Your Partners in Success: Meet Our Faculty, Dr. Wong

From mitigating climate risks to splitting the dinner bill, Dr. Tony Wong demonstrates to his students that math is more than just a prerequisite to other courses.

Dr. Wong’s current research is centered around the fact that uncertainty is inherent in any mathematical model and in any data set, yet we rely on both as tools for decision-making. 

His research is developing ways to use data to improve geophysical and climate model predictions. Dr. Wong is most interested in applications that manage the risks posed by dangerous climate changes such as increasing global temperatures and sea levels. 

Dr. Wong is currently looking for students at all levels and aims to create a research group with a diversity of cultures, experiences, and ways of thinking. Some examples of previous student projects include:

• quantifying the value of experts’ judgment when modeling the Antarctic ice sheet contribution to sea-level rise,
• determining the amount of data needed in order to obtain reliable estimates of flood hazards, and
• using a neural network to classify Pokemon Go trades as fair or unfair.

Research Interests

• Model Calibration
• Uncertainty Characterization
• Bayesian Statistics
• Geophysical Modeling
• Climate Change
• Sea-level Rise
• Coastal Impacts
• Mathematical Modeling

About Dr. Tony Wong

Dr. Wong is an Assistant Professor in the School of Mathematical Sciences at RIT and a member of the Inclusive Excellence Research Strand Cohort. 

In his research, Dr. Wong uses mathematical and statistical tools to characterize uncertainty in physical models. He is particularly interested in assessing how these modeling uncertainties map to uncertainty in decision-making. In short, Dr. Wong’s passion lies in finding creative ways to use math to help make better decisions.

Prior to joining RIT, Dr. Wong held positions as an Instructor in Computer Science at the University of Colorado Boulder and as a Postdoctoral Scholar at Penn State's Earth and Environmental Systems Institute.

Ph.D., Applied Mathematics, the University of Colorado at Boulder, 2016
MS, Applied Mathematics, the University of Colorado at Boulder, 2012
BA, Mathematics (Hons) and Astrophysics, Ohio Wesleyan University, 2010

To learn more about Dr. Tony Wong, visit his RIT profile page.

Read Dr. Wong’s latest article, ‘If everyone on Earth sat in the ocean at once, how much would sea-level rise?’ written for the "Curious Kids" series published by The Conversation.