Postdoctoral Research Fellow - Magnetoencephalographic imaging of dissociative anaesthetic action

The Brain Dynamics Unit within the Brain and Psychological Research Centre at Swinburne University of Technology, in collaboration with the Universities of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Washington in St Louis, and supported financially by the James S McDonnell Foundation, is looking for a motivated and capable Postdoctoral Research Fellow to work on the functional neuroimaging of anaesthetic action.  

The planned project, to be performed in collaboration with physician anaesthesiologists, will involve the administration of the dissociative anaesthetic agents xenon (a noble gas) and nitrous oxide ('laughing gas') to healthy participants while simultaneous MEG and EEG is recorded. The induced changes in the functional architecture of the recorded electromagnetic activity will then be characterised using a range of existing and to be developed information theoretic, graph theoretic and non-linear methods.  Attempts to account for any induced changes in terms of mean field/mass action models of brain electrical activity will also be investigated.  The dissociative anaesthetic agents are of particular interest because they are reported to increase activity in the brain in addition to targeting glutamatergic neurotransmitter systems implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of psychiatric and neurological disorders.

The position is intended for someone with substantial experience in recording MEG and the attendant source level analysis techniques (minimum norm, beamforming) in addition to possessing the requisite experience in existing and emerging methods used to estimate functional and effective brain connectivities from MEG and EEG data. Interested applicants should have a strong background in any of the following disciplines: theoretical physics, mathematics, biomedical or electrical engineering or quantitative biology.  A first class honours degree or equivalent is required with proficiency in more than one of the following: C, Fortran, Python or Matlab in addition to substantial working knowledge of one or more of the following: FieldTrip, MNE, NutMEG, EEGlab, Brainstorm or SPM.

Researchers in the unit, led by Prof David Liley, have developed a physiologically motivated theory of the dynamical genesis of the electroencephalogram (EEG). The model accounts for the rhythms of the human EEG and predicts their alteration by a range of pharmaceutical agents, in particular that of anaesthetic and sedative agents. Numerical solutions of the model's coupled set of non-linear partial differential equations have revealed spatio-temporal structures similar to those observed in experiment.  It is hoped that this model can contribute to our understanding of how anaesthetic agents modulate brain activity.

The Brain Dynamics group is part of the Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre (BPsyC), a vibrant, multi-disciplinary team of researchers whose expertise spans several different fields that include physics, psychology, psychophysiology, biophysics and the neurosciences. The BPsyC has among the most comprehensive suite of functional neuroimaging facilities available in Australia. These facilities include a 306 channel Elekta TRIUX MEG system, a Siemens 3T TIM Trio MRI and multiple high density EEG systems.  

Initial appointment will be for a period of 3 years at a salary level of no less than A6 (currently AUD 76,531) plus 17% superannuation. 

Interested applicants should email Prof. David T. J. Liley at dliley(at)swin.edu.au.

Prof David T. J. Liley 
Brain Dynamics
Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre
Swinburne University of Technology
Burwood Road Hawthorn 3122 Victoria
Australia
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Prof David Liley
Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre
Swinburne University of Technology
P.O. Box 218
Hawthorn VIC 3122 
Australia

ph: +61 3 9214 8812


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Two Post-doc Positions Available at the Cleveland Clinic Epilepsy Center


Two post-doctoral positions are immediately (October 2015) available at the Epilepsy Center in the Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Each is supported as part of grants with the National Institutes of Health. Details of the positions and how to apply are summarized below and can be found on the research website at

http://www.lerner.ccf.org/jobs/postdoc/view.php?id=653  (“SEEG Brain Atlas”)
http://www.lerner.ccf.org/jobs/postdoc/view.php?id=654  (“Brainstorm”)

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How to Apply

Send cover letter stating research interests along with a brief resume, both preferably in PDF format, to jcmosher@gmail.com.

For further background, please see John C. Mosher, PhD (http://neuroimage.usc.edu/brainstorm/AboutUs/JohnMosher) 

Submission of resumes will be considered an expression of interest in the available opportunity. Applicants who best meet the education and experience requirements of the position will be contacted by the interviewing department and invited to formally apply for consideration. Cleveland Clinic is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and a smoke-free/drug-free environment.

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POSITION ONE:

Electrophysiological Connectivity Analysis of MEG and Invasive EEG Data

“Electrophysiological brain atlas fusing stereo-EEG (SEEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), and MRI to study functional and effective connectivity.”

A Postdoctoral Research position is available immediately to work on brain network analysis with a focus on integrating electrophysiological (MEG and SEEG) measures with anatomical MR imaging data and hemodynamic fMRI. This position requires knowledge of the models and methods used for connectivity modeling, and the mathematical and software background to develop and implement novel approaches. 

This effort is part of an NIH-supported project to develop a multimodal brain connectivity atlas in collaboration with between John Mosher in the Epilepsy Center at the Cleveland Clinic and Richard Leahy in the Signal & Image Processing Institute at the University of Southern California. Data in the atlas will include spontaneous and evoked invasive and noninvasive electrophysiology data, and structural, resting and diffusion MRI. Imaging from fMRI, SPECT, and PET will also be imported. 

The position will also involve working with and contributing to the Brainstorm software (http://neuroimage.usc.edu/brainstorm/), a Matlab-based toolbox being developed among USC, Cleveland Clinic, McGill University, and Massachusetts General Hospital (http://neuroimage.usc.edu/brainstorm/AboutUs). This program is part of a separate NIH-supported project to advance electrophysiological modeling and visualization.

The preferred candidate will have published research in connectivity mapping using either electrophysiological data or resting state fMRI. MATLAB programming skills are preferred. Familiarity with the existing research packages in this grant or others (e.g. AFNI, FSL), or with other atlases (e.g. The Virtual Brain) is a plus. The position is open for four years, subject to annual review and renewal. Salary starting at NIH guidelines for the years of post-doc experience.

Qualifications

- PhD in Electrical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, Physics, Neuroscience or related fields.
- Publications related to brain mapping, source modeling, or resting state analyses.
- Programming experience in Matlab (preferred), Java, or Python, in the unix, linux, or OS X environment.
- Proficiency in spoken and written English.



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POSITION TWO:

Advanced Electrophysiological Source Modeling and Visualization

“Programming and Testing of the Brainstorm EEG/MEG Research Software”

A Postdoctoral Research position is available immediately to research and implement source localization and visualization of clinical electrophysiological data (MEG, EEG, ECoG, SEEG), testing and improving the Brainstorm software (McGill / USC) and the MNE software (MGH). The position requires familiarity with source modeling concepts, with strong computer skills, preferably MATLAB. A PhD is preferred, but a Master’s degree acceptable for the candidate with strong programming skills.

This effort is part of an NIH-supported project to to advance electrophysiological modeling and visualization software. The multi-institutional projects includes teams lead by Matti Hamalainen at Massachusetts General Hospital, Richard Leahy at the University of Southern California, and Sylvain Baillet at McGill University. The candidate will contribute to the Brainstorm software (http://neuroimage.usc.edu/brainstorm/), a Matlab-based toolbox being developed among USC, Cleveland Clinic, McGill University, and Massachusetts General Hospital (http://neuroimage.usc.edu/brainstorm/AboutUs). 

The position is open for 18 months, with possible extension dependent on competitive renewals of grant funding. Salary starting at NIH guidelines for the years of master’s level or post-doc experience.


Qualifications

- PhD (Preferred) or Masters in Electrical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, Physics, Neuroscience or related fields.
- Strong programming experience, preferably in Matlab or Java, preferably in the unix, linux, or OS X environment.
- Proficiency in spoken and written English.


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Applications are invited for a full-time one-year post-doctoral
scientist. The position is funded by the Paris- Saclay IDEX project
NOTime - Neural Oscillations & Time - whose main objective is to
develop and apply cross-frequency-coupling analyses on
electrophysiological and M/EEG data. Applications are invited from
committed and enthusiastic researchers with significant experience
with M/EEG and substantial research record in cognitive neurosciences,
psychology and/or related field.

The selected postdoctoral fellow will work in full collaboration with
a master student dedicated to the project, and with the following
consortium of researchers:

- Valérie Doyère, NeuroPsi: http://neuro-psi.cnrs.fr/spip.php?article245&lang=en

- Alexandre Gramfort, Telecom ParisTech: http://alexandre.gramfort.net/

- Virginie van Wassenhove, Neurospin:
https://sites.google.com/site/virginievanwassenhove/

Full Job Description:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/lq4oi0k8cu85jag/NOTIME_postdoc_advert.pdf?dl=0

Application package:

- CV (incl. a list of publications)
- Two letters of recommendation (or contacts from which those could be obtained)
- A letter of intent with a statement of research interests

Please put IDEX POSTDOC in the email subject and send your application
package to Virginie.van.Wassenhove@gmail.com

Applications will be considered until the position is filled.

Best,
--
Alexandre Gramfort, PhD
Assistant Professor,
TSI, Telecom ParisTech,  CNRS LTCI
46 Rue Barrault, 75013 Paris, France
http://alexandre.gramfort.net
alexandre.gramfort@telecom-paristech.fr


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