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I am a neurodivergent, a global citizen, and an agender person. I reject divisive constructs such as nationality, race, gender, and family—relics of humanity's tribal past. I do not wish to be defined in these terms, categorised, or subjected to assumptions. Instead, I ask for recognition of the reality I am in. As an aracial and acultural person, I have no home country. If you require one for bureaucratic purposes, the UK is my passport country. If you are a racist and as such need to know more, then know this: I am originally from Ethiopia—the cradle of Homo sapiens. Let us remember our common roots in Africa. In protest against patriarchy, I identify as non-binary. My correct pronouns are they and them
Early Life and Education (Until 2012)
I had an unremarkable childhood, impeded by undiagnosed neurodivergent conditions—autism, dyslexia, and likely dyspraxia—and by my parents' decision to send me to school late. Later, I immigrated from Hong Kong to the UK, but I refuse to be defined in relation to either place. My early development culminated in an angsty period at a boarding school in Kent. I was unhappy with the environment, but I could neither explain why nor change it. In retrospect, I was collecting data without a conceptual framework. Academically, I was very confused too. An internship in organic synthesis at the Chinese University of Hong Kong put me off experimental work, but my subject combination ruled out many theoretical subjects. In the end, I picked chemical engineering only because it appeared to be an employable degree.
Ironically, this uninspired choice led me to my intellectual home. At Imperial College London, I began to form my worldview, became a yogi, and developed an interest in theoretical biology. During my exchange year at the University of Sydney, I worked in bone tissue engineering. As an intern at the National University of La Plata in Argentina, I built quantitative structure-activity relationship models for acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. My final year research project was on modelling the unfolded protein response in the context of Alzheimer's disease. I left Imperial with an MEng degree and more importantly, a desire to understand life in every sense of the word.
Finding my Feet (2012–2019)
I started my quest to understand life in New York City on a shoestring budget. At Columbia University, I studied chemical engineering from a more theoretical perspective and was introduced to biophysics. In order to support myself financially, I worked as a teaching assistant. Although I had the option of undertaking a doctoral degree at Columbia, my department's molecular bent was incompatible with my burgeoning interest in systems-level problems. I left Columbia with an MS degree and returned to England, transferring to the University of Southampton. In my years as a PhD candidate, I formulated a theory to explain lymphatic development. In the process, I learnt aspects of mathematical biology and applied mathematics.
The period I spent on the south coast saw my growth into a confident member of society. At one point, I worked three jobs alongside my degree. I also endured a cancer scare, took up painting, and began an amateur chess career. Towards the end of my graduate studies, as my views became clear, I intended to adopt the name 11250205. Inspired by the transhumanist FM-2030, I wanted to protest against humanity's collectivist mentality and cultural appropriation (romanisation). As the Home Office would sadly not recognise it, I took my passport name in tribute to three people who had shaped me, to the belief that genuine human touches matter more than imposed ties.
After becoming a doctor in bioengineering, I moved to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the American Midwest to take my quest in a new direction. I moved into my unfurnished apartment with around 200 USD in my bank account, but thanks to the university's campus card, I made it through the first month. In the following two years, I led the ambitious project of building a virtual immune system in the Cornhusker State. In chess, I won the open U1600 section of the 2018 Cornhusker State Games: my first trophy.
PRIMAGE (2019–2022)
After laying the foundation of the virtual immune system—an achievement that won me the International Intellectual Benefits to Society Award from the Mensa Foundation—I wanted a new challenge, so I moved to the University of Sheffield to join PRIMAGE, a 10 million–euro Horizon 2020 project involving 16 institutions from eight European countries. We developed a cloud-based decision-making platform for the clinical management of malignant solid tumours. To this end, I built the first multicellular computational model of neuroblastoma. In parallel to PRIMAGE, I conceived three projects about the origin, nature, and treatment of neuroblastoma; secured small grants; established international collaborations; and recruited students for the projects.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I took time to reflect deeply on my firsthand experiences with intersectional discrimination. That period gave me the impetus to turn my long-standing concern for social justice in academia into meaningful action. In 2020, I joined the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Committee of the Department of Computer Science, contributing a little to the renewal of its Athena SWAN Silver Award for another five years in 2021. I became increasingly conscious of patriarchy too, including my own complicity in it. This process ultimately led me to reject all gender categories.
Independence (2023–)
In January 2023, I joined the University of Hull as a lecturer (assistant professor): my first independent academic position. At the Centre of Excellence for Data Science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Modelling, I lead an interdisciplinary research programme exploring diverse topics in systems biology, computational sociology, and applied AI.
My department offers a conversion MSc degree programme in artificial intelligence and data science. After I joined, I co-founded a degree variant titled MSc Artificial Intelligence for Engineering for mathematically inclined students. To this end, I designed and built a module titled Numerical Methods for Engineering from scratch. I now teach this module and the Applied AI module annually. I propose and/or supervise a broad range of dissertation projects too. In 2024, I became a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. In 2025, I completed the Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice.
Shortly after moving to Hull, I became my department's EDI champion to continue my advocacy and began my 200-hour yoga teacher training with Ann-Marie Mainprize. In October 2023, 15 years after my first yoga class, I became a qualified instructor. I have spoken on social justice topics—including linguistic justice and microaggressions—at internal conferences, departmental seminars, and student induction sessions.