Five Minutes/Five Questions with CFN Users' Executive Commitee Chair Shize Yang
information from the Users' Executive Committee
June 20, 2025
Shize Yang
1. As the newly elected chair of the CFN Users' Executive Committee, what are your top priorities for the year ahead?
The top priorities are improving communication and connections among the user community. I would like to see this happen through activities, which I think are the key to keeping users informed and engaged. I will work with the committee to develop more activities to get the user community involved. Because this is a special year with a lot of chaotic situations across the country, I especially think these events are important. I will work with the committee to support the community through more opportunities to get together and connect.
2. What do you think the UEC can do to help strengthen the connection between users and CFN staff?
I think the UEC provide channels that facilitate communication between users and CFN staff. The annual Users’ Meeting is a key component in strengthening these connections, and I encourage more users to attend. And in a more general sense, we should aim to regularly engage users through conversations all year round.
3. Looking back at your own journey, what advice would you offer early-career researchers engaging with CFN for the first time?
I would encourage first-time CFN users to make arrangements to discuss their projects with the relevant experts at CFN and to receive an overview of its capabilities and opportunities. Techniques are changing at a fast pace. It would be most efficient for users to have a thorough understanding of all CFN has to offer at the very beginning of their research journey.
4. You were a CFN postdoc not long ago. How does that experience shape your approach to representing the user community now?
Working at CFN as a postdoc is an enriching experience. I was able to communicate and connect with other CFN people more during my daily work, and I think this level of communication is key to solving problems. My postdoc experience also allowed me to understand the importance of the cutting-edge techniques that CFN provides to the users, and it taught me to appreciate that it takes time and effort to deal with the practical challenges that arise during user projects.
5. What’s one thing you still remember vividly from your time as a CFN postdoc — a moment, a mentor, or even a favorite instrument?
The annual open house event provided me with good memories. I was able to tour a lot of facilities during this event, and it inspired me to volunteer to help with future CFN open house events. I also got to know a lot of other users while working as a postdoc at CFN. These good memories will always keep me happy.
2025-22506 | INT/EXT | Newsroom
