Hans Rosling's 2006 TED talk demonstrated that statistics can be interesting, as well as important. In this year's talk, Rosling lets the GapMinder software roam freely, providing his own running commentary on how developing countries are pulling themselves out of poverty. He also demos Dollar Street, a program that lets you peer in the windows of typical families worldwide living at different income levels. Be sure to watch straight through to the (literally) jaw-dropping finale.

Try out GapMinder for yourself at http://tools.google.com/gapminder/, and see how knowledge can help change the world.

A presentation on public health, by all expectations, should be boring. This is a problem, since one of the greatest challenges the developing world faces is the lack (or poor use) of development statistics by those who want to help.

In this presentation, Hans Rosling uses lively narration and vivid animation to challenge the West's preconceptions about poverty. Asian countries, as colorful bubbles, float across the grid -- toward better national health and wealth. Animated bell curves representing national income distribution squish and flatten. In Rosling's hands, global trends -- life expectancy, child mortality, poverty rates -- become clear, intuitive and even playful.