About me

I am Reader (Associate Professor equivalent) in Data Science in the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematical Sciences at the University of Wolverhampton. I mainly work in the areas of Information Retrieval and Digital Libraries.

• My University of Wolverhampton researcher page

Prior to this, I was Senior Lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Technology of the University of Bedfordshire in Luton, UK. I was a member of the Information Retrieval group at the School of Computing Science of the College of Science and Engineering at the University of Glasgow. Before I was working in the Information Systems Working Group at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Duisburg-Essen, where I did my PhD on information modelling and retrieval based on user annotations. Before joining the group in Duisburg, I worked at Fraunhofer IPSI on annotation-based retrieval in Digital Humanities.

I hold a PhD from the University of Duisburg-Essen and Diploma (MSc equivalent) in Computer Science from the University of Dortmund. I am a BCS Fellow as well as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

I am the University of Wolverhampton's Principle Investigator of the EU Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska Curie Staff Exchange project OMINO (Overcoming Multilevel INformation Overload). I was the University of Bedfordshire's Principal Investigator of the EU H2020 Innovative Training Network QUARTZ (Quantum Information Access and Retrieval Theory), which is concerned with formal approaches to Information Access and Retrieval based on the quantum mechanical framework.

Research Interests

My main research interests are Information Retrieval, Information Systems and Digital Libraries. The aim of my research is to tackle information overload by supporting users in finding relevant information more effectively. To this end, I employ cognitive and human-centric theories such as the Principle of Polyrepresentation or Information Foraging Theory. Being an educated computer scientist, I use mathematical formalisms (e.g., Hilbert spaces), AI and machine learning to bring the human into the loop.

Please contact me if you are interested in a BSc, MSc or PhD project in these areas.

In particular, I have been working on the following topics (links lead to peer-reviewed example papers):

• Interactive Information Retrieval inspired by Quantum Mechanics
• Probabilistic and logic-based models for Information Access and Retrieval (e.g. probabilistic Datalog)
• Interactive Information Retrieval models utilising the Principle of Polyrepresentation or Information Foraging Theory
• Bibliometric-enhanced Information Retrieval
• Annotations, Annotation Services and Information Access in Digital Humanities and Digital Libraries
• (Deep) Machine Learning and Information Retrieval
• Text Categorization and Email Categorization
• User support for Question Answering and Semantic Search on Linked Open Data
• Neural Networks and Recommender Systems
• Discussion Search and Polarity Classification
• Text Analysis and Machine Learning for Cyberstalking Detection
• Cross-cultural Information Retrieval

As an example of my work, I gave a tutorial about quantum probabilities and quantum-inspired IR at the Autumn School of the German IR Specialist Group.

Quantum Probabilities and Quantum-inspired Information Retrieval from Ingo Frommholz

Projects

Projects I have been involved in:

• At the University of Wolverhampton:
• OMINO - Overcoming Multilevel INformation Overload - PI of the EU Horizon Europe MSCA Staff Exchange project (guarantee funded by UKRI) to tackle information overload for instance in academic search and recommendation
• SOLVD - EU European Regional Development Fund project to support Telford & Wrekin and Shropshire small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the adoption of digital technologies
• At the University of Bedfordshire:
• Quantum Information Access and Retrieval (QUARTZ), an EU H2020 Innovative Training Network (PI)
• EDISON, an EU H2020 Coordination and Support Action with the purpose of accelerating the creation of the Data Science profession. I established UoB as Data Science Champion University within the project.
• Talking Objects, Augmented Reality in museums for children (PI, with Luton Culture and Luton Wardown Park Museum)
• Knowledge Transfer Project with Drax Technology on Internet of Things and intelligent fire alarms (lead academic)
• Great War Stories - A crowdsourced digital museum about World War I as experienced by the people in Luton, a town in England (PI)
• Intelligent Executive Search, a commercial search engine for executives (private commercial consultancy project)
• Several Innovation Voucher and Innovation Bridge projects
• At the University of Glasgow:
  • Renaissance - Modelling Information Retrieval processes using the formalism of Quantum Theory
  • INEX Interactive Track 2010
• At the University of Duisburg-Essen:
  • POLAR - Probabilistic Object-oriented Logics for Annotation-based Retrieval (my own PhD project)
  • CLASSIX - Classification and Intelligent Search on Information in XML
  • Initiative for the Evaluation of XML retrieval (INEX)
  • LACOSTIR - LAyout, COntent and STructure in Interactive Retrieval
  • DELOS - A Network of Excellence on Digital Libraries
  • DAFFODIL - Distributed Agents for User-Friendly Access of Digital Libraries
• At Fraunhofer IPSI, Darmstadt:
  • COLLATE - Collaboratory for Annotation, Indexing and Retrieval of Digitized Historical Archive Material
  • BRICKS - Building Resources for Integrated Cultural Knowledge Services
  • SCHOLNET - A Digital Library Testbed to Support Networked Scholarly Communities
  • VIP-Advisor - Virtual, independent advisor for personal insurance and finance risk management

Teaching

I am coordinator of the MSc Computer Science and Data Science and MSc Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence online MSc Programmes at the University of Wolverhampton.

I was the coordinator of the BSc (Hons) Information and Data Systems course/programme during my time at the University of Bedfordshire.

Topics I have been teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate level comprise:

• Information Retrieval
• Information Engineering
• Machine Learning and Data Mining
• XML and Ontologies, Semantic Web
• Programming (mainly Java)
• Databases
• Data Modelling and Management
• Distributed and Parallel Computing

Research-related Activities

Some of my research-related activities include:

• Managing editor of the International Journal on Digital Libraries (IJDL).
• (Senior) program committee member and reviewer of several leading conferences such as ECDL/TPDL, JCDL, ECIR, ICTIR, CHIIR, CIKM and SIGIR.
• Reviewer for several journals such as ACM Transactions on Information Systems (TOIS), Elsevier Information Systems, Elsevier Information Processing & Management (IP&M), The Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology (JASIST), The Information Retrieval Journal (Springer), The Computer Journal, PLOS ONE, Theoretical Computer Science (Elsevier), Scientometrics (Springer) and The International Journal on Digital Libraries (Springer).
• Co-organiser or Program Chair:
  • Autumn School for Information Retrieval and Foraging (ASIRF), Schloß Dagstuhl in Germany. (Review of ASIRF 2017 in BCS Informer.)
  • German Information Retrieval workshop series held at LWDA (formerly LWA).
  • Bibliometrics and Information Retrieval (BIR) workshop series run at past ECIRs (and helped to organise the BIRNDL 'spin-off' at JCDL/SIGIR).
  • BCS-IRSG Symposium on Future Directions in Information Access (FDIA): FDIA 2017 in Barcelona, Spain, FDIA 2018 in Tianjin, China, FDIA 2019 in Milan, Italy and FDIA 2022 in Lisbon, Portugal.
  • BCS Search Solutions, which includes talks by influential industry leaders.
• Treasurer and a member of the steering committee of the  BCS Information Retrieval Specialist Group.
• I was member of the steering committee of the Special Interest Group on Information Retrieval of the German Computing Society.
• Editorial board member of the Datenbank Spektrum (Springer), the official journal of the German Information Retrieval resp. Database special interest groups.

Trivia

• Being brought up in Gelsenkirchen, I am a proud supporter of FC Schalke 04. If you're a Schalke supporter in the UK, have a look at our Schalke Fan Club UK.
• I enjoy running (up to half marathon distance) Follow me on