astronomy

Xing-Fang Li

Xing-Fang Li is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Xing-Fang Li rather than just read about it. In short: Xing-Fang Li is a toxicologist whose research involves the discovery and identification of water contaminants through the development of new analytical technologies, as well as the engineering of solutions to ensure safe drinking water. Li is a professor at the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Alberta in Canada.

Key takeaways

Xing-Fang Li belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Xing-Fang Li to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Xing-Fang Li from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Xing-Fang Li is a toxicologist whose research involves the discovery and identification of water contaminants through the development of new analytical technologies, as well as the engineering of solutions to ensure safe drinking water. Li is a professor at the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Alberta in Canada. She is a Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Analytical and Environmental Toxicology, and was appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2021.

Career Li completed a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Zhejiang University (1983), a Master of Science in Environmental Chemistry from the Research Centre for Eco-Environmental Sciences at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (1986), a Master of Science in Analytical Chemistry from Brock University in Canada (1990), and a PhD in Environmental/Analytical Chemistry from the University of British Columbia (1995). Li completed postdoctoral research at the University of Alberta (1994-1997), and later returned from industry to join as a professor at the University of Alberta's Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry in 2001. Li has published over 150 academic publications, which have been cited over 10,000 times, resulting in an h-index and i10-index of 57 and 143 respectively. Previously, research from Li's lab found that measuring levels of the common artificial sweetener acesulfame potassium (Ace) is a way to determine the concentration of urine in pools. Their research found Ace in all 31 pools and hot tubs tested in two Canadian cities between May and August 2014, indicating that large amounts of human urine can be found in an average swimming pool. In 2020, Li received the Chemical Institute of Canada's Ricardo Aroca Award for "a distinguished contribution to the field of analytical chemistry while working in Canada."

Selected academic publications Arsenic binding to proteins. Shengwen Shen, Xing-Fang Li, William R Cullen, Michael Weinfeld, and X Chris Le. 2013. Chemical reviews. Drinking water disinfection byproducts (DBPs) and human health effects: multidisciplinary challenges and opportunities. Xing-Fang Li, William A Mitch. 2018. Environmental Science & Technology. DNA-mediated homogeneous binding assays for nucleic acids and proteins. Hongquan Zhang, Feng Li, Brittany Dever, Xing-Fang Li, X Chris Le. 2013. Chemical reviews. A microRNA-initiated DNAzyme motor operating in living cells. Hanyong Peng, Xing-Fang Li, Hongquan Zhang, X Chris Le. 2017. Nature communications.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Xing-Fang Li

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Xing-Fang Li claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Xing-Fang Li before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Xing-Fang Li ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Xing-Fang Li

In research: Xing-Fang Li appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Xing-Fang Li in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Xing-Fang Li is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 20th-century Chinese scientists, 21st-century Chinese scientists, Academic staff of the University of Alberta, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Xing-Fang Li outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Xing-Fang Li in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Xing-Fang Li means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Xing-Fang Li out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Xing-Fang Li in simple terms?

Why does Xing-Fang Li matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Xing-Fang Li?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Xing-Fang Li.