Author: Naresh Agarwal

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Nick Belkin

Nicholas Belkin

In Conversation

Episode 16 Nick Belkin

Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Information Science

In conversation with Nicholas Belkin, Distinguished Professor of Information Science, Emeritus, at the School of Communication and Information, Rutgers University and a stalwart of the information science and information retrieval fields. He talked about growing up speaking Russian in the US during the cold war, forming the Concept of Anomalous State of Knowledge (ASK), his time in the military during the Cuban Missile Crisis, being open to ideas but following your own, and keeping fit.

Trailer (1:02)

Interview (1:22:46)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer

1:00 Intro

4:29 Nick’s Life and Career

13:11 Formation of the Anomalous State of Knowledge Concept

50:48 Childhood

55:07 Military, Cuban Missile Crisis

56:16 Return to Academia

59:43 Major Turning Points

1:05:26 Brenda Dervin

1:08:38 Key Skills

1:10:53 Biggest Successes

1:13:17 Difficult Phases

1:15:08 What Belkin Wished He Knew Earlier

1:18:03 Life Principles

1:18:51 What is Happiness?

1:20:11 Belkin’s Goals and Health

This interview was supported by the ASIS&T Bob Williams Research Grant 2025.

More about Nick Belkin Rutgers University | Google Scholar | Wikipedia

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Ina Fourie

Ina Fourie

In Conversation

Episode 15 Ina Fourie

Retired Professor, Head of Department, and Chair of the School

In conversation with Ina Fourie, who retired as a Full Professor from the University of Pretoria, South Africa. She has been Head of Department of Information Science and Chair of the School of Information Technology. She talks about growing up in apartheid South Africa, her work in health information behavior including cancer, grief, and palliative care, how personal experiences shaped her scholarly direction, with meaning, compassion and human connection being central to it all.

Trailer (1:00)

Interview (1:50:56)

https://youtu.be/b_hqFI3Uei8

Timecodes

0:57 Introduction

3:49 Early Life

15:23 South Africa

27:06 Career

36:39 Turning Points

42:31 Autoethnography

48:17 Serendipity

55:18 Information Science

1:02:26 Influences

1:11:55 Husband

1:19:36 Influential Books

1:21:36 Key Skills

1:27:12 Biggest Successes

1:30:28 Hardest Periods

1:34:34 Personal Conflict

1:37:47 Uncertainty

1:46:33 Goals

1:48:02 Mentoring Advice

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

More about Ina Fourie University of Pretoria | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

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Yunjie (Calvin) Xu

Yunjie (Calvin) Xu at the Grand Canyon, 2009

In Conversation

Episode 14 Yunjie (Calvin) Xu
Professor, Fudan University

In conversation with Yunjie (Calvin) Xu, Professor at the Department of Information Management and Business Intelligence, School of Management, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. He talked about growing up poor in a farming family, his faith, the social problems of AI, and balancing work and family.

Trailer (1:00)

Interview (1:24:55)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer
0:55 Intro
4:45 Growing up in poor farming village in China
9:24 What led to career in information management
14:18 Moving from China to the US
15:21 Why choose Calvin for an English name
16:59 Turning points in career
26:46 Serendipity and life priorities
34:05 Information science field
38:50 Influences
41:33 Publication and writing
58:18 Advice for new researchers
1:02:02 Biggest successes
1:03:09 Biggest challenges
1:12:21 Life principles
1:19:44 Meaning of happiness
1:21:18 Goals

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

More about Calvin Xu Fudan University | Personal website | Google Scholar

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Gobinda Chowdhury

Gobinda Chowdhury

In Conversation

Episode 13 Gobinda Chowdhury
Professor, University of Strathclyde

In conversation with Gobinda Chowdhury, Professor of Information Science at the University of Strathclyde. He talked about growing up during the Bangladesh Independence war, meeting and working for then President of India A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and his process for writing 17 books.

Trailer (0:58)

Interview (1:45:51)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer
0:54 Intro
3:13 Childhood and access to computers
8:48 Bangladesh Independence War
10:55 Experience with change
15:40 Digital Work Environment
17:52 Family
22:38 Major turning point in life
27:33 Serendipity
31:12 Definition of Information Science
38:41 Artificial Intelligence (AI)
57:20 Chowdhury’s role in the field
1:00:17 Productive Lifestyle
1:06:52 Influences
1:12:05 Books that shaped thinking
1:14:37 Meeting and working for President of India APJ Abdul Kalam
1:19:51 Work with Organization of African Unity
1:24:12 Key skills
1:29:45 Resilience
1:37:46 Life principles
1:39:52 Goals
1:41:46 Mentoring advice

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

More about Gobinda Chowdhury University of Strathclyde | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

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Lynn Perry Wooten

President Lynn Perry Wooten

In Conversation

Episode 12 Lynn Perry Wooten
9th President of Simmons University

In conversation with Lynn Perry Wooten, the 9th President of Simmons University and the first African American to lead the University since its founding in 1899. She talked about growing up, her family, philanthropy, being the Pandemic President, and her vision for the University’s future.

Trailer (0:50)

Interview (1:24:46)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer

0:47 Intro

3:50 Growing up

7:14 Friends

8:09 Parents

10:42 Academia

16:57 Administration

22:57 Meeting anger with grace

26:01 Bringing out the best in people

26:23 Strategic Priorities

38:49 Culture of common ground

41:27 Leadership through friendship

49:29 Emotional intelligence

52:38 Self care

56:01 Work-life balance

59:09 Faith

1:04:01 Serendipity

1:06:59 Navigating life career challenges

1:10:10 Mentoring

1:12:15 Biggest successes

1:13:51 Hardest moments

1:16:56 Stress

1:18:13 Life lessons

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

Naresh Agarwal and President Lynn Perry Wooten during the 120th Simmons University Commencement, Boston, May 16, 2025

More about Lynn Perry Wooten – Simmons | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

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Madhav Kakkar

Madhav Kakkar and Naresh Agarwal on March 25, 2025

In Conversation

Episode 11 Madhav Kakkar
Seeing India become independent, academia, loneliness in old age

In conversation with Professor Madhav Kakkar, who talks about his childhood in India and seeing India become independent from British rule, moving to the US, career in academia and leadership roles, losing his wife, and loneliness of old age.

Trailer (0:56)

Interview (57:02)

Timecodes

0:00 Trailer

0:53 Introduction

3:13 Childhood

4:50 College

5:45 First Job

6:04 Civil Service Exam

7:36 Teaching in Hindi or English

8:04 Witnessing Independence of India

12:55 Moving to the United States

20:00 Turning Points in Career

23:02 Reunited with Family

26:28 Serendipity

27:46 Influences

35:28 Biggest Success

36:09 Hardest part of his life

38:25 Difficulties of Old Age

51:01 Life Principles

51:56 Meaning of Happiness

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

Madhav Kakkar watching his interview on March 25, 2025

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Suliman Hawamdeh

In Conversation

Episode 10 Suliman Hawamdeh
Regents Professor, Knowledge Management expert, Author

In conversation with Suliman Hawamdeh, knowledge management (KM) expert and Regents Professor at the University of North Texas. He talks about his childhood in the West Bank, writing poetry and creating art, traveling, consulting, founding masters degrees, running conferences, editing journals, writing books, and remaining calm.

Trailer (0:59)

Interview (01:46:30)

Timecodes

00:00:00 – Intro
00:02:58 – Growing up
00:15:25 – Singapore
00:23:58 – Automation
00:28:17 – Knowledge Management
00:42:51 – Knowledge Management in Government
00:50:52 – Computers
00:54:34 – Singapore to US
00:56:04- Childhood
01:05:55 – Computer Science
01:09:17 – Who Influenced Work
01:09:36- Key Skills
01:25:27- Developed Resilience
01:31:37 – Can’t Generalize People
01:38:10 – Life Principles
01:43:24 – What does happiness mean to you?

More about Suliman Hawamdeh – Hawamdeh.net | Google Scholar | LinkedIn

This interview was supported by the iSchools Research Grant 2023.

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Marjorie Hlava

In Conversation

Episode 9 Marjorie Hlava
President, Chairman, Founder, Standards Expert

In conversation with Marjorie Hlava, an expert in taxonomies, metadata, and data science and a database, search, and standards development pioneer. She shares her life story and career highlights, starting from her early days in California and Wisconsin to working for NASA and starting her own company in New Mexico. She talks about her family’s ‘can do’ attitude and how it has shaped her professional interactions and made her more resilient.

Trailer (1:22)

Interview (01:31:43)

Timecodes

00:00:00 – Introducing Majorie Hlava
00:02:38 – Growing up
00:05:26 – Start of Library Science Career
00:07:50 – Work at Nasa
00:09:57 – Head of Information Department
00:12:25 – Joined SLA
00:16:31 – Building Databases and quitting to start her own business
00:19:38 – Family of Educators
00:25:33- Misogny prevented driver’s license
00:29:11 – Significant steps in career
00:36:15 – Uncovering Skulduggery at Nasa
00:43:45 – CIA Customer
00:49:34 – Standards
01:00:59 – Detecting AI
01:03:27 – Incidents that Shaped Life
01:07:43 – Access Russia
01:12:07- Key Skills
01:16:22- Challenging Times
01:19:00 – Something she wishes she knew earlier in life
01:22:05 – How to deal with people who treat others badly
01:28:04 – What does happiness mean to her

More about Marjorie Hlava Access Innovations | LinkedIn

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Carol Tenopir

In Conversation

Episode 8 Carol Tenopir
Chancellor’s Professor Emerita

In conversation with Carol Tenopir, Chancellor’s Professor Emerita at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She discusses her non-traditional path to librarianship, progression from consultant to professor to dean, editorship of Library Journal, Fulbright fellowship, and move from Hawaii to Tennessee to Michigan. She addresses the issues of being a parent while working and shares how her broad range of interests led to her wide-reaching career.

Trailer (1:01)

Trailer – In Conversation with Carol Tenopir

Interview (01:25:27)

Full interview with Carol Tenopir

Timecodes

00:00:00 – Introducing Carol Tenopir

00:02:21 – Story in her own words

00:04:07 – Her library career

00:05:01 – Start in consulting in a small company

00:08:02 – Move to University of Hawaii

00:10:06 – Move to Illinois to pursue PhD

00:11:00 – Start with Library Journal

00:12:00 – Move back to University of Hawaii; joining faculty

00:13:26 – Meeting husband at ASIS&T

00:14:00 – Move to University of Tennessee

00:16:01 – Appointment to administrative role

00:18:00 – Childhood

00:23:11 – Retirement in Michigan

00:27:49 – Biggest events in career

00:35:17 – Role of serendipity in turning points of her career

00:38:40 – Defining information science and role in the LIS field

00:45:53 – People who influenced her work

00:48:20 – Books that influenced her work

00:49:30 – Fulbrights and international connections

00:52:00 – Key skills that have helped over the years

00:55:04 – Personality (shyness and introversion) and ASIS&T involvement

00:57:10 – Biggest successes

01:00:00 – Resilience and difficult times

01:07:10 – Impact of COVID

01:10:00 – Something she wishes she knew earlier in life

01:14:00 – Life principles and values

01:15:00 – What happiness means to her

01:17:17 – Living internationally

01:18:20 – Retirement

01:20:18 – Mentoring advice

01:22:15 – Misinformation

01:24:10 – Retirement

More about Carol Tenopir LinkedIn | Google Scholar

This interview was supported by the COCIS Innovation Fund at Simmons University.

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Michael Buckland

In Conversation

Episode 7 Michael Buckland
Emeritus Professor

In conversation with Michael Buckland, Emeritus Professor and former Dean at the University of California, Berkeley, and stalwart of the information science field,  with his 1991 paper on seeing Information as a thing cited more than 2500 times. He talks about his journey from Oxford to Sheffield to the University of Lancaster Library in England, a move to the United States in 1972, leadership roles, visiting professorships, and what keeps him going as an active researcher until today.

Trailer (0:59)

Interview (01:45:24)

Timecodes

00:00:00 – Introducing Michael Buckland

00:01:58 – Story in his own words

00:04:30 – His library career

00:30:47 – On starting a new career as a professor

00:36:47 – Travelling around the world

00:41:09 – Retirement

00:42:21 – Role of serendipity in turning points of his career

00:47:11 – Defining information science

00:51:58 – People who influenced his work

01:00:54 – Key skills that have helped over the  years

01:03:12 – biggest successes

01:09:45 – Resilience and difficult times

01:13:52 – Biggest challenges

01:15:54 – Something he wishes he knew earlier in life

01:16:37 – Life principles and values

01:18:12 – Current goals

01:24:24 – Mentoring advice

01:30:39 – On what keeps him going

More about Michael Buckland Wikipedia – Michael Buckland | Google Scholar

This interview was supported by the COCIS Innovation Fund at Simmons University.