TEDxChapmanU shares the love Mandy Len Catron's 'To Fall in Love with Anyone' talk is chosen by TED as Talk of the Day

A TEDxChapmanU 2015 talk by the writer who famously tested a theory that strangers could use a set of 36 questions to fall in love was selected by TED as the Talk of the Day and is showcased on its website today, Thursday, Sept. 17.

“To Fall in Love with Anyone” by Mandy Len Catron was one of 14 presentations given at Chapman University’s third annual TEdx held this summer. In her talk Catron recounts with candor and humor what it was like to use a scientific formula to fall in love, share the tale in the New York Times and then be hit by worldwide reaction to her story.

Catron’s essay about her experience with the theory posed by psychologist Arthur Aron became a viral hit, setting hearts and minds aflutter around the world and drawing 8 million views in one month.

“It’s one thing to work up your confidence to write about your experience with love, but it is another thing to discover that your love life has made international news.”

Mandy Len Catron, speaking at TEDxChapmanU

Catron, who blogs at The Love Story Project, just announced that she has sold a book of essays on love to Simon and Schuster.

To have a TEDxChapmanU talk singled out from among the thousands produced in more than 130 countries is remarkable, said Char Williams, director of institutional events and the organizer of TEDxChapmanU. The TED website is one of the world’s most popular websites, and the visibility for Chapman is unmatched, Williams said.

“This is only our fourth year planning and hosting TEDxChapmanU, and to see our hard work recognized in this way is exciting. Mandy’s talk truly does speak to the masses, and we know that it will resonate with the audiences who watch it. We couldn’t be more thrilled,” Williams said.

“Icons, Geniuses & Mavericks” is the continuing theme of TEDxChapmanU, launched in 2012 to bring the “ideas worth sharing” TED experience to Chapman University and showcase speakers with powerful stories of courage, passion and innovation. Featured speakers have ranged from Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX, to filmmaker Shaun MacGillivray of MacGillivray Freeman Films.

TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks of 18 minutes or less. TED began in 1984 as a conference where technology, entertainment and design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world.