About me

Hello! I’m Winchester (Shaotian) Zhang. I chose my preferred name “Winchester” inspired by two brave brothers in “Supernatural,” a long-running American TV series. “Saving people, hunting things, the family business.”

I am currently an intern at the Beijing Institute of Open Source Chip, contributing to the RISC-V project while deepening my knowledge in computer architecture.

My journey in science began with a dream of becoming an astronomer. Although my undergraduate studies led me to Electrical Engineering due to my Gaokao ranking, I continued to pursue my passion for astronomy. During an exchange program in Europe, I took courses in physics, and at Cornell University, I delved into optical and radio astronomy.

In addition to my coursework, I gained significant experience in scientific computing as a Computational Research Assistant in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University. Under the guidance of Prof. David Lee Hysell, I explored the feasibility of automating ray tracing problems in Earth’s ionosphere model using JAX for Automatic Differentiation to Partial Differential Equations (PDEs). While this approach increased efficiency, I found that handling large-scale computations required more robust hardware solutions.

This realization led me to focus on computer architecture. I designed a RISC-V processor with cache during my studies, which sparked my interest in this field. Now, as part of my internship, I am excited to contribute to open-source projects and explore innovative solutions in computing. My work involves developing and optimizing hardware that can significantly enhance scientific computing capabilities, aligning with my broader goal of advancing computational methods in various scientific domains.

Looking ahead, I am considering pursuing a Ph.D. in Computer Architecture to further specialize in this area. I aim to contribute to advancements in hardware design that can support large-scale scientific computations, bridging my interests in both astronomy and computer engineering.

I am always happy to connect with like-minded individuals. If you share an interest in computer architecture or have a passion for astronomy, feel free to reach out!

Research Interests

• Computer Architecture
• Scientific Computing
• Astronomy

Education