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This year at TED2011, we issued an unprecedented invitation to two global thinkers: Curate a session of TED. Juan Enriquez (watch his TEDTalks) brings his astonishingly broad perspective on global issues — from the macro to the micro — to Session 9 of this year’s conference. His research and writing makes an excellent case that new bioscience, our new knowledge of our DNA, is going to change our world. And his TED session will carry through that theme in several ways. As he told the TED Blog: “The idea is to combine great science, music, humor, art. It’s an incredible opportunity to showcase some of the world’s great brains and talent.” As he put together the list of speakers for his session, he says, “I was looking for quirky characters, with extraordinary visions, who can make people feel that what they do should make you smile and think.”

TED invited Bill Gates (watch his TEDTalks) to curate a session about his world-changing fascinations. As he told the TED Blog: “One of the fantastic things about my present work is how it puts me in contact with people doing interesting and important work in the areas of global health, technology, education and development. In pulling together the speaker lineup for my session, I’ve invited some remarkable people who have expanded my own thinking on those topics and who are making a real difference in the world. I hope the TED community will enjoy hearing from them as much as I have enjoyed getting to know them.”

The full TED2011 speaker lineup will be announced on Monday, January 10. Watch the TED Blog for news.