Speakers

Joseph Shaw is the Research Lead at the Royal Ballet. Joseph was previously the Head of Performance at Guild Esports. Prior to this role, they worked as PhD Researcher at the Royal Opera House. Joseph also served as a Consultant for various organizations including Parkrun, Standard Liege FC, Guild Esports, London Contemporary Dance School, and Pharmed UK. Joseph has experience as a Sport & Data Scientist at The Royal Ballet School, a Researcher in Physiology at the English Institute of Sport, and a Sports Scientist at Loughborough Students’ Sport and Nottingham Forest FC. Joseph Shaw completed their education as follows: From 2018 to 2022, they pursued a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in Training Load and Injury in Professional Ballet at St Mary’s University, Twickenham. In 2017 and 2018, they obtained an MSc in Exercise Physiology with Distinction from Loughborough University. Between 2013 and 2017, they earned a First Class Honours BSc (Hons) degree in Sport and Exercise Science from Loughborough University.

Recently received a Ph.D. from the Visual Computing Group at Harvard University, advised by Prof. Hanspeter Pfister. Her research focuses on Immersive Analytics, SportsXR, and Human-AI Interaction, particularly in developing XR visualization and interaction for real-life dynamic environments. Her goal is to merge the physical and digital realms, enhancing decision-making and personalizing information access with seamless experiences. Her work, recognized with Best Paper Honorable Mentions at CHI 2021 and VIS 2022, has been published in ACM SIGCHI, IEEE VIS, ISMAR, and TVCG journal.
She has contributed to the development of innovative AR/VR and AI technologies at Adobe Research, Apple Vision Products Group and Facebook Reality Labs as a research intern. Prior to embarking on the Ph.D. journey, she was a Sr. Data Visualization Designer at Visa, and UX Developer at Philadelphia 76ers.

Shane Wuerthner, a prominent figure in ballet, transitioned from a successful dance career to leadership roles in the industry. He began his journey at The Kirov Academy of Ballet, graduating top of his class in 2004. Wuerthner danced with prestigious companies like the San Francisco Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet, The Royal Danish Ballet, and Vienna State Ballet, where he rose to soloist. In 2012, he joined The San Francisco Ballet and later Queensland Ballet, becoming a Principal in 2015. Wuerthner’s repertoire included principal roles in classics and contemporary works by renowned choreographers. He also performed with André Rieu and in international tours. Retiring from the stage in 2017, he pursued a fitness career, quickly becoming a sought-after trainer and founding Athletistry Ballet, focusing on adult ballet coaching and holistic movement. In 2022, Wuerthner took Athletistry online, expanding its reach with nearly 100k social media followers. Today, Athletistry offers international coaching, workshops, and guidance in ballet and fitness, showcasing Wuerthner’s leadership and vision.

John earned a B.S. in Mathematics from Bucknell University (1983) and Sc.M. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from Brown University (1985, 1989). He joined Georgia Tech’s faculty in 1989 and is now a Regents Professor in the School of Interactive Computing (IC). He served as Interim School Chair of IC in 2021-2022 and is an Adjunct Faculty member of the School of Computing Instruction at GT. In 2013, he was named an Honorary Professor at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland.
John’s research focuses on data and information visualization from a human-computer interaction perspective. He chaired the IEEE VIS conference in 2013, was inducted into the ACM CHI Academy in 2016, IEEE VIS Academy in 2019, and became an IEEE Fellow in 2014 and an ACM Fellow in 2022. He received the IEEE VGTC Visualization Technical Achievement Award in 2012 and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023. He has also received the College of Computing’s annual gus baird Teaching Award twice.
As Director of the Information Interfaces Research Group, John works on creating tools for exploring, analyzing, understanding, and communicating data. His group’s projects focus on visual analytics systems for sense-making activities on large data sets. He highlighted his research in a EuroVis 2014 Conference Capstone lecture and a 2022 CSIG-VIS lecture on flexible and natural interfaces for human-data interaction.

Hyeokhyen Kwon, or Hyeok, is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Emory University School of Medicine, an Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Informatics at Emory University, a Program Faculty at the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Program Faculty of Machine Learning Center at Georgia Institute of Technology. His research focuses on designing accessible, scalable, secure, and privacy-preserving machine learning systems using distributed on- and off-body sensors to tackle brain health challenges. His applications lie at the intersection of computer vision, machine learning, ubiquitous computing, and human activity recognition. He has published in top-tiered journals and conferences, such as CVPR, ICCV, Ubicomp/ISWC, IMWUT, and Sensors. His Ph.D. research received a Samsung Ph.D. Fellowship and an Oracle for Research Award, and he was named a finalist in the Gaetano Borriello Outstanding Student Award at Ubicomp/ISWC 2021, as well as a finalist in Oracle for Research Fellow. During his PostDoc at Emory BMI, he also received the Oracle for Research Award.

Andrea Knowlton is a Choreographer, Educator, and the Artistic Director of DANCE AEGIS, a movement based creative platform. Knowlton creates for both stage and screen in concert and commercial realms. Her work often integrates dance with film, media, and interactive technology. She has presented choreography in venues all over New York City, and Los Angeles. Her dance films and music videos have received national and international screenings. Knowlton’s focus as an artist is on process, collaboration, and interdisciplinary conversation. Her choreographic work is inspired by the living body and its relationship to science and technology. She is interested in media, and its ability to diminish or magnify our innate human qualities. She has worked extensively as an Arts Integration Specialist, using dance to teach academic subjects to K-12 students across Los Angeles. As a teaching artist, she works with students of all ages in studio environments. She has been on faculty at Pasadena City College, and California State University Long Beach. Knowlton is a certified Yoga Instructor.  She holds a BFA in Dance/Choreography from Marymount Manhattan College in NYC, and an MFA in Choreography/Integrated Media from California Institute of the Arts.