A student at the intersection of quantitative finance, applied mathematics, and AI research. I focus on translating complex, real-world systems into formal models that can support better decisions. My interests sit between theory and application: building structured representations of messy reality, testing their limits, and understanding where formal logic succeeds—or fails—when applied to human systems. I’m passionate about leveraging quantitative tools to tackle interdisciplinary challenges.
Developing mathematical and computational frameworks that approximate real-world uncertainty with attention to assumptions, stability, and failure modes.
Approach: I focus on how uncertainty is encoded when reality deviates from pure theory.
Studying how formal models inform decisions in finance, health, and organizational contexts, especially when incentives and information are imperfect.
Approach: I test how decisions shift under constraint changes and incomplete information.
Exploring how artificial intelligence can facilitate statistical analysis and programming to extract structure from complex datasets and test theoretical ideas.
Approach: I use AI to automate each step of bringing a theory to life .
Click highlighted items to access related projects or materials.
Last updated: December 2025Alongside technical work, I care deeply about how humans assign meaning to structure. I write as an amateur, play the violin in orchestral and chamber settings, and spend time with philosophy and theology-especially questions about interpretation, ethics, and limits of formal reasoning. These interests shape how I approach technical problems: they sharpen my attention to assumptions, language, and what gets lost when reality is compressed into symbols.
Alongside academic research, I co-founded Neuroscience Youth—an open intellectual community for high-school students in China. My goal was to create a bridge between complex theory and accessible learning, fostering a space where students assign meaning to structure through shared scientific exchange.
Essays and fiction in progress: ideas, reflections, and long-form narrative work.
Essays · Mathematics
Why mathematics should be communicated publicly, and why mathematicians themselves grow by sharing it.
Essays · Reflection
A short reflection on instinct, logic, and what each can reveal.
Fiction · Clarice the Silent Lily
Manhattan Knows. But It’s Too Late.
I welcome outreach related to research, internships, or academic collaboration.
Email: yzhu26@nd.edu