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Suwanee, GA

Hi, I'm Mason Cao.

I'm a Lambert High School junior working at the intersection of environmental science and computer science, building applications and systems with a purpose.

Current signal

700+ Commits
450+ People Managed & Mentored

Featured Projects

AERIS

Live signals

End-to-end environmental intelligence platform that ingests live atmospheric data, detects anomalies through three independent methods, and explains causes with a local Llama 3 RAG pipeline developed under the mentorship of Dr. Annalisa Bracco.

Sources
4
Detect
3-way

Llama 3 8B + ChromaDB • TimescaleDB • FastAPI • Mapbox GL JS

Luminosity Intelligence

Agent mesh

Multi-agent analytics dashboard where 8 specialized agents process 750K behavioral events and explain churn risk through transparent audit trails for every decision.

Events
750K
Agents
8

Custom Agent Orchestration • GradientBoosting • SHAP • FastAPI

FreshTrack

Household ops

Full-stack household operations dashboard that tracks inventory, surfaces expiring ingredients, recommends recipes, and charts consumption patterns over time.

Stack
Next 15
Data
SQLite

Next.js 15 • SQLite + Drizzle ORM • REST API • Recharts

Detox

Local-first

Local-first macOS behavior tracker that polls every two seconds, force-quits distractions on-device, and visualizes habits as an isometric pixel-art island.

Poll
2s
Mode
Local

Python • Flask + FastAPI • SQLite • Chart.js • macOS native

Experience & Skills

Leadership & Work

  • NASA TESS Exoplanet Validation Research

    Summer 2026
    Incoming Research Intern

    Under the guidance of a NASA principal investigator, I will build Python-based statistical workflows for publication-track astrophysics research. Utilizing AstroImageJ and Jupyter, I will analyze TESS and JWST remote sensing data using Bayesian inference to separate genuine planetary signals from background noise and map markers of habitability at scale.

  • First Step (Nonprofit)

    Aug 2023 – Present
    Secretary & Director of Operations

    Lead operations for 300+ volunteers across 240+ service initiatives, removing 2,500+ lbs of trash and raising $17,890+ for NGOs. Secured a $5,000 Bloomberg Youth Climate Action Fund grant to co-lead a microplastics research project alongside Georgia Tech faculty and students. Spearheaded the "One Degree" campaign, securing pledges from 80 individuals and 3 corporations to cut event energy costs by 50%.

  • AMS Pools

    May 2024 – Present
    Pool Manager

    Promoted twice and selected as 1 of 6 Pool Managers in the Fulton-Forsyth area. Manage daily operations, coordinate staffing, and oversee emergency training across 8 pools and 100+ lifeguards.

Technical Arsenal

Languages:
Python JavaScript/TS Java C SQL HTML/CSS AppleScript
Tools & Frameworks:
React & Next.js FastAPI & Flask PostgreSQL & Timescale SQLite & SQLAlchemy Tailwind CSS scikit-learn & pandas SHAP & statsmodels Vite & TanStack ChromaDB & Ollama Mapbox GL JS
Coursework & Certifications:

Formal: Harvard CS50 • MIT Beaver Works (CS Core)

Independent Studies: Stanford CS224N (NLP) • MIT 6.S191 (Deep Learning)

Certifications: IT Specialist in Software Development (Certiport) • NVIDIA Certified Associate (Gen AI LLMs) • Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) - In Progress

Python programming language icon TypeScript programming language icon React framework icon Next.js framework icon PostgreSQL database icon FastAPI framework icon Tailwind CSS framework icon Git version control icon Pandas data science library icon Vite build tool icon Java programming language icon C programming language icon

Honors & Extracurriculars

Awards & Recognition

  • USACO Gold Division: Earned Gold promotion after scoring a 760 in the 2026 Silver Contest.
  • DECA State Champion: Georgia state champion, ranked 1st in Entrepreneurship Team Decision Making, and International ICDC Qualifier.
  • FBLA National Qualifier: National qualifier and dual state medalist (5th in Data Science & AI, 4th in Networking Infrastructures).
  • Presidential Volunteer Service Award: Two-time recipient (Gold & Bronze) for dedicating 300+ verified hours to community initiatives.
  • Academic Excellence: Georgia Certificate of Merit (Top 5% of class), Dual enrollment President’s List (5.0 GPA), AP Scholar with Distinction, College Board National Recognition (2025).

Activities

  • Varsity Swim Captain: GHSA State Qualifier in the 100y Breaststroke and 200y IM; 5th-highest point contributor to Lambert's 2025 Forsyth County Championship title. Swim Atlanta club swimmer (Senior Select) with championship "A" qualifying times in the 100y Breaststroke, 200y Breaststroke, and 200y IM, including Senior State Championships and Speedo Best of the South Sectionals.
  • GMEA All-State Musician: Five-time All-State selectee on soprano and bass clarinet. Principal Bass Clarinetist for Lambert Wind Ensemble, with invitations to perform at The Midwest Clinic and the National Concert Band Festival.
  • Director of Summer Math & Scratch Coding Camp: Taught 52 youth in computational logic and math; guided students to develop and publish 100+ Scratch programs with a formalized summer cirriculum.
  • Affiliations & Societies: Google Developer Program, National Technical Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, and Key Club.
you can't add days to your life, but you can add life to your days