What is truly fascinating is that just as children have an innate ability to learn language, their caregivers -- anyone from a mother to an older sibling to the teenage babysitter from down the block -- have an innate ability to teach it.

Should we take measures to thwart an impending asteroid collision if we're able to do so? Of course. But if we expend too much energy in anticipation of such a rare and unlikely event, then we're drawing resources away from more homegrown challenges that are far less remote and much more likely to occur in our lifetimes.

TED and HuffPost are planning an exciting experiment in the weeks ahead. We want to highlight some of today's most intriguing ideas. But to do so in a way that sees those ideas morph and develop in real time, in response to input from thousands of contributors, perhaps including you. Every weekend for the next year, we'll introduce a theme, anchored to a TEDTalk we think has at its core a powerful and timely concept. But rather than simply offering it up as is, we're opening it up to you to write your own post about it, leave a comment behind, and help refine it. Because that's the thing about ideas. They're not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, each of whom may bring an additional insight, they're capable of adaptation until they find their most potent form. A form that can truly go viral and perhaps impact millions of minds.

We sometimes forget that those great minds in medicine live in a body -- a human body. Those bodies need restorative sleep, nourishing food, stable blood sugar, exercise, and time for connection, reflection, and community.

I am heartened by the dawn of what is called "patient-centered care." This is far more than a slogan; it is a deep and abiding commitment by caregivers to put the patient first, foremost, in a medical care system too often organized for the convenience of caregivers and administrators.