Postdoctoral Opportunity for the US CCDC Army Research Laboratory
Javier Garcia
Postdoctoral Opportunity
We are seeking a motivated postdoctoral candidate to work on an interdisciplinary project to study the neuroscientific and physiological aspects of dynamic processes underlying human-human interactions. This project is shared between the Human Research and Engineering Directorate of the US CCDC Army Research Laboratory (PIs: Javier Omar Garcia, PhD and Kanika Bansal, PhD) and several universities. This opportunity supports one of the primary objectives of the Army Research Laboratory’s Human Sciences in advancing our understanding of human behavior and predicting performance. Location of the position is flexible (San Francisco, CA preferred), and the candidate will have the opportunity for training at the different sites of this collaborative multi-university initiative. Travel sites include but are not limited to Chicago (Northwestern University), Boston (Northeastern University), New York City (Columbia University), and Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD (ARL). Initial appointment will be extendable for up to three years. A successful candidate will receive stipend, travel funds, and benefits.
Project description: An overarching goal of the Human Sciences at the US CCDC Army Research Laboratory is to expand our understanding of individual and team behavior, providing the foundational research for individualized teaming technologies within heterogeneous human-agent teams. An important feature of individualized team technologies is the ability to predict future behavior quickly and accurately in dynamic environments for individuals working together for a common goal. Critical to achieving these goals is the capability to predict the impact of within-individual and between-individuals dynamics on the team performance and/or interventions to achieve optimal behavior. We use a variety of physiological (neuronal and non-neuronal) sensors, surveys, and other metrics to infer individual and teaming “states” that may be related to perception, attention, decision-making, or communication at individual, group, and cultural scales. We aim to build advanced data-analysis techniques, technologies, and methodologies to robustly capture individual and team behavior in non-laboratory environments. In this effort, we leverage a wide variety of analytical tools and approaches from fields including but not limited to network science, dynamical systems, machine learning, statistical physics, systems engineering, and neuroeconomics. As part of this project, we are recruiting from a broad range of disciplines. Some recent example publications of previously used techniques are:
Bansal, Kanika, et al. "Cognitive chimera states in human brain networks." Science Advances (2019), 5(4), eaau8535.
Garcia, Javier O., et al. "Applications of community detection techniques to brain graphs: Algorithmic considerations and implications for neural function." Proceedings of the IEEE (2018), 106 (5), 846-867.
Responsibilities: Develop and/or implement human team experiments on research aims. Carry out analysis on complex multi-modal data. Present research results at meetings and engage in publishing results. As part of the role, applicants will have the opportunity to travel for experimentation and development and must have a desire to work with a geographically distributed, energetic, and interdisciplinary team.
Qualifications:
- A strong analytical background and excellent problem-solving skills with a PhD in Neuroscience, Bioengineering, Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science, or a related field.
- Proficiency in at least one common programming language (such as Matlab, Python) is a must.
- Previous experience with EEG (or complex signals) data acquisition is preferred but not required.
- Experience with signal processing and/or data integration is a plus.
- Ideal candidates will have an excellent record of scientific publication with a demonstrated ability to work in interdisciplinary collaborative environment, and strong communication and writing skills.
Applicants should send their CV to javier.o....@mail.mil and/or kanika...@columbia.edu