Kai Li

Kai Li

Researcher and educator working in statistics, reinforcement learning, modeling, and simulation.

Beyond the CV

This is the less formal side of my website: a place for memories, small stories, and ideas that I enjoy even when they do not belong on a CV.

A few moments along the way

Kai Li in graduation regalia beside the Umbilic Torus sculpture at Stony Brook University.
Beside the Umbilic Torus during Stony Brook University's 2022 Graduate Celebration, May 23, 2022.
Kai Li holding an Applied Mathematics and Statistics award beside Professor Joseph Mitchell at Stony Brook University.
At the Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics Award of Honor Celebration with Professor Joseph Mitchell, May 19, 2022.
Kai Li in Ohio State graduation regalia outside the Mathematics Tower near the Golden Hour Glass sculpture.
During The Ohio State University's 2020 Graduate Celebration, held August 7, 2021.
Kai Li standing on a beach beside the water on a clear day.
A quiet moment by the water.

Garbage in, garbage out

“Garbage in, garbage out” is one of my favorite principles from computing and data analysis: flawed inputs and poorly framed assumptions can undermine even sophisticated methods.

I came to appreciate the principle more deeply while taking CSE 519: Data Science in Fall 2021. It was the first time I sat down to think carefully about data science as a discipline rather than only as a collection of tools. Working through Python-based analysis and modeling helped me see how computer science, statistics, and domain knowledge depend on one another.

Ideas, puzzles, and phenomena I enjoy

  1. George E. P. Box, J. Stuart Hunter, and William G. Hunter, Statistics for Experimenters: Design, Innovation, and Discovery, 2nd ed. (Wiley, 2005). ↩

  2. Ronald L. Rardin, Optimization in Operations Research, 2nd ed. (Pearson, 2016). ↩