Mingsong Li

Mingsong Li

Assistant Professor, School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University

Teaching

My teaching connects Earth science with data analysis, programming, and research practice. At Peking University, I teach undergraduate and graduate courses that introduce students to quantitative approaches in geoscience, including data visualization, time-series analysis, multivariate statistics, reproducible workflows, and the thoughtful use of AI-assisted tools.

I try to make my courses useful for students with different backgrounds. Some students arrive with strong geological intuition but limited programming experience; others are comfortable with computation but are still learning how to frame scientific questions. For this reason, I combine lectures with hands-on exercises, short feedback cycles, and project-based work. My goal is to help students move gradually from learning methods to using them responsibly in their own research.

A central part of my teaching is working with real datasets and open-ended questions from Earth history, paleobiology, stratigraphy, and related fields. In project-based courses, students develop a proposal, present their ideas, revise their methods, and communicate final results. This process gives them practice not only in technical skills, but also in collaboration, scientific writing, and careful interpretation of evidence. In some cases, student projects have grown into research papers, which I see as a valuable outcome of connecting classroom learning with active research.

I also mentor undergraduate and graduate students outside the classroom, including through research projects, academic advising, and early-stage training for students interested in geoscience research. I value mentoring that is patient, practical, and attentive to each student's pace of development.

I continue to revise my teaching as the field changes. In particular, I am interested in helping students use computational and AI-related tools effectively while maintaining independent thinking, originality, and academic integrity. My aim is to support students as they build a solid foundation in Earth science, develop useful quantitative skills, and gain confidence in asking and pursuing meaningful scientific questions.

Courses

Workshops and Short Courses