Michael Bernard Twidale

Michael Bernard Twidale is a Professor and Interim Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs at the School of Information Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He holds a PhD in Computing from Lancaster University (UK) and is affiliated with the National Center for Supercomputing Applications and the Information Trust Institute. His research focuses on HCI, CSCW, and sociotechnical systems with emphasis on collaborative technologies, user interface design, and agile research methods.

Teaching excellence is central to his career, having won the 2017 ASIS&T Outstanding Information Science Teacher Award and consistently appearing on UIUC’s “excellent in teaching” lists since 1998. He has pioneered courses in Entrepreneurial IT Design and Museum Informatics, emphasizing design thinking and societal impact.

Current research projects explore metaphors in voice user interfaces, search literacy, and long-term database sustainability. He advocates for "Agile Research Methods" to democratize knowledge production and improve technology accessibility. Over 25 years of academic work include leadership roles in CHI, iConference, and JCDL, plus collaborative initiatives with museums and open-source communities.

His work bridges theory and practice through projects like the ARIADNE Collaborative Browsing Project and the Information Forum for knowledge-sharing infrastructures. Recent explorations include cultural informatics with community music archives and rethinking metadata for inclusive data practices.