10 Most Popular TED Talks of 2015

6. Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong

With over 3 million views so far, British journalist Johann Hari tips upside down everything we think we know about addiction. Based on his three years of extensive research, Hari explores the idea that drugs are not inherently addictive. Instead, he looks at two experiments with rats where they were offered plain water, or water laced with heroin. You may be surprised as to the results! This is an entertaining and thought-provoking talk, which suggests the need to rethink our ideas about drug addiction. Following on from Guy Winch’s talk about emotional health (number 8 in our list of the top 10 TED talks of 2015), suggests that the connections we have with each other play an important role in our understanding of what makes us addicted to drugs.