This is 邓Dèng, 溪Xī萌Méng (b. 1997), nice to meet you.
I go by Simone [SEE] + [MOHN] personally/verbally, and Ximeng professionally and in written contexts. My pronouns are she/her.
I was born and raised in Beijing, China. I spent my first 24 years within a pretty small community where most of my family and friends still live. I then lived in Syracuse, NY for 3 years and got my dual Master’s degree. I’ve been in DC on and off since 2022. Currently, I am based in the DC/Maryland/Northern Virginia area. I am a first-year PhD student at UMD iSchool. People ask me how I like or prefer Syracuse and Maryland. The only non-mistake answer is they’re like my mom and dad. You’re basically asking if I like my mom more or my dad more.
Research interests: 1) Informal learning, including language learning, in museums and public history sites, supported by technology and AI tools. 2) The richness, structure-ness, and openness of museum data, as part of cultural infrastructure and digital scholarship infrastructure, supported by tech and AI tools.
My favorite TV show is the documentary series How To with John Wilson.
I take photos! I take portraits, groups, and events for friends. If you believe we’re friends, that counts.
EDUCATION
2025 — Present/
University of Maryland, College of Information, College Park, MD
PhD Student in Information Studies
2021 — 2024/
Syracuse University, School of Information Studies, Syracuse, NY
M.S. in Applied Data Science
2020 — 2022/
Syracuse University, School of Design, College of Visual & Performing Arts, Syracuse, NY
M.A. in Museum Studies
2015 — 2019/
Tsinghua University, Academy of Arts and Design, Beijing, China
B.A. in Art History
2009 — 2015/
Tsinghua University Middle & High School, Beijing, China
© 2025 Ximeng Deng
微信公众号：叫我Simone啊
CV
Please feel free to ask me anything you’re curious about — about me, or about something you think I might have personal experience with or perspective about. If I know the answer, I’ll talk and discuss it with you. If I don’t, I’m more than happy to learn about it, and share what I find. I believe open conversation is one of the most important ways to grow, to understand others, and more importantly, to be reflexive about ourselves.
My Headshot(s)