Sounds like a contradiction, doesn't it? A craft as decidedly right-brain as "Design," paired up with a discipline as totally left-brain as "Technology"? Yet everything from DVD menus to interactive kiosks needs to synthesize pleasing aesthetics with practical, seamless functionality. To marry the artistic to the scientific. And in Jim Shupert, the contradiction reaches agreement.

Jim, fantastically enough, has an educational background in fine arts and physics. That's right, fine arts and physics. And while this unusual combination might on the surface seem to be a match made in a madhouse, when it comes to Design Technology, it's genius.

In a nutshell, Jim's job is to create workable, innovative solutions for a variety of technological problems. Everything from DVD and CD-ROM functionality to website interface. Sound scientific? It is. But the best solutions for all these applications also have an artistic element, call for rhythm and texture and structure. Conversely, the art must be informed by technological considerations, like the optimal number of colors and processor capabilities. In other words, Jim's the Man.

Art and science are also at the root of Jim's need to innovate. And to look beyond a standard solution toward "the next solution." And to make the new seem intuitive and familiar. Hey, it's a contradictory job but someone's got to do it. Someone like Jim.