<Yutong Wu> β HTGAA Spring 2026
About me
πΏ Hi, I’m Yutong β Wellesley College ‘26 with background in Computational Cognitive Science & Biological Sciences
π¬ Scientist Β· πΈ Wildlife Photographer Β· πΌ Guzheng Musician
I aspire to be a design engineer in wearable health technology and smart pet technology. I believe nature is the best designer and want to build tools that listen to bodies, human and furry.
π£οΈ Languages: Suzhou dialect, Mandarin, English, German Β· dabbled in Spanish and Hindi
πΎ how i got here
I took my first bio class in Organismal Biology in freshman fall, thinking it would be my last.
Spoiler: it wasn’t.
I couldn’t stop signing up for more animal-related bio classes, and somehow that snowballed into fieldwork across three continents.
π where i’ve worked
ποΈ June 2023 Β· Sanjiangyuan, China β Animal conservation with the Sanjiangyuan Qumalai Ecological Protection & Wildlife Monitoring Association (δΈε½δΈζ±ζΊζ²ιΊ»θ±ηζδΏζ€ιηηη©ηζ΅εδΌ).
π’ May 2024 Β· Little Cayman Island β Field research with my Tropical Ecology class on microplastics on epiphytes on seagrass β tiny pollutants, on tiny plants, on bigger plants.
π January 2026 Β· Isla de los Monos, Iquitos, Peru β Volunteered at a monkey shelter deep in the rainforest. Had the best time hanging out with capuchins (Cebus), howler monkeys (Alouatta), saki monkeys (Pithecia), woolly monkeys (Lagothrix), titi monkeys (Plecturocebus), and tamarins (Saguinus). Survived without putting on any insect repellent.
π‘ two things four years taught me
1. I love animals β ALIVE. I can’t do any experiment that involves keeping vertebrates in captivity for experiments. Full stop. The paper that keeps me studying bio is this one on the elephant facial motor system β sharing it here because it’s the kind of work that makes me believe in the field.
2. I need my hands in the work. 200% dry lab is not for me. I need to do things β dissect, build, pipette, troubleshoot, get my gloves dirty.
𧬠so… why HTGAA?
That’s exactly why I’m here β exploring more fun bio technologies, and looking for the sweet spot between rigorous science, hands-on tinkering, and the animals (and ideas) I love.
let’s build something cool β¨
Contact info
Homework
- Week 1 HW: Principles & Practices
- Week 2 HW: DNA Read, Write, & Edit
- Week 3 HW: Lab Automation
- Week 4 HW: Protein Design Part I
- Week 5 HW: Protein Design Part II
- Week 6 HW: Genetic Circuits Part I
- Week 7 HW: Genetic Circuits Part II
- Week 9 HW: Cell Free Systems
- Week10 HW: Imaging and Measurement
- Week11 HW: BIOPRODUCTION AND CLOUD LABS
Labs
- Week 1 Lab: Pipetting
- Week 11 Lab: Cloud Lab
- Week 2 Lab: DNA Gel Art
- Week 3 Lab: Opentrons Art
- Week 6 Lab: Gibson Assemly
- Week 7 Lab: Neuromorphic Circuits
Projects
