I use this page as an informal way to share what I bring to the table—how I think, work, and contribute as a person, a mathematician, and a researcher.
A short biography...
Born in Vietnam, I attended Le Hong Phong High School for the Gifted (yes, it's an actual name) where I somehow managed the highest entrance score. Arriving in the U.S. in my teens, I found that my family’s insistence on a cosmetology life was hardly my own. I left home to pursue higher education, transferred to UCLA, and there met Terry Tao, whose recommendation opened the door to UC Berkeley. Near graduation, the growing allure of data science and machine learning drew my attention. My first postdoc was a mismatch, compounded by the pandemic, but the second was an improvement. I now live in Vienna and have come to appreciate the peculiar satisfaction of an intense workload.
So I did not swim across oceans for my education. Still, I think my life has been eventful enough. Here are some traits of me, should you ever meet me.
Speed reader. I analyzed papers on graph Laplacian convergence and stable phase retrieval in a matter of days, polished off entire book on sampling theory in single day, and trained myself in high dimensional probability over two months.
Focus, fast and furious. I finished a two-hour ODE final in one hour, and a week-long honors linear algebra take-home in two days. UCLA's fast-paced environment trained me for this. In these distracted times, the capacity to concentrate has become something of a superpower.
Workaholic. I am, if one insists on labels, wedded to my career, and I rather enjoy the intensity of it. One week-long dynamical systems workshop had me running from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day—and, remarkably, I lived to tell the tale.
Too curious for my own good. Exposure to many disciplines has made it easy for me to see connections and generate ideas. I enjoy working where mathematics, science, and AI intersect: a place where depth meets breadth, the pace is brisk, and every day offers something new to pursue.
In quieter moments, I still appreciate the simpler things in life.