ABSTRACT: ``In 1988 at the Colloquium talk at Rutgers, I talked on my life in Representation Theory. This time I may talk a little more on similar vein: say On How I have been (personally, and slowly) re-discovering many aspects of the historical ROOTS of Classical Representation Theory (= CRT) that lie in the said old Theory of Symmetric Functions; not only on how so many older aspects fit together neatly with various contemporary trends in the Applications of CRT to Problems in Algebraic Geometry and Combinatorics, but also how many newer trends in the Theory of Symmetric Functions are being forced upon us from considerations of remote(r) parts of Mathematical Sciences. [This would give me occasion to dwell a little on my long-time flirtations with Number Theory, which (lately) seem to open some new windows on future developments.]

Considering vast amount of information that is subsumed under the title of my Talk (as also the words in the previous para), it is literally impossible to give a `comprehensive 1-hour survey'; hence my aim shall be more in the nature of recounting personal experiences of a Representation Theorist which have been forcing me to keep learning more about the wonderful Centuries-Old Theory of Symmetric Functions and its newer Ramifications.

In particular, I should avoid being overly technical: in keeping with the ``Broad'' nature of the Colloquium Talks; also considering the fact that in view of the possible presence of many experts on related matters in my audience it would be presumptuous to try to be very technical.''