Postdoc or PhD Position in Naturalistic Neuroimaging With Wearable MEG

The Hertz Chair for Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience at University of Bonn is looking to recruit a postdoctoral fellow or PhD student to undertake high quality research and produce high-impact publications in a collaborative research project investigating human escape using wearable magnetoencephalography with optically pumped magnometers (OPM).

The long-term aim of our research is to understand the computational neurobiology of human threat avoidance, i.e., acute escape as well as medium- and long-term threat forecasting. We believe this understanding is important to deliver better treatment for mental health conditions such as anxiety and trauma-related disorders. Our research strongly builds on computational modelling of behaviour and neural systems, machine-learning methods such as pose estimation and motion sequencing, and research automation by design. Our team culture is collaborative, agile, and shaped by technical sophistication. We believe in open, reproducible, and sustainable precision science. We host a state-of-the-art virtual reality and motion capture lab, and have access to human neuroimaging facilities (OPM-MEG, cryogenic MEG, EEG, 3 T and 7 T MRI).

The goal of the advertised position is to understand the neural control of human escape decisions in an immersive virtual reality (VR) environment using an OPM-compatible HMD, in collaboration with the Wellcome Platform for Naturalistic Neuroimaging, which is part of the FIL at the UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London, UK. The role includes

• conceptual design of naturalistic VR scenarios that allow MEG recordings

• planning, conducting, and analysing MEG experiments

• building robust pipelines for MEG analysis in naturalistic settings

• publication of research and development results

See here for an example of our previous behavioural research in virtual reality.

Requirements for post doc applicants:

• PhD in neuroscience, cognitive psychology, behavioural science or a related area, by the agreed start date of the position (essential)

• experience with (cryogenic or wearable) MEG (essential)

• experience with Matlab (SPM or fieldtrip) and R (tidyverse) (essential)

• experience with virtual reality (preferably Unity and C#) would be a plus

• experience with analysing movement data would be a plus

Requirements for PhD applicants:

• MSc in neuroscience, psychology, natural sciences, engineering, or a related area, by the agreed start date of the position (essential)

• experience with one of these three areas: (a) MEG (cryogenic or wearable), (b) EEG, (c) virtual reality (preferably Unity and C#)

• experience with Matlab (SPM or fieldtrip) and R (tidyverse) (essential)

• experience with analysing movement data would be a plus

The successful candidates on either level will have ample experience in programming, and a good publication record.

The position is based at the University of Bonn, Campus Endenich, in direct vicinity to natural and computer science departments. The University of Bonn is an internationally leading research university, providing an intellectually stimulating environment. At University of Bonn, postdoctoral salaries start at around 55’000 €/year, and can be substantially higher, depending on prior post-doctoral experience or PhD degree taken. The positions are available from April 2025 for an initial appointment of two years with potential for extension, depending on successful performance of research and publications. University of Bonn is committed to diversity and encourages applications from underrepresented groups.

The city of Bonn is a thriving university city with high quality of life. Bonn is the former capital of West Germany, and today hosts many government agencies as well as various international organisations, including 20 United Nations institutions, and multinational enterprises. Almost every local speaks English. Bonn hosts the headquarters of the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases, four Max Planck Institutes, and several Fraunhofer Institutes in computer science-related topics. Bonn is scenically located at the entrance to the middle Rhine Valley, with ancient hilltop castles bordering its southern suburbs.

Applicants should submit a current CV, a personal statement describing their experience and interests, and contact information for three referees,  as a single PDF document, by 15 January 2025 to caian.office@uni-bonn.de. Interviews will be conducted online between 27 January and 7 February 2025. Enquiries can be directed to Prof. Dominik Bach, d.bach@uni-bonn.de.