“Please choose and watch three of the must-see TED Talks. For each one write a “point of view” memo, i.e. your guided summary and analysis in which you:

A. BRIEFLY (as many words as necessary but as few as possible) summarize the main argument(s) of the talk for those who haven’t seen it.

B. Suggest at last three talking points–things worth discussing, paying attention to, etc.–in terms of the implications of the talk at the personal, institutional (e.g. St. Francis College, your workplace, etc.), or societal level. Each talking point should, ideally, as possible, be one sentence only.

The idea with the talking points is to offer added value, i.e. your analysis, interpretation, connective thinking, etc., that goes beyond a summary of the talk itself. Fill a gap, extend an idea, make connections to the real world and/or to other ideas, challenge or reinterpret some aspect of the talk, etc. What’s the essential “take away,” why should I/we/anybody care?

The approach to all this and the particular nature of your summary and talking points will be somewhat determined by your intended audience. Each of the three memos should have a different and distinctive intended audience and each should, therefore, also have a different distinctive tone and intention. Possible audiences: the class, me, SFC president, USA president, a real or imagined boss or group of colleagues, etc.

Memos should be succinct, preferably one page, rhetorically pointed and purposeful. Use white space, bullet points and/or numbered lists, indents, headings, etc. to your advantage. Feel free to search out and use other memo writing advice.”
The link to the TED talks is below, and any TED talk is alright to choose as long as you haven’t written about it before preferably.https://www.ted.com/playlists/77/11_must_see_ted_talks