A professor, author, consultant and researcher, Sherry Turkle has spent the last 30 years researching the psychology of people’s relationships with technology. She is the Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at MIT, as well as the founder and current director of the MIT Initiative on Technology and Self, a center of research and reflection on the evolving connections between people and artifacts.

Referred to by many as the "Margaret Mead of digital culture," Sherry has investigated the intersection of digital technology and human relationships from the early days of personal computers to our current world of robotics, artificial intelligence, social networking and mobile connectivity. Her most recent book, Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, was a featured talk at TED2012 and describes technology's influence on relationships between friends, lovers, parents, and children, and new instabilities in how we understand privacy and community, intimacy and solitude.

Sherry's exploration into our lives on the digital terrain shows how technological advancement doesn't just catalyse changes in what we do—it affects how we think. Her research also raises critical questions about technology's role in business productivity, asking whether multi-tasking actually leads to deteriorating performance in each of our tasks. Does our always connected state affect our ability, to think, to be creative, and to innovate?

Sherry has been profiled in such publications as The New York Times, Scientific American, and Wired Magazine. She is a featured media commentator on the effects of technology for CNN, NBC, ABC, and NPR, including appearances on such programmes as Nightline, 20/20, and The Colbert Report. Professor Turkle received a joint doctorate in sociology and personality psychology from Harvard University and is a licensed clinical psychologist.

He holds a Law Degree and a Master in Political Sociology. He has served in several public positions; Head of Research of RTVE (1973-1979), Deputy General Director of the Spanish Sociological Research Center (1979-1981), Advisor to the Prime Minister (1981-1982), Councilman of Madrid (1983-1986) and Congressman (1986-1987).

Upon resigning from Parliament he founded and served as President of Demoscopia (1987-2003), leader in opinion research in Spain, served as CEO of GDM (1992-1994) and Director of Corporate Relations and advisor to the President at the BBVA Group (2003-2005). He was in the last years President of Inspire Consultores and Kantar Media, positions he resigned upon his appointment as Minister of Education, Culture and Sport of Spain, in December 2011.

He also has had an active role in different professional and trade associations: President of ANEIMO, Spanish trade association of research and market companies (1999-2003), Chairman of EFQM (2003-2011) and member of the ESOMAR Council and its President from 2005-2006. He has also lectured in Sociology at several Spanish universities He is the author of over 500 articles, monographs, and books on the sociology of the communication and has been a renown contributor to daily press, radio stations, and TV.

CNN World Report called Adam Gyorgy “a rising star”. From child prodigy to Liszt ambassador and philanthropist, Adam Gyorgy’s virtuosity and sensitive interpretations have won him critical acclaim and a growing enthusiastic fan base worldwide. Adam regularly performs at the world’s most prestigious concert halls such as New York City’s Carnegie Hall and Singapore’s Esplanade Concert Hall.

At 12 years old, Adam was accepted at the prestigious Bela Bartok Conservatory in Budapest. At 18, he won Hungary’s Pianist 2000 Award and entered the Franz Liszt Academy of Music. Adam won the Vienna Classics Prize in 2002 and in 2003 he won the Special Prize at the San Remo International Piano Competition. In 2004, he won all prizes (First Prize, Grand Prize, and Special Prize) at the First International Chopin Piano Competition in Budapest. In 2005, Adam was invited to join the Steinway Artist community, a single honour that places him in the company of the greatest pianists of all time. In 2010, Adam created the Adam Gyorgy Foundation in New York City whose mission is to play an instrumental role in contemporary society’s music education by supporting talents around the world, bridging cultures, and connecting people. Adam's piano academy in his hometown in Hungary provides access to the traditional European Piano School for students worldwide.

Long-time journalist for The Economist Adrian Wooldridge writes The Economist’s Schumpeter Column and is Management Editor. He also served as the magazine’s Washington Bureau Chief, Los Angeles Correspondent, and Social Policy Editor (specialising in education and health care). Adrian is the coauthor or coeditor with fellow Economist journalist John Micklethwait of five books on globalisation and business, including The Right Nation and the bestseller The Witch Doctors. His most recent book is Masters of Management: How The Business Gurus and Their Ideas Have Changed The World--For Better and For Worse.