As thousands gather this week in Long Beach for the 2011 Technology, Entertainment, and Design (TED) conference, the organization's TEDx program is continuing to grow, with hundreds of independently run TED-style gatherings popping up all over the map. On Wednesday, TEDxEast—one of the first large TEDx events to take place in the city—opened the registration for its fourth symposium, a day-long event scheduled for Monday, May 9, at the TimesCenter. The conference, titled "Tinker, Noodle, Obsess," will host a number of speakers, including the District of Columbia public schools system's former chancellor Michelle Rhee and artist William Ryman, who installed a 25-foot-high flower sculptures on Park Avenue in January.
"At this event we will explore the ideas, hobbies, obsessions, talents, and endeavors—sometimes hidden—that a diverse group of people are tinkering, noodling, and obsessing about," said Julianne Wurm, the founder and curator of TEDxEast.
