Qihan 'Jody' Zhu

Qihan 'Jody' Zhu

Operations Research Ph.D. student at CMU

Research

Optimizing Cornell’s Final Exam Schedule

Advised by Professor David Shmoys, Cornell University, 2021-2022

In this project, a team of undergraduates optimized Cornell’s final exam schedule in a three-step fashion using integer programming and heuristics. I explored a TSP approach to reduce conflicts by assigning class to block and block to time together. Furthermore, I analyzed various metrics, especially in the discussion of deviating from a fixed timetable. This was a finalist for the Undergraduate Operations Research Prize at the 2023 INFORMS Annual Meeting.

SimOpt: A Library of Simulation Optimization Problems and Solvers

Advised by Professor Shane Henderson, Cornell University, 2021-2022

Within a much larger project, I focused on expanding the testbed with real-world problems, including a model to minimize COVID-19 infections in a campus setting, to enhance solver testing. I also coded and modified algorithms from literature such as Nelder-Mead of which their solving power on the testbed can then be compared.

🥇An Automated Tool for Optimal Classroom Seating Assignment with Social Distancing Constraints

Advised by Professor David Shmoys and Professor Samuel Gutekunst, Cornell University, 2020-2021

To depart from time-consuming guesswork, I designed the original tool for automatically selecting the optimal seating arrangement given social distancing guidelines that employed computer vision and integer programming. Working closely with a team of undergraduates, we improved and implemented the system for the university’s use in reopening. This project was submitted to the 2021 IISE Annual Conference where it received first place for the OR Division Undergraduate Student Research Award.