Thomas Meyer Gøgsig was born in Bredebro, Denmark, in 1982. He received his BA in medicinal chemistry in 2006 under the supervision of Professor Troels Skrydstrup at Aarhus University, Denmark. During his undergraduate program, Thomas investigated the palladium 1,2-migration in the Heck reaction. In fall 2007, he started his PhD studies, also under the supervision of Professor Troels Skrydstrup, focusing on the factors controlling the 1,2-migration in different Pd-catalyzed reactions. Furthermore, he has examined the viability of aryl and vinyl tosylates and phosphates as suitable electrophiles in various transition metal mediated cross couplings, including Ni, Fe, and Pd catalyzed reactions. In September 2009, he joined the group of Professor John Hartwig at UIUC as a visiting scholar, where he is attempting to characterize the palladium(II) vinyl intermediates of the 1,2-migration. Outside of lab, Thomas enjoys spending time with his wife and playing and watching a variety of sports, especially soccer (real football).

John Holman was born in Akrotiri, Cyprus, in 1987. He grew up mostly in Wiltshire in the UK, after spending eight years living in Bielefeld, Germany. He is an exchange student from the University of Sheffield, spending one year at the University of Illinois. He joined Prof. John Hartwig's group to complete a senior thesis as part of his undergraduate studies. John's studies in the Hartwig group are centered on ligand synthesis for palladium-catalyzed enantioselective alpha-arylation reactions. Outside of the lab, John enjoys playing piano and guitar.

Dan Sheeran is originally from Philadelphia, PA. He earned a BS in chemistry from Lehigh University in 1980 and a PhD in inorganic chemistry from the University of Kansas in 1986. He is an associate professor of chemistry and coordinator of the general chemistry program at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL. He joined Professor John Hartwig’s group in June 2009 after Professor Hartwig agreed to allow him to utilize a sabbatical working in his group. Dan’s studies in the Hartwig group are centered on the development and application of iridium-catalyzed allylic substitution reactions. Dan spends much of his time away from lab engaged in various family activities centered on his children.