Theme: Absolute Zero

The students at TEDxUofM are proud to present our 10th annual TEDxUofM Conference! This year's theme is Absolute Zero, and we hope to provoke some deep thought and discussion among our attendees with this theme and with a few amazing speakers and performers!

What does absolute zero mean to you? To our team members, it means anything from the complete absence of something, to your lowest point in life, to achieving a goal, to the realization of our own false realities. These ideas, and so many more, will be dived into at our conference, with each of our speakers bringing their unique story to the stage.

Join us Friday, February 22nd, 2019 for this spectacular evening! Buy your tickets now:
- Regular Student Pricing: $12
- General Public Admisson: $25

Tickets can be purchased at:
https://www.universe.com/events/tedxuofm-2019-absolute-zero-tickets-ann-arbor-VN26S7

Doors open at 5:15 pm. Come early to be able to pick up your nametag and engage with a few fun activities and our sponsors!

Please direct all inquiries to Clara Munkarah, Co-Director of the TEDxUofM Team. Email: cmunkar@umich.edu

Power Center
121 Fletcher Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48103
United States

Aaron Chow

As a martial artist, Aaron Chow experienced a severe injury, only to discover he would never fully recover. Through this experience, he discovered a passion for designing 3D-printed prosthetic devices and technologies that help improve the human experience. Aaron has since applied that focus to create highly dexterous prosthetics that can be custom-designed to the patient and printed in just one day for only a hundred dollars. He has immersed himself in the cutting-edge world of 3D printing and frequently presents his methodologies and patented work at tech conferences around the world. Aaron’s current goal is to help spread additive technologies across industries and drive changes that can improve people’s lives.

Aaron Dworkin

Aaron Dworkin works as a professor at the University of Michigan in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance and the Ross School of Business. Aaron’s story features a set of unlikely circumstances and events but is driven by a love of the arts from early on. His journey led him to an appointment to the National Council on the Arts, and he founded the Sphinx Organization with the aim of facilitating diversity in the arts. Aaron’s talk will include some of the experiences that helped affirm in his mind the importance of fostering communities where people from all walks of life can express themselves creatively.

Anne-Katrin Roesler

Anne-Katrin Roesler has always had a passion for mathematics, which led her to study math with a minor in astronomy at the University of Bonn, Germany. After completing her diploma in math, she transitioned to economics and earned her doctorate from the University of Bonn in 2015. She then spent a year as a postdoc with Kellogg MEDS at Northwestern University, before she joined the economics department at Michigan in 2016. She is fascinated with the idea of math being everywhere, and how it can be utilized in endless ways. She now applies her analytical skills to conduct research in microeconomic theory, and to teach about game theory and information design. In her research, she explores questions such as how information affects strategic situations, decisions, and outcomes, and the role of private learning in dynamic team problems.

David Kobrosky

David Kobrosky views the world through a lens of experimentation, which he attributes to his lifelong passion for skateboarding. His love of skateboarding inspired him to create Skatify, a community-focused skateboard park development venture. David uncovered a new depth of respect for the power of skateboarding to unite a group of people through this experience. He is also the proud founder of Easy Board Company, a contemporary skateboard manufacturer. David believes that facing challenges from a mindset of absolute zero is a powerful technique. He aims to describe and share this perspective in his talk.

Greg Harden

Greg Harden is a life coach and is often referred to as the “secret sauce” of Michigan Athletics. In his work as a clinical therapist, he focused on helping people adhere to their self-defined purpose and conquer the challenges they encounter. This perspective was instrumental in his experiences working with world-class athletes like Tom Brady and Michael Phelps. The heart of Greg’s passion is a fascination with the respective purposes that drive people in their daily lives. He aims to share the importance of defining one’s own driving purpose in his talk.

Natalie Tronson

Natalie Tronson is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Michigan. Originally from Australia, she has studied at Yale, the University of Chicago, and the University of Michigan. She researches the molecular mechanisms which affect signaling in the brain. A prominent section of her work focuses on the intersection of emotion and memory, including the relationship between fear and post-traumatic stress disorder. She has also extensively studied the effects of addiction. Natalie is working toward understanding memory and answering challenging questions: How can we improve our memory? How does memory differ between men and women?

Rishi Narayan

Rishi Narayan is a University of Michigan alum with two degrees in chemical engineering. His entrepreneurial drive led him to change his career aspirations while still in college. Along with a childhood friend, Rishi co-founded a custom apparel company, Underground Printing, which has expanded to 300 employees and more than 35 locations across the US. During this journey, Rishi’s academic and professional mentality has transformed from an emphasis on obtaining a “Slow A” to executing a “Fast B.” Rishi practices this “Fast B” philosophy every day as an entrepreneur, angel investor, startup mentor, and lecturer.

Sarah Wood

During her time at Michigan, Sarah Wood founded “Oats and Woes,” an oatmeal pop-up cafe that transformed into a popular personal blog and Instagram about finding joy through her struggle with mental health. In her healing process, Sarah uncovered that her purpose in life is to be a “joy soldier,” and redefined her personal metric of success to be that of joy creation, instead of job completion. Her journey focused on joy led her to meaningful experiences, such as teaching yoga, running in the NYC Marathon, and participating in a 10-day silent meditation retreat in Thailand. She currently shares her lessons learned through mentorship and leading workshops on well-being.