I am a multidisciplinary specialist with degrees in applied linguistics, education, computer science, mathematics education, business administration, creative writing, and combined studies.

I started my career teaching English as a foreign language in schools, colleges and universities in East Asia and the United Kingdom. I have lived and worked in Hong Kong, Thailand and Japan for extended periods. Over the years my professional interests have cycled through various roles, such as teacher trainer, assessor, materials developer and software developer. Previously, I was a professor in the Center for Language Research within the School of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Aizu in Japan. 

Currently, I am a Lecturer in Natural Language Processing in the School of Computer Science and Digital Technologies. I am a member of the Software Engineering and Cybersecurity Unit and a member of the Aston Institute for Forensic Linguistics.

Previously, I held full-time posts at the following institutions:

• University of Aizu, Japan
• Japan Advanced Institute of Science and  Technology, Japan
• Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
• City University of Hong Kong
• Dundee College, Scotland

Much of my work is at the intersection of natural language processing (NLP) and forensic linguistics, with a particular focus on authorship analysis, including attribution, verification, and profiling. I develop software and online tools that make linguistic analysis more systematic, transparent, and applicable to real-world problems. I am particularly interested in combining corpus-based approaches with machine learning and explainable AI. My current research agenda includes computational stylistics, cross-genre and cross-modal authorship analysis, and the design of intelligent systems for language analysis and learning. I lead and collaborate on projects that translate theoretical insights into practical tools, with an emphasis on usability, interpretability, and impact.

I hold the following professional qualifications: 

• Chartered IT Professional (CITP)
• Chartered Manager (CMgr)
• Member of the British Computer Society (MBCS)
• Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (FCMI)
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

I hold multiple postgraduate degrees:

• PhD Applied Linguistics (Aston University)
• MSc Computer Science (University of Hertfordshire)
• MA Mathematics Education (University of Plymouth)
• MEd Applied Linguistics (Open University)
• MA Creative Writing (Teesside University)
• MBA with specialisation in financial management (Abertay University)

As a keen life-long learner, I have also acquired several other qualifications, including:

• Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)
• Advanced Diploma in Education (Language and Literacy)
• Diploma in Management
• RSA  Diploma in Teaching English as a Foreign Language to Adults (now called DELTA)
• Expert Witness Certificate for Criminal Law

Recent awards include:

2026: Winner of Best Paper Award at 7th International Conference on Advances in Education and Information Technology. Sapporo, Japan.

2025: Winner of Outstanding Presentation at IEEE Gaming, Entertainment, and Media Conference. Taiwan.

2024: Winner of Outstanding Reviewer Award for Languages, a Q1 Open Access Journal.

2023: Winner of Honourable Mention Award at 16th International Conference on E-Service and Knowledge Management, Japan.

2021: Winner of Competitive Paper Award at 1th International Conference on Learning Technologies and Learning Environments, Thailand.

2020: Winner of Best Paper Award at 3rd International Conference on Educational Technology, Language and Technical Communication, Japan.

John Blake's research focuses on pattern matching using corpus and computational linguistic approaches for forensic and educational purposes.