Contributors

Jakow Trachtenberg was a Jewish mathematician who developed the mental calculation techniques called the Trachtenberg system. He was born in Odessa, the Russian empire in 1988 and worked as an engineer in the Obukhov arms factory. He was a dedicated pacifist and instrumental in organising the Society of Good Samaritans when the First World War broke out. After the Russian revolutions of 1917, Trachtenberg fled to the Weimar Republic where he was later critical of Nazi policies and imprisoned in a concentration camp during World War II. He developed his system of mathematics during his imprisonment. He died in 1953.

Patrick Dacre Trevor-Roper (7 June 1916 – 22 April 2004) was a prominent British eye surgeon, author and pioneer gay rights activist, who played a leading role in the campaign to decriminalise homosexuality in the UK.

David Toop is a highly regarded author, music critic and musician. Since 1995 he has released three solo albums, curated five compilation albums (including the soundtrack to Ocean of Sound), and the sound and music exhibition at the Hayward Gallery – 'Sonic Boom'. His music journalism appears in The Wire, Book Forum, The Times and The Face.

Dr Jerry Toner is Fellow and Director of Studies in Classics, Churchill College, Cambridge University. He is the author of How to Manage Your Slaves and Release your Inner Roman, which were published by Profile under his pseudonym Marcus Sidonius Falx.

Jeffrey Toobin is an American lawyer, author, and legal analyst for CNN and New Yorker. He is the author of five books, including The Run of His Life: The People versus O. J. Simpson which was made into the hit TV series The People v. O.J. Simpson.

James Tooley is a professor of education policy at Newcastle university, where he directs the E. G. West Centre. He is currently chairman of education companies in Ghana and China creating embryonic chains of low cost private schools. He is the author of numerous books on education including The Beautiful Tree: A personal journey into how the world's poorest people are educating themselves, and Educational Equality which he co-authored.

Michael Tobin is an entrepreneur, businessman and philanthropist and an acknowledged authority on leadership, management techniques and business innovation. Founder and former CEO of TelecityGroup, he has won multiple business awards including Entrepreneur and Outstanding Leader of the Year, was nominated as Business Leader of the Year in the National Business Awards and received the OBE for 'Services to the Digital Economy.' He is the author of Forget Strategy. Get Results.

Sandi Toksvig is a well known broadcaster for both television and radio, hosts The News Quiz on BBC Radio 4 and 1001 Things You Should Know on Channel 4. She presented Excess Baggage on Radio 4 until 2012. She has written more than twenty books including fiction and non-fiction for both adults and children, most recently Valentine Grey, and is a regular columnist for Good Housekeeping magazine and in September 2012 her latest play 'Bully Boy' was the opening production for London's first new theatre in thirty years, the St James. Sandi is the new Chancellor of Portsmouth University.

Guido Tonelli is an Italian particle physicist, and one of the leaders in the discovery of the Higgs boson at CERN. He is a professor of General Physics at the University of Pisa. Genesis, which he started writing in order to share the wonder of our cosmic origin story with his non-scientist friends, was a bestseller on release in Italy.

Kim Thúy has worked as a seamstress, interpreter, lawyer and restaurant owner. In 2010 Thúy won the Governor General's Award for French language fiction. She lives in Montreal, where she devotes herself to writing.

Giles Tillotson was Reader in History of Art at SOAS, University of London. He is now an independent writer and lecturer, living in Gurgaon near New Delhi. He is the author of many books on Indian architecture, history and landscape, including Jaipur Nama: Tales from the Pink City.