Good day, Dr. Prakash Arun Nemade. I'm Arjun. I've had a look through your background and your professional record. I'm interested in hearing more about your work and how you see yourself fitting in here with our faculty. Ready to start?

Please start by introducing your professional journey in academia.

Yeah, I am Doctor Prakash Arun Nemade. I have done my entire schooling from Kendriya Vidyalaya, SPM, Narmadapuram affiliated to CBSC school. Thereafter I have done B.Tech in bioinformatics from Doctor Diva Patal Vidyapith, Pune. Thereafter I have done Mtech inbound informatics from Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology, Bhopal. Thereafter I have done DHD in bioinformatics from Maulana Hazard National Institute of Techn.

Talk to the B.Tech M Tech and MSC students in biotechnology and bioinformatics. Add Doctor D Doctor Diva Patal Vidyapeeth, Pune. For almost 6 years. Thereafter I have worked as an assistant professor in Mahindra University, Hyderabad for almost 2 years. There I was teaching to B.Tech M Tech students in biotechnology in computational biology in artificial intelligence and data science.

And emptying artificial intelligence and data science. Yeah.

Thank you for providing that information, Professor. From what you’ve shared, it’s clear you have substantial teaching experience across different programs and institutions. It seems you've worked extensively with undergraduate and postgraduate students in biotechnology, bioinformatics, and computational biology, including integrating artificial intelligence and data science into your teaching. Let me align this with the interview's focus. I'll evaluate your teaching methodologies as well as your ability to deliver courses that intersect bioinformatics with emerging fields like AI and data science. Starting with a question specific to your educational background: How do you incorporate problem-solving and structured hands-on activities when teaching laboratory courses to engage students effectively?

When I am into laboratory, I first demonstrate whatever the practical is in depth. I give the theory I demonstrate and thereafter I ask students to perform it and thereafter examinations are conducted. Likewise, I conduct the practical.

Yeah.

How do you ensure that students develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills during these practical sessions, rather than just following instructions step by step?

Yeah. So when when I give demonstration, I ask them questions and I from my side I ask them questions and I tell them to ask their doubts also. And while performing also they are free to ask the questions. I solve them and after practical sessions also I give them a few. Brainstorming exercises to perform the laboratory work at home.

Or if the time permits in the lab also and I discussed them after sufficient time.

Yes.

Yeah.

Thank you for that, Professor. Moving on, can you share how you guide student research projects, particularly in interdisciplinary areas like bioinformatics, artificial intelligence, and computational biology? How do you ensure students achieve meaningful research outcomes?

Interdisciplinary problem. And before that I have to check their background also what background do they belong to? If they are computer science students, then there is a different approach. If their biology student then there is a different approach. If they are mathematics students, then there is a different approach. So.

So there I I give them problem.

Uh, I give them scientific problem and ask them to research on the web, say a general uh search on Google first at first step, then into the uh research paper databases thereafter and find out the specific review papers and research papers related to the problem. This is the first thing which I asked them to do. And then thereafter I'll have to tell them the.

Problems how? What is the exact problem And then thereafter they proceed step wise in solving them. I I also tell them how to solve it and stepwise they proceed for solving the particular research problem. And as and when they come across the problems I solve them and I'm available to them.

For solving their queries.

Yeah.

Thank you, Professor. Your approach demonstrates a well-structured mentorship process. Tailoring guidance based on students’ academic backgrounds and gradually transitioning them from basic searches to deeper, research-driven problem-solving is a commendable method. How do you evaluate the research progress and quality of work your students produce, ensuring it aligns with academic or industry standards?

Yeah, so, uh.

The problems which are being given to them, I ensure beforehand that whether they are industry related, industry relevant or not before giving the problem and thereafter I see their punctuality also their dedication, also their time which they are investing and the quality time which they are investing into it. Whether they are studying the books, whether they are referring to research papers or not, these things I ask them when they are.

Doing project under my supervision and.

Likewise, I assess them and I sometimes take their vivas, which is like sudden vivas. I'll call them and I'll start asking the questions and, uh, during that period.

We we had a wonderful discussions which is a sudden Viva and then they come up with their problems also during that sudden Viber sessions and I solve them. Sometimes I ask them to find out.

By themselves. Also I give them tricks to find.

I hint them.

To solve in line with their question. If I want them only to solve it or if I think that they are stuck, then I only have to tell them.

Your approach of setting industry-relevant problems, monitoring their engagement with credible sources, and conducting unplanned viva sessions to test understanding reflects a rigorous mentoring methodology. Encouraging students to solve challenges independently while stepping in when necessary builds both their confidence and critical thinking skills. Let’s shift slightly—how do you integrate your own research experiences, like modeling protein interactions or developing toxicity prediction tools, into your teaching to enrich the academic experience for students?

So I, I, uh, refer to the recent reviews and research papers I read almost every day. I read every day and, uh, uh, find out the new findings, which is happening in my field, uh, of bioinformatics via. I study, uh, review papers, I study research papers. I refer to many research articles and I try to incorporate them into.

My teachings into the recent development and every day something new I tell them from the topic from the recent developments. So likewise I do that.

That’s excellent, Professor. Your commitment to staying updated with research and incorporating contemporary developments into your teaching not only keeps the learning experience dynamic but also prepares students to understand the rapidly evolving field of bioinformatics. On a related note, can you elaborate on how you guide students in publishing their research findings, particularly in reputed journals or conferences?

So I asked them to uh.

Uh, first read rigorously the existing research paper.

Research paper so that they can have idea how the research papers are written, how the review papers are returned thereafter I also tell them how to write it systematically. Thesis writing and research paper writing how to write a thesis how to write a research paper so I myself teach them how to do that what should be the content of introduction what should be the content of materials and.

What is to be incorporated in result and discussion and what is to be returned in conclusion? What is to be incorporated in abstract? So this is all I teach them.

Your systematic approach to training students in academic writing, breaking down each section of a research paper or thesis, and setting clear expectations for structure and content reflects a strong mentorship capability. This ensures students not only conduct meaningful research but also communicate their findings effectively. Let’s shift focus slightly—how do you balance teaching responsibilities with research and administrative duties, ensuring excellence across all areas?

So, uh.

I divide the time everyday time.

Administrative duty and research hours. I divide them every day. I prepare my everyday schedule and according to my schedule I act. If required, I work for extra hours also, out of official hours also and if required and accordingly I balance the three.

Like teaching hours?

Thank you, Professor. Your discipline in scheduling and willingness to dedicate extra hours when needed highlights your commitment to maintaining high standards across teaching, research, and administrative responsibilities. Now, to shift slightly, could you highlight how your expertise in bioinformatics, particularly in tools like machine learning and dynamic programming, has contributed to advancing research or solving real-world problems?

So I have developed a machine learning models for protein protein interaction prediction during my PhD work. So therein I have developed machine learning models, specifically support vector machine models, then fuzzy support vector machine models. There I have created a novel methodology for encoding the protein protein interaction information and. Use that information.

In the model in creation of protein, Protein interaction model specifically which at the end tells whether the two proteins are going to interact or not. I have also worked on the.

Evolutional computational evolutionary studies on chikungunya virus nipah viruses so we the entire world is suffered because of.

COVID cases. So I have performed my studies on COVID cases also on coronaviruses also and created phylogenetic trees to infer geographical differences.

And timeline differences, so.

In their study.

Yeah.

Your research contributions to protein-protein interaction modeling using machine learning and your computational evolutionary work on chikungunya, Nipah, and coronaviruses reflect not only technical expertise but also relevance to real-world challenges. These projects clearly demonstrate your ability to apply bioinformatics in impactful ways. Let’s refine the focus—how do you see the integration of artificial intelligence and data science evolving within bioinformatics research and education, and how do you prepare students to engage with these intersections effectively?

So they will have to study the two parts. Basically they should know the biology and artificial intelligence concepts. So from biology the actual problem is to be formulated first. So and biological provide the biological data and.

Uh, we have to see whether that data can be directly used for.

AIML analysis or not? If if it is not usable directly, we have to transform that data into the more relevant and usable form in line with our problem under study. So we can use the data directly or we can use it after transforming then then the student should ideally know the AI ML.

Uh, concepts so that models can be built on the original data or, uh, transformed data.

In line with the problem under investigation.

Yeah.

Thank you. Shifting to a different aspect—how do you ensure that your teaching and research align with institutional goals, like promoting interdisciplinary collaboration, enhancing industry-academic partnerships, or fulfilling accreditation requirements?

So bioinformatics is an multidisciplinary field. It combines biology, mathematics, statistics and computer technology.

As a whole, so these three fields they run into the parallel. So a candidate.

Student should have the knowledge of all the three fields to progress in the subject.

Now we have to see the industry requirement.

What industry wants and in line with that, the curriculum is to be designed.

And at the same time we have to ensure also that student should comprehend that content if it is too advanced then.

It may quite become difficult for them to comprehend. So we have to incorporate some additional advanced electives to meet the industry requirement and likewise the industry required content can be incorporated in the subject of study.

Without compromising the fundamentals and the curriculum can be structured and accordingly it can be.

Thought and practicals can be conducted over it.

Your approach of aligning curriculum design with both interdisciplinary foundations and industry needs demonstrates a deep understanding of academic and professional balance. Incorporating advanced electives while safeguarding fundamental knowledge ensures students are well-prepared without being overwhelmed. To conclude, how do you envision contributing to this institution’s academic community, given its objectives and emphasis on research, teaching, and industry collaboration?

Can you repeat your question please?

Certainly, Professor. How do you envision contributing to this institution’s academic community, considering its objectives of fostering research, delivering high-quality teaching, and promoting industry collaboration?

Yeah, so.

Institute.

There there has to be some institutional requirements. So in line with that requirements the academics is executed and research projects can be filed can be done at the institute level as per the requirement of institution and as per the requirement of any industry with which the institute has collaborated with.

And accordingly, the work can be, uh, progressed. So this is how, uh.

I can, uh, contribute to the Institute.

By good teaching and by doing the relevant industry research.

Thank you, Professor. Your dedication to aligning your efforts with institutional and industry needs, while maintaining high standards in teaching and research, is commendable. You’ve provided thoughtful insights throughout this discussion. If you’re ready, we can now conclude. Do you have any final questions or points you'd like to add?

So far, no.

Understood. To confirm, would you like me to end the interview now, Professor?

Yes.