CEDTalks

Just before his plane dipped into the clouds above Beijing International Airport two years ago, Ben Gulak caught the last clear view of the sun that he would see for two weeks. On the ground, the 17-year-old, who was on a family trip to China, quickly spotted a source for much of the thick haze hanging over the city: smog-spewing motorbikes. Thousands of them, everywhere. “Right then,” he says, “I decided that I wanted to create an alternative mode of transportation, something clean and compact.”  Read More...

In 2013, with the number of successful, beautiful, and eligible ladies still being in men's favor, brothers continue to embarrass themselves in an effort to secure women's affection. I blame Sprite. For years, the popular soda brand acted as an accomplice in men being overly hype in their pursuit of females. They urged us to show no discretion and tact in our approach with the utterance of three simple words: "Obey Your Thirst". While the catch phrase helped  Sprite (and its parent brand, Coca-Cola) acquire buku billions, it led many a gentleman to the proverbial waste side. Over time, this quote has been taken out of context and influenced men to allow their sexual and emotional desires to steer their line of thinking, an action that can result in catastrophic consequences. (In the voice of Rakim) Thinking of a thirsty text... Though my reference to Sprite is made in jest, I am genuine in my concern for some of my gender's behavior when looking...

In 2007, I was working with Y.M.e? Photography, a company that my friends and I started at our college. We started in studio photography, eventually expanding to events, but we made a name for ourselves with our model photos. In our heyday we were GOOD; G, Jeff, Rob, and I snapped a lot of classics with Devyn infusing his music genius and Ray marketing the product. One of the intangible skills that separated our photography from competitors was...we found the sexy. Looking at our old pics, it is still evident: We were able to capture the best essence of each of our models. Sexy or cute?  Zooeeeeee.... Doing so, however, would always prompt the question, "Which models were naturally sexy?", which expanded into what girls we knew were sexy and who was just cute. At first listen, it sounds like a vain and pretentious statement but there are great benefits in identifying the difference. Recognizing the stark contrast between cute and sexy allows women to maximize th...