Herald-Times: Attendees gain new perspectives at TedxBloomington conference
Saturday, April 26, 2014 10:41 pm | Updated: 12:03 am, Sun Apr 27, 2014.
By Emily La Borde elaborde@heraldt.com
Most of Bloomington was abuzz with Little 500 festivities on Saturday, but the Buskirk-Chumley Theater downtown had a different kind of buzz; one of new ideas, creativity, connections.
This year’s TedxBloomington, with its theme of “What Goes ’Round,” had more local Bloomington speakers than ever before, with presentation topics ranging from Indiana limestone to common misconceptions about energy and water consumption.
Jeffrey Kline, vice chairman for research in the department of emergency medicine and professor of physiology with the Indiana University School of Medicine, shared his research about using patients’ facial expressions as a diagnostic instrument for physicians as a way to reduce unnecessary and costly tests. Kline says, “Every face has a story to tell. When it comes to illness, there is no poker face.”
Christian Briggs, co-founder of SociaLens and a Ph.D. candidate at the IU School of Informatics and Computing, encouraged each attendee to be an “everyday learner” … to “ask better questions that dive deeper in order to shape change.”
Jeanne Leimkuhler, founder of the Trashion Refashion Show and co-founder of Discardia, challenged the group to “think twice, even three times about how something could be reused.”
Christy Hull Hegarty, artist and advocate for parents of transgender children, shared her personal parenting experience and what she has learned as the mother of a transgender child.
“We need to allow our children to become something other than what we imagined,” Hegarty said.
On why she shares her personal story, Hegarty said, “The rewards are greater than the risks.”
Juan Carlos, a new Bloomington resident from Costa Rica, jumped at the chance to attend TedxBloomington.
“I’ve watched Ted Talks online and was excited I could come to TedxBloomington and experience this in person,” he said. “I thought Christy Hegarty’s talk was strong and motivational, teaching people to accept whatever life throws at us.”
Jim Ansaldo, a local comedian and musician, agreed. “It has definitely lived up to my expectations. I’m interested in new ideas and making connections, and this is a great place to do that. I like the nice mix of performances, too.”
Along with the learning sessions, TedxBloomington attendees enjoyed performances from the Flight Club, a fitness and aerial studio, and music by Salaam. There was even a massive multiplayer game of thumb wrestling.