Xin-She Yang has a DPhil in applied mathematics from Oxford Universityhttp://www.ox.ac.uk/gazette/1997-8/weekly/050298/exam.htm
He is currently a Senior Research Scientist at National Physical Laboratory, and
is the Editor-in-Chief of Int. Journal of Mathematical Modelling and Numerical Optimisation.http://www.inderscience.com/ijmmno

He has developed various heuristic algorithms for computer science

Computer science

Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...

 and engineering optimization.
Notably the firefly algorithm

Firefly algorithm

The firefly algorithm is a metaheuristic algorithm, inspired by the flashing behaviour of fireflies. The primary purpose for a firefly's flash is to act as a signal system to attract other fireflies...

 (2008), cuckoo search

Cuckoo search

Cuckoo search is an optimization algorithm developed by Xin-she Yang and Suash Debin 2009. It was inspired by the obligate brood parasitism of some cuckoo species by laying their eggs in the nests of other host birds . Some host birds can engage direct conflict with the intruding cuckoos...

 (2009) and bat algorithm

Bat algorithm

Bat-inspired algorithm is a metaheuristic search optimization developed by Xin-She Yang in 2010. This bat algorithm is based on the echolocation behaviour of microbats with varying pulse rates of emission and loudness.- Algorithm Description :...

. The so-called van Flandern-Yang hypothesis

Van Flandern-Yang hypothesis

The van Flandern-Yang hypothesis is the theory attempting to explain theunusual anomalies of about 7 m/s2 observed in theSolar eclipse of March 9, 1997. This hypothesis conjectures that the gravity anomalies are due to a travelling density spot in the upper atmosphere caused by the cooling during...

 was derived from his collaboration with van Flandern
to explain the gravity variations during the Solar Eclipse in 1997, and this theory is related to the well-known Allais Effect

Allais effect

The Allais effect is a claimed anomalous precession of the plane of oscillation of a pendulum during a solar eclipse. It has been speculated to be unexplained by standard physical models of gravitation, but recent mainstream physics publications tend rather to posit conventional explanations for...

and other phenomena.

Research

His main research areas include mathematical modelling and applied mathematics,
computational mathematics, optimization, metaheuristics , computational intelligence and total solar eclipses.

Selected Publications

• Yang X. S., Introduction to Computational Mathematics, World Scientific, (2008). ISBN 9812818170
• Yang X. S., Introductory Mathematics for Earth Scientists, Dunedin Academic Press, (2009). ISBN 1906716005
• Yang X. S., Mathematical Modelling for Earth Sciences, Dunedin Academic Press, (2009). ISBN 9781903765920
• Yang X. S., Engineering Optimization: An Introduction with Metaheuristic Applications, John Wiley and Sons, (2010). ISBN 0470582464
• Yang X. S. and Koziel S., Computational Optimization and Applications in Engineering and Industry, Springer, (2011). ISBN 3642209858