Paul Stamets believes that mushrooms can save our lives, restore our ecosystems and transform other worlds.
Why you should listen
Entrepreneurial mycologist Paul Stamets seeks to rescue the study of mushrooms from forest gourmets and psychedelic warlords. The focus of Stamets' research is the Northwest's native fungal genome, mycelium, but along the way he has filed 22 patents for mushroom-related technologies, including pesticidal fungi that trick insects into eating them, and mushrooms that can break down the neurotoxins used in nerve gas.
There are cosmic implications as well. Stamets believes we could terraform other worlds in our galaxy by sowing a mix of fungal spores and other seeds to create an ecological footprint on a new planet.
What others say
Once you’ve heard 'renaissance mycologist' Paul Stamets talk about mushrooms, you'll never look at the world -- not to mention your backyard -- in the same way again.
Paul Stamets’ TED Talk
More news and ideas from Paul Stamets
In Brief
Prosthetics that feel more natural, how mushrooms may help save bees, and more
July 21, 2017
Please enjoy your roundup of TED-related news: Prosthetics that feel more natural. A study in Science Robotics lays out a surgical technique developed by Shriya Srinivasan, Hugh Herr and others that may help prosthetics feel more like natural limbs. During an amputation, the muscle pairs that allow our brains to sense how much force is […]
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9 ways mushrooms could drastically improve the world
October 29, 2013
In today’s TED Talk, biologist Mohamed Hijri directs our attention to an incredible biotechnology — not one he invented, but one that’s been around for 450 million years. They are: mycorrhiza, microscopic mushrooms that grow in a symbiotic relationship with the roots of plants. These mushrooms are incredible at helping plants find phosphorous, an essential […]
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Your weekend reading: The purpose of life, an excellent mushroom timelapse
July 5, 2013
Interesting, informative, bizarre. Here’s a round-up of interwebs reading from the past few weeks: Mushrooms are not at the top of my favorite foods list but, above, see why they are now at the top of my favorite things to watch a timelapse video of. Shot by cinematographer Louie Schwartzberg (watch his TED Talks) and starring mushroom […]
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