Dr. Ziwei Ma joined the UTC Department of Mathematics in 2020 and has contributed to multiple research projects. Photo by Angela Foster.
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Associate Professor of Mathematics Ziwei Ma is bringing statistical expertise to a multi-university research project developing wearable technology and artificial intelligence tools to support rehabilitation for people with neurological motor disorders.
Supported by a U.S. National Science Foundation award through its Smart and Connected Health program, the project brings together researchers in engineering, physical therapy and statistics.
Ma, a graduate of New Mexico State University, will work with his former colleague, Dr. Wei Tang, the Paul W. and Valerie Klipsch Distinguished Professor in the Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NMSU.
The two previously collaborated on a project nearly a decade ago.
“The data set will be a little more complicated than the previous one,” Ma said. “That’s a challenge, but that’s also fun to do. When he explained the situation, he said they had the device and the patient; the main part they needed was to interpret those results.”
The current study will examine rehabilitation for people with traumatic brain injuries or autism spectrum disorder using wearable sensing technology and artificial intelligence.
Ma will serve as principal investigator for developing machine learning algorithms and conducting high-dimensional time-series data analysis.
“You solve, you help and you contribute your knowledge and skills to your specific area,” Ma said.
Ma said he was excited to collaborate on this new project.
Dr. Ma teaches multiple courses starting at the introductory level to advising graduate-level students.
Before earning his Ph.D. from NMSU, Ma was more interested in pure math.
“I was really fascinated by the rigor, the elegance in the pure format, and the logical deduction,” Ma said. “After I got my master’s degree, I was a lecturer in China for a couple of years, and at that school I got the chance to work with some people who were not working on pure math. Basically, the colleagues focused on agriculture and forestry, those kinds of directions.
“Pure math is beautiful and cool. But the applied part, that’s still really useful and can make an impact in real life. That is what motivated me to pursue my degree in statistics.”
After receiving his Ph.D. and joining UTC in 2020, Ma has been a consistent presence in the Department of Mathematics, according to Department Head Chris Cox.
“He’s very caring,” Cox said. “He has a kind of selfless element about him. It’s clear he cares about his students, and he helps the department in several ways. He’s fired on all cylinders as far as teaching, research and service.”
Within the department, Ma serves on a committee that reviews grades in math courses and considers how the department could better serve students. His expertise led to local opportunities at Erlanger Baroness Hospital, where he works with doctors and clinicians to design experiments.
“At UTC we have more applied mathematicians in our department and collaborators in computer science and mechanical engineering,” Ma explained. “I’m more fascinated because they have more realistic problems.”
Ma reflected on his own path and said students should actively seek out what interests them while in school, as he did.
“If you’re interested,” Ma said, “that’s something you should get involved in, and you know what faculty members are currently doing. Then you can identify your real passion and get started.”
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