About me

I was born and raised in Nanjing, China, where for six years I attended Nanjing Foreign Language School.
I came to the United States in 2011 to attend Bard College in upstate New York. I did two senior theses. I completed my chemistry thesis with Christopher LaFratta, and my mathematics thesis with Jim Belk.
I received my PhD in mathematics from Northwestern University in September 2020. My advisor is Laura DeMarco.
I then spent three more years at Northwestern University as a postdoctoral lecturer. During this time, I also taught a topics course at Evanston Township High School.
I became an assistant professor of practice in mathematics at Purdue University in August 2023.
I am passionate about the teaching and learning of mathematics. I am a Project NExT Fellow (Green'23 cohort), and I was a CIRTL scholar at Northwestern's Searle Center for Advancing Learning and Teaching. I strive to create an inclusive environment for my students to enjoy the learning experience of mathematics.

I adopted a cat in 2017. I named him Muon, although most of the time he has been referred to as Fat-fat (or Pang-Pang). Muon is eight years old. He likes to cuddle, supervises his humans to work, and enjoys belly rubbing from his humans. But most of the day, he is sleeping somewhere in the room.
I met my wife Yimei in Chicago, and we have been happily married since 2019. We play board games to determine who should clean up the litter box for Muon.
Our daughter Elizabeth was born in 2021. Elizabeth likes to harass Muon, while Muon likes to steal food from Elizabeth (and other humans).
I enjoy some sports when I am not doing math. I play badminton almost weekly at Northwestern badminton club. I started rock-climbing in 2018 after I passed my qualifying exam. In 2019, I improved my figure skating skills at Robert Crown Center in Evanston.
I love getting outside when the whether is nice (which is rare in Chicago). I have enjoyed long jogs and occasional cycling trips along the shore of Lake Michigan. Sometimes, I step out at night for stargazing, especially when there are significant astronomical events like eclipses, meteor showers, and comets.
I follow quite a few YouTube channels (maybe too many). Some of my favorites are 3Blue1Brown, CGP Grey, Kurzgesagt, Mark Rober, MinuteFood, Smarter Every Day, Tom Scott, TwoSetViolin, and Veritasium. Now you know how I spend my free time!