Hannu Rajaniemi was born in Ylivieska, Finland, in 1978. He read his first science fiction novel at the age of 6 -- Jules Verne's *20,000 Leagues Under the Sea*. At the age of 8 Hannu approached ESA with a fusion-powered spaceship design, which was received with a polite thank you note.
Hannu studied mathematics and theoretical physics at the University of Oulu and completed a B.Sc. thesis on transcendental numbers. He went on to complete Part III of the Mathematical Tripos at Cambridge University and a PhD in string theory at University of Edinburgh. After completing his PhD, Hannu joined three partners to co-found ThinkTank Maths (TTM). The company provides mathematics-based technologies in the defence, space and energy sectors.
Hannu is a member of an Edinburgh-based writers' group which includes Alan Campbell, Jack Deighton, Caroline Dunford and Charles Stross. His first fiction sale was the short story *Shibuya no Love* to Futurismic.com. Hannu's first novel, *The Quantum Thief*, is published by Gollancz in the UK and coming out from Tor in spring 2011.
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