Libby Zhang

I am a Ph.D. student in the department of Electrical Engineering working with Dr. Scott Linderman. My research quantifies animal behavior across various spatial and temporal scales. I design models and algorithms to scalably extract and robustly infer naturalistic behavior that facilitate more complex and nuanced biological investigations. As a researcher who develops statistical and machine learning methods for scientists, I focus on  developing models that place the end-user or "data consumer" at the center, informed of the performance and precision of the analyses and in control of the meaningful parameters associated with them. I achieve this by closely collaborating with experimentalists, incorporating their extensive domain knowledge and ensuring a tight design feedback loop. The unique challenges of each new collaboration invigorate me, and I look forward to these opportunities to grow as an interdisciplinary data scientist, contribute to advances in both respective fields, and facilitate more frequent interactions and broader discussions between communities.

I received my B.S. and M.Eng. from MIT in the department of Electrical Engineering, where I developed implantable devices for longitudinal measurement of biomarkers. Outside of research, I enjoy being where the mountains, oceans, food, and good company are at.