Connectionists: EPFL, Biorobotics lab: PhD student position in neuromechanical models of vertebrate locomotion

[Auke Ijspeert]

PhD student position in neuromechanical models of vertebrate locomotion

http://biorob.epfl.ch/openings

The Biorobotics laboratory (Biorob, http://biorob.epfl.ch/) at EPFL 
(Lausanne, Switzerland) at EPFL (Lausanne, Switzerland) anticipates to 
have one open PhD studentship in computational neuroscience and 
biorobotics, starting on April 2016 (or asap after that). The goal of 
the project is to develop neuromechanical models of vertebrate 
locomotion, together with Marc-Olivier Gewaltig (computational 
neuroscientist) and Gregoire Courtine (neuroscientist). *The 
neuromechanical models will include numerical models of spinal cord 
circuits coupled to biomechanical models of the body. The first target 
animal will be the mouse; depending on progress, human models might be 
developed in a second stage. The spinal cord models might also be tested 
and validated in some of the quadruped robots developed by the 
Biorobotics laboratory. The position will be fully funded thanks to a 
grant from the Human Brain Project.

EPFL is one of the leading Institutes of Technology in Europe and offers 
internationally competitive salaries and research infrastructure.


Requirements:

Candidates need to have a Master degree in a field related to 
computational neuroscience e.g. in physics or computer science. The 
ideal candidate for this position should have a strong math background 
(e.g. in dynamical systems),  good programming skills, and 
interest/expertise in modeling neural circuits and biomechanical 
systems, and in locomotion.


How to apply for the position:

Step 1: The position is only open to applicants who have been accepted 
by the EPFL doctoral school (see http://phd.epfl.ch/). The first step is 
therefore to fill the applications for one of the relevant EPFL doctoral 
programs in robotics (http://phd.epfl.ch/EDPR) or neuroscience 
(http://phd.epfl.ch/neuroscience).

Step 2: In parallel to step 1, or better, once accepted by one of the 
doctoral programs (please specify which doctoral program and the date of 
acceptance), the application to the position should be sent by email to 
Prof. Auke Ijspeert and consist of a motivation letter (explaining why 
you are interested in the project, and why you feel qualified for it) 
and a copy of the doctoral program application.

Informal inquiries about the relevance of an application can be sent to 
auke.ijspeert at epfl.ch (e.g. before or while submitting an application to 
the doctoral school), but responses can be slow because of a heavy 
schedule and a filled mail box.


Deadline and starting date:

Applications will be considered continuously until the positions are 
filled. The ideal starting date is the *1st of April 2016* (or as soon 
as possible after that date). Note that the doctoral program in robotics 
has a deadline on January 15 2016.


Contact:

Information concerning the type of research carried out by the group can 
be found at http://biorob.epfl.ch/. You should send your application and 
any inquiry by email to: Prof. Auke Jan Ijspeert 
<http://biorob.epfl.ch/page38158.html>, auke.ijspeert at epfl.ch 
<mailto:auke.ijspeert at epfl.ch>

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Prof Auke Jan Ijspeert
Associate Professor

Biorobotics Laboratory
EPFL-STI-IBI-BIOROB
EPFL, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Station 14, CH 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland

Office: INN 237     Tel: +41 21 693 2658,    Fax: +41 21 693 3705
www: http://biorob.epfl.ch           Email: Auke.Ijspeert at epfl.ch
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