Jaron Lanier

Jaron Lanier is a computer scientist, author, and composer best known for his work in virtual reality research, a term he coined and popularized. A widely celebrated technology writer, Lanier has charted a humanistic approach to technology appreciation and criticism. He is the author of the award-winning international bestseller “Who Owns the Future?” as well as “You Are Not a Gadget.” He writes and speaks on numerous topics, including high-technology business, the social impact of technological practices, the philosophy of consciousness and information, Internet politics, and the future of humanism. Included on Encyclopedia Britannica’s list of history’s 300 or so greatest inventors, Lanier has been named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time, one of the 100 top public intellectuals by Foreign Policy, and one of the top 50 world thinkers by Prospect.