We are a research group made up of multiple undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs. We work on a variety of problems in exoplanets, in particular their formation. We employ a number of tools in our work, including observations, simulations, and machine learning. Our mission contributes to the ultimate question of “Where do we come from?” Feel free to get a taste of what we do in the Research tab above. The Media tab also contains excellent articles explaining our work in lay-person language.

My philosophy toward mentoring is to help each mentee develop projects and expertise based on each person’s unique interests and strengths. Typically, each group member has their own projects, instead of the whole group focusing on one big problem with everyone doing a small piece. If a newcomer knows what they want, they’ll have maximum freedom to pursue their own goals because I firmly believe that personal interest is the best motivator in the world. Meanwhile, I strive to provide the best possible support, which includes prompt attention to their needs and concerns, coaching them on how to obtain and use tools, securing the data they need, helping them expand their network by connecting them to collaborators, and financially supporting them to attend conferences and work trips, etc.

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If you are not sure what you might be interested in, don’t worry — nobody knows exactly what they want at the beginning! I’m happy to work with you to try out small projects first so that you could develop your own taste in scientific problems. Here is a convocation speech I gave to the Class of 2024 at the School of Physics at PKU, which offers a glimpse into my own journey exploring what to do in life.

If you are asking yourself, “Should I pursue a PhD, and perhaps a long-term career in research? ”, the bad news is that you probably will not figure it out just by thinking alone. You need to experience research, then listen carefully to what your heart tells you. The good news is that there are signs you can look for. I found this article by Prof. Huanchen Zhang at Tsinghua University very insightful. It may help you think about whether a PhD, or a long-term career in research, is suitable for you. It is in Chinese, so you may need to use a translation tool.