Anna Cai

Dr. Anna Cai is a Lecturer in the Department of Applied Mathematics within the School of Mathematics & Statistics at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), a position she has held since 2011. Prior to this, she served as a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the University of California, Irvine from 2007 to 2011.

Her educational background:

• Ph.D., The University of Melbourne, 2008
• B.Sc. (First Class Honours), The University of Melbourne, 2004

Dr. Cai's research centers on Mathematical Biology, with specialization in cell migration dynamics, developmental pattern formation, and robustness in biological systems. She employs multi-scale mathematical modeling and stochastic analysis to investigate phenomena ranging from wound healing to zebrafish hindbrain development. Her work bridges theoretical mathematics with experimental biology to decode fundamental mechanisms governing cellular behavior and morphogenesis.

Analysis of her 11 publications (2006-2015) reveals an evolutionary trajectory from foundational work on cell migration mechanics to sophisticated studies of developmental robustness. Early research established mathematical frameworks for wound-healing assays and immune cell dynamics, while later work pioneered noise-driven pattern formation models in zebrafish. A unifying thread is her focus on how biological systems maintain precision despite environmental fluctuations.

Administrative responsibilities include:

• Applied representative on the postgraduate review committee
• UNSW study abroad and exchange course authority

Current teaching assignments:

• MATH2121: Theory and Applications of Differential Equations
• MATH2018: Engineering Mathematics 2D

Prior courses taught:

• MATH3041: Mathematical Modeling for Real World Systems
• MATH6781: Biomathematics