Y. Charles Li

Y. Charles Li is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Missouri, affiliated with the Department of Mathematics. His research spans Chaos Theory, Fluid Mechanics, and Partial Differential Equations.

• Education: PhD (Princeton University, 1993), BSc (Peking University, 1986)

Li's work established a systematic theory of chaos in PDEs and resolved the Sommerfeld Paradox (turbulence paradox) with Z. Lin. He developed a theory of rough dependence on initial data, explaining turbulence's unpredictability through superfast amplification of perturbations, validated numerically with collaborators.

His publications focus on nonlinear dynamics, hydrodynamic stability, and chaos in infinite-dimensional systems, with applications to Navier-Stokes equations and Josephson junctions.

• Scientific Awards:
  • Guggenheim Fellowship (1999)
  • AMS Centennial Fellowship (1998)
  • Merit Prize, Princeton University (1989)

Li teaches MATH 4100: Differential Equations and actively collaborates on turbulence applications, including recent work with R. Ho, A. Berera, and Z. Feng.