Yiping Cao (phonetic spelling “Tsao”) is a microbiologist with a broad range of research interests. She received her B.S. degree in Environmental Chemistry, in 1998, from Nanjing University, P.R. China, her M.A. degree in Applied Statistics, in 2004, and her Ph.D. degree in Environmental Science and Management, in 2006, both from University of California, Santa Barbara. Dr. Cao joined SCCWRP in February 2007. Her present research efforts focus on microbial source tracking, the development of indicators for microbial contamination in coastal waters.