My research focuses on developing data-driven frameworks to infer and interpret geographic dynamics from a spatial network or flow perspective. For example, I analyze the dynamics of human activities and mobility—such as migration between regions, daily commuting flows, or changes in residential patterns—by modeling them as sequential snapshots of spatial distributions or networks. These approaches are directly relevant to understanding population mobility, spatial inequality, and responses to environmental change, all of which are primary research areas in the Population Studies Center.
Zhongfu Ma is a thrid year PhD student in Geography at the Department of Geography, Environment and Society. His research interest lies in detecting, inferring, and interpreting spatial evolutionary processes, using current machine learning or deep learning methods.