, and control aspects of their environment. Pioneering the field of animal-computer interaction, her research explores how we can design technologies that not only serve animals but also reveal profound insights into their behaviour and cognition. Her work is regularly featured in the media, including The New York Times, New Scientist, and a Netflix documentary, bridging the worlds of technology and animal welfare.This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

What if consciousness isn’t a mysterious aspect of the universe—but its very foundation? In this thought-provoking talk, a philosopher challenges conventional science and revives a bold, forgotten theory: that consciousness pervades all matter. From quarks to brains, could experience be woven into the fabric of reality itself? Prepare to question everything you thought you knew about the mind—and your place in the cosmos. Philip is a professor of philosophy at Durham University, UK. His research focuses on consciousness and the ultimate nature of reality. He's best known for defending panpsychism, the view that consciousness pervades the universe and is a fundamental feature of it. Philip has published many academic articles and written extensively for newspapers and magazines, including Scientific American, The Guardian, and Aeon. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Sheena Franklin discusses the hard truth about ignoring women's health in modern society. In this powerful talk, Sheena shows that despite being 50% of the population, medical and pharma solutions are seldom built for women. She talks about how these gaps can be converted to opportunities which will help not only women but also the economy and society. Sheena Franklin is a pioneering force in women's health technology, data strategy, and healthcare innovation. A former federal healthcare government relations professional, she now leads K’ept Health, a data and analytics company addressing critical gaps in women's health. Through K’ept Health’s advocacy arm, Ethos, she empowers women to embrace health technology as a self-advocacy tool. As a sought-after expert, she shapes industry conversations on AI, data ethics, healthcare innovation, and policy regulations. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

In this thought-provoking talk, Dr. Beren Millidge explores how AI researchers draw on neuroscience and theoretical physics to unravel how intelligence arises in our brains and can be replicated in machines. He reflects on how progress in the field is steering us toward artificial general intelligence and considers its implications for humanity. Dr. Beren Millidge is a cofounder and the chief scientist at Zyphra, an AI lab based in Palo Alto. Prior to Zyphra, he was a research lead at Conjecture and a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford. He holds a PhD in Computational Neuroscience and Machine Learning from the University of Edinburgh. At Zyphra, Beren leads technical teams pretraining language, vision, and audio models. In academia, his research focused on understanding the mechanisms of deep credit assignment in the brain. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Dr. Hart is a nationally recognized psychologist and researcher focused on early intervention for children with learning and behavioral challenges. In this enlightening talk, Dr.Hart shares impactful strategies for building a strong foundation for school success and lifelong mental wellness for kids with ADHD. Dr. Katie Hart is a licensed psychologist, researcher, professor, and Director of the Center for Children and Families (CCF) at Florida International University. Her community-engaged research seeks to find innovative and sustainable ways to promote school readiness in young children with early learning and behavioral concerns, specializing in ADHD, with the ultimate goal of ensuring that all children and their families have a strong foundation for later school success and mental health well-being. Through her work at the CCF, she and her team, along with highly-valued and respect school and community partners, have developed and evaluated a number of nationally recognized early intervention programs to support these efforts, bolster positive early childhood experiences, and increase access to quality, evidence-based care. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx