Yuan (Sophie) Liu was granted her angel wings on January 20, 2021, in San Diego, California, after a brave battle with breast cancer. Yuan’s life would seem too short to many, but those who were touched by her easily understood that the quality of existence far exceeds the quantify of time in which one lives. Indeed, her smile, passion, courage, and generosity constantly reminded us of the best part of life.
Yuan was born in Tianjin, China. She went to Nankai Middle School and won one Gold Medal as the Best Female Contestant in the 29th International Physics Olympiad in 1998. Then she attended Peking University and came to USA in 2000 when she was a junior. She received a B.S. degree in Physics with Honors from California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California in 2002.
Yuan then came to Princeton University as a graduate student in the Department of Physics. Her research focused on computational neuroscience and she published a number of impactful papers. From 2002 to 2004, she served as Vice President and Social Chair of Association of Chinese Students and Scholars at Princeton University (ACSSPU), and she was an active member of 1016 Drama Club. She wrote the very first version of the Princeton Life Guide for Chinese Students, which becomes a unique ACSSPU asset that has been passed on from generation to generation. Yuan earned her Ph.D. degree in Physics in 2007, and then joined the Salk Institute as a postdoc fellow. In San Diego, California, she met her loving husband, De Cai and got married in 2009. From 2011 to 2021, she worked as a senior data scientist at FICO and Experian.
Yuan loved traveling: she visited 47 countries all over the world, and did scuba diving in many places. She loved reading, giving the deepest thoughts about life, the world, and spiritual understanding. As a productive writer, she wrote about travel, neuroscience, physics, and psychology, and her blogs have attracted thousands of followers and inspired many more.
Yuan loved family with her whole heart. Yuan is survived by her husband De and two children, and parents Honglu and Weiguang.
Yuan was a passionate traveler, accomplished scientist, devoted mother, brilliant wife, and caring daughter. She was a full person.