Optimizing You
We discuss all things optimization. Through interviewing professors and practitioners in fields like Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, we show a variety of perspectives on what it is like to study optimization, what it's like to get a PhD in a field related to optimization, and why it's important to study optimization.
Optimizing You
Dr. Andrew Li: Active Sequential Hypothesis Testing
Dr. Andrew Li is an Associate Professor at Carnegie Mellon University.
In this episode, we start by chatting about his background. We discuss his decision to enter a PhD program in Operations Research, experience and thoughts on the academic job market, and some advice for current students.
We delve into his transition from student to advisor, and discuss the responsibility of an advisor to provide interesting projects to students. From here, we also discuss the soft skills of giving good academic presentations and how one can improve their academic writing.
Finally, we discuss Andrew's research on Active Sequential Hypothesis Testing which he introduces through the exciting application to cancer detection screening via blood tests. This work recently won the 2021 Pierskalla Best Paper Award at the INFORMS Annual Meeting.
Enjoy!