Connectionists: 3 Research fellow positions at the University of Sussex

[Thomas Nowotny]

Dear Connectionists,
We have 3 open positions for research fellows in
- Computational Neuroscience
- Bio-inspired Robotics
- Computer Science (GPU accelerated computing).

Summary:
- 3 postdoc positions
- at the Centre for Computational Neuroscience (CCNR)/ Sussex Neuroscience/ School of Engineering and Informatics
- EPSRC funded Brains on Board project
- 2 years, extensible up to 5 years
- Salary £32,004 to £38,183, depending on experience
- Expected start date: January 2017
- Closing date: 1 December 2016

Detailed description:
The positions are part of the new Brains-on-Board project (http://gow.epsrc.ac.uk/NGBOViewGrant.aspx?GrantRef=EP/P006094/1), which is a multi-university collaboration aiming to create robotic controllers that will enable autonomous robots with the navigational and learning abilities of a honeybee.
The project involves five research groups at the University of Sheffield, Queen Mary University, London, and the University of Sussex performing research whose goal is biomimetic robot control and which will combine autonomous robotics, computational neuroscience, accelerated neural network simulations on GPU architectures and insect neuroscience and behaviour.
In Sussex we are seeking to employ a team of 3 research fellows for initially 2 years, with possible extension up to 5 years.
We envisage the fellows to start in January 2017.

RF 1 (ref 1388) in bio-inspired robotics, will develop insect-derived models of navigation and apply them to autonomous robots.
The work will include refining and developing models of insect navigation and testing them on robotic platforms ranging from the Sussex Gantry robot through wheeled robots to autonomous aerial vehicles.
A successful candidate will have a keen interest in the interface of computational biology and bio-inspired robotics and a proven track record in working in this area.

RF 2 (ref 1389) in Computational Neuroscience, will work on models of associative learning, multimodal integration and decision making in insects.
The work will include formulating neuronal network models of the mushroom bodies, central complex and motor areas of the bee brain constrained by experimental data. The models will then be employed and tested on robotic platforms, including wheeled robots and aerial vehicles.
A successful candidate will have a keen interest in computational neuroscience and experience with computational modelling.

RF 3 (ref 1390) in Computer Science, working on GPU accelerated simulation of brain models and brain-inspired robot controllers, building on our GeNN meta-compiler and the SpineCreator/SpineML API to GeNN.
The work will include developing methods for model- and hardware-aware GPU-accelerated simulations methods that will allow us to efficiently simulate both large-scale models in Computational Neuroscience on super-computers and bio-inspired robotic controllers on embedded systems GPU accelerators.
A successful candidate will have proven skills in complex software development with a focus on scientific computing.
All RFs will work together on the project within Sussex and in the larger Brains-On-Board team.

We encourage applicants to apply for multiple positions if they are interested and feel qualified. Please indicate any preferences when applying for multiple positions.

In order to apply got to http://www.sussex.ac.uk/aboutus/jobs/1388-1389-1390 where you can find further details and the application form.
The closing date is 1 December 2016.

For informal enquiries, please contact Prof Thomas Nowotny (t.nowotny at sussex.ac.uk<mailto:t.nowotny at sussex.ac.uk>) or Dr Andy Philippides (andrewop at sussex.ac.uk<mailto:andrewop at sussex.ac.uk>).

With kind regards,
Thomas

--
Prof Thomas Nowotny
Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange
School of Engineering and Informatics
University of Sussex
Falmer, Brighton BN1 9QJ, UK
Phone: +441273678593
FAX: +441273877873
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