Are you an aspiring scientist in the field of cognitive neuroscience, looking to start your academic career off right? Then join the world-renowned Donders Institute as a PhD candidate and work with top-notch experimental equipment to build computational models of body representation, both somatosensory and multisensory.
We are looking for a motivated PhD candidate with interest and expertise in building computational models of body representation, both somatosensory and multisensory.
You will be part of the ERC funded project 'The Body Positioning System: A GPS for somatosensory space'. The goal of the project is to uncover how the brain localises touch on a body whose three-dimensional posture changes from moment to moment (The Body Positioning System). How does the brain transform sensory input on the skin to a full-fledged three-dimensional body representation? To make headway on this fundamental question, we will use a variety of neuroscientific approaches, such as behavioural and M/EEG experiments that employ novel virtual reality and robot-based paradigms. We will also leverage several analytical tools, such as computational modelling and machine learning.
As a PhD candidate, you will design novel, real-world behavioural paradigms to measure tactile localisation in three-dimensional space. Importantly, you will then use computational modelling to characterise and identify the mechanisms underlying the localization behaviour. The goal of these models is to understand the transformations used by the Body Positioning System. Your work is likely to involve close collaboration with fellow members of the team, including colleagues from other departments at the Donders Institute. Project management, mentoring BSc and MSc students, and teaching-related tasks will also be part of your responsibilities.
Fixed-term contract: You will be employed for an initial period of 18 months, after which your performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended by 2.5 years (4 year contract).
The Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour is a world-class interfaculty research centre, that houses more than 700 researchers devoted to understanding the mechanistic underpinnings of the human mind. Research at the Donders Institute is focused around four themes: 1. Language and communication, 2. Perception, action and control, 3. Plasticity and memory and 4. Neural computation and neurotechnology. Excellent, state-of-the-art research facilities are available for the broad range of neuroscience research that is being conducted at the Donders Institute. The Donders Institute has been assessed by an international evaluation committee as 'excellent' and recognised as a 'very stimulating environment for top researchers, as well as for young talent'. The Donders Institute fosters a collaborative, multidisciplinary, supportive research environment with a diverse international staff. English is the lingua franca at the Institute.
This application process is managed by the employer (Radboud University). Please contact the employer for questions regarding your application.
Please contact the employer for questions regarding your application.
Tip: save this job as favorite in your AcademicTransfer account. This gives you an immediate overview and makes it easy to find the job later on. No account yet? Create it now and take advantage of other useful functionalities too!
Make sure to apply no later than 7 Apr 2023 23:59 (Europe/Amsterdam).
We like to make it easy for you, sign in for these and other useful features: