Curriculum Vitae

zgn@uw.edu

I am currently a Washington Research Foundation Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Applied Mathematics at the University of Washington, and I collaborate with the groups of J. Nathan Kutz and Steven L. Brunton. I received my B.S. from Northwestern University, majoring in Integrated Science, Physics, and Mathematics, and I received a Master’s of Advanced Study in Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics in the Part III program at Cambridge. I received my Ph. D. from Caltech in 2017, with my dissertation “Symmetry and variational analyses of fluid interface equations in the thin film limit”.

My research focuses on the emergence of complexity, with particular emphasis on synchronization and pattern formation in networks, condensed matter, and fluid mechanical systems. I utilize classical tools from applied mathematics and novel machine learning (ML) approaches to discover and characterize mechanisms behind complex phenomena. Current topics of interest are ML-enabled system identification and reduced order modeling, symmetry concepts (including chimera states, dimension reduction methods, and converse symmetry breaking), band-gap design and associated complex phenomena such as localized states and anharmonic responses, and the kinetics of granular materials and topological defects.

I am an active member of the Applied Mathematics Diversity Committee, and I advise undergraduate and graduate researchers at UW. Feel free to contact me to discuss research opportunities or advice!