Assistant Professor
Department of Applied Mathematics & Statistics
Department of Computer Science
Stony Brook University
Hello! ☃
I am an Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University, with appointments in Data Science, the Department of Applied Mathematics & Statistics, and the Department of Computer Science. I do research in natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML).
Previously I was a Research Assistant Professor at the Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago (TTIC), situated on the University of Chicago campus. I obtained my Ph.D. from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) at Harvard University, affiliated with the Natural Language Processing (NLP) group at Harvard/Cornell. I am fortunate to be advised by Professor Alexander (Sasha) Rush, currently at Cornell University. I have also worked with Professor Minlan Yu at Harvard on ML applications in networks and cybersecurity. I obtained an M.A. degree in Statistics from Harvard University. Prior to Harvard, I received my B.S. degree in EE from Tsinghua University.
My previous webpage is here for reference of past research and projects.
My primary research interests lie in the areas of natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML). The ultimate goal is to build general intelligent machines that can understand, interact, and help human beings on a wide variety of tasks with trustworthiness and efficiency. I am glad to see LLMs are bringing us one step closer 🤔
I am broadly interested in understanding and improving state-of-the-art deep learning models such as (large) language models (LLMs), on a variety of aspects such as efficiency, knowledge represention and manipulation, memorization, factualness, security, fair evaluation, reasoning and planning, as well as multimodality. Check Research for more details. Feel free to reach out to collaborate on any interesting problems.
Prospective Students: If you’re interested in working with me, feel free to reach out with a brief introduction, an overview of your research background, and any problems or ideas you’re currently exploring. I am looking for highly motivated students (in any stage) with strong technical skills in programming and mathematical reasoning. Strong communication and writing skills are equally important, as our work involves documenting and presenting research findings effectively.
Our research focuses on advancing cutting-edge techniques in NLP and ML, so you should be prepared to write a substantial amount of code daily and conduct extensive experiments. I deeply value curiosity-driven minds, rigorous thinking, and creative problem-solving—essential qualities for producing impactful and innovative research that shapes a more exciting future.
I am actively looking for outstanding Ph.D. applicants who meet the above criteria. If you are interested, consider applying to the Ph.D. programs in Computer Science, Data Science, or Applied Mathematics & Statistics (if your background is in mathematics or statistics). Be sure to mention my name in your application, and feel free to reach out after applying if there is a strong alignment with your interests and expertise.
Please note that I cannot guarantee a reply to every inquiry (apologies), and sometimes my response may be (very) delayed.