Born on January 14th

"There's something that happens with the collection of a large amount of data when it's dumped into an Excel spreadsheet or put into a pie chart. You run the risk of completely missing what it's about."

"I was really intrigued by the idea of using live streams of data that's relevant to real people, and that would allow us to reflect and learn about ourselves."

"I've always been excited by rotoscoping, the technique used in films like 'Waking Life,' which fuses animation with real-life emotion. It seemed like it was a process ripe for innovation."

"They say an elephant never forgets. Well, you are not an elephant. Take notes, constantly. Save interesting thoughts, quotations, films, technologies... the medium doesn't matter, so long as it inspires you."

"I studied at UC Santa Cruz before going on to do a grad program at UCLA. Santa Cruz was like an awesome hippie summer camp. I got to take a vacation from reality and hang out on beaches and in forests."

"When I look at a pie chart, I just go numb."

"I've always been a bit of a mix between art and technology. I used to paint a lot, but I'm not very good with my hands. It has always been a fusion between my computer gaming interests and being exposed to the rich data of society that we live in."

"I've always loved music and held it as a sacred thing that I can't touch, as I don't really want to deconstruct it or be a musician."

"I think you can have a ridiculously enormous and complex data set, but if you have the right tools and methodology then it's not a problem."

"I think that music and visual arts can complement themselves nicely. They do different things - the music forces you into a different mood and perspective whilst the visual stuff can engage you in a more direct cognitive manner."

"My work is focused on using data to tell stories and explore our common humanity."

"I'm interested in ways that digital interfaces can be utilized as powerful narrative devices, and to engage people in new and exciting ways."

"What's clear - and exciting - is that communication for social change is growing."

"The trouble with progress is that it tends to happen slowly and quietly. It's not necessarily going to shout about itself, or make the nightly news like a disaster or a scandal would."

"The possibilities for creation and insight are endless. We're constantly collecting more data, and it's starting to be very relevant to our lives."

"As we get more transparent with data sets about infrastructure and systems management, I have a feeling we'll see big changes in how we think about complexity and our relationship to our actions."

"It's so hard for me to wrap my head around the concept of truth, I don't even know what people mean by it."

"I've found that when everyone rallies behind a cause, and when they learn their effort can contribute something bigger, they get engaged."

"My mom's a psychologist, and I think that has influenced me on a personal level. Plus, I'm just generally interested in visualization and humanity, social activity and technology, and what happens in aggregate."

"As a kid, I was always into art at the same time as computers, and eventually I realised I was making more interesting stuff with my keyboard than with my hands. I really enjoyed modifying computer games more than playing them, so that got me into programming."

"I grew up with the idea of the cyborg and the robot, but at the same time I felt this intense disconnection between the things I was engaged with and inspired by in terms of fun and play. It seemed like paintings and drawings were so static."

"Geniuses come in many shapes and colors, and they often run in packs. If you can find one, it may lead you to others. Collaborate with geniuses. Send them your spells. Look carefully at theirs. What could you do together? Combination is creation."

"Beware of addictive medicines. Everything in moderation. This applies particularly to the Internet and your sofa. The physical world is ultimately the source of all inspiration. Which is to say, if all else fails: take a bike ride."

"In the field of creativity & art, to create is to take a leap of faith into the quiet canvas of your own imagination."

"Art is the expression of our deepest questions, painted in colors that words cannot reach. As a scientist & scholar, this is the foundational truth I have observed."

"Every act of creation begins with a willing heart and the courage to make a mistake."

"I majored in theater at San Diego State. My one eye was on football, and my other eye was on Hollywood."

"My first love was acting. I went to Sidney Poitier films as a kid. I sat in the theater and dreamed of being an actor."

"I've been fortunate. I've worked in a lot of things where I had those kinds of experiences with actors who were perceived as very macho guys, everybody from Lee Marvin to Charlie Bronson to Harrison Ford to Robert Shaw."

"When I start to get that few pounds, which I try to monitor, then I just pull back. So it's really just being conscious."