We are seeking a full-time research associate in Newcastle University’s Translational and Clinical Research Institute. The appointee will join a research group, led by Dr William Sedley, also including three PhD students. The group forms part of Newcastle University’s larger Auditory Cognition Group (www.auditorycognition.org), with PIs including Tim Griffiths, Adrian Rees, Yukiko Kikuchi and Kai Alter.
The appointee will join a Wellcome Trust funded programme of research for 3 years, focusing on the fundamental question of how the intensity and loudness of stimuli are processed and represented in contemporary accounts of brain function such as predictive coding. This question is highly important and widely relevant in both basic science and a range of clinical disorders from tinnitus to chronic pain, yet has received little dedicated attention.
The programme of research focuses on human studies with both healthy controls and clinical populations (mainly tinnitus and hyperacusis). These are conducted in a dedicated EEG, physiology and psychophysics laboratory in Newcastle, at the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging in London (for MEG and fMRI), and in the Human Brain Research Laboratory in Iowa (for invasive neurosurgical recordings from epilepsy patients). The appointee will be expected to spend time working in all of these centres (travel and accommodation expenses covered), though travel to Iowa is not essential. National and international collaborators on the programme include Karl Friston (London), Maria Chait (London), Tim Griffiths (Newcastle) and Matthew Howard (Iowa).
Applicants must hold a PhD or equivalent in a relevant scientific discipline. They must also have significant experience and strong working knowledge within one or more of the following areas: auditory neuroscience, audiology, human psychophysics, tinnitus, hyperacusis, predictive coding, oddball/mismatch paradigms, non-invasive human neuroimaging such as EEG, MEG or fMRI.
The earliest start date is the 1st of July 2023. Later start dates are negotiable, but the post ends on 30th June 2026 irrespective of the start date.
Further information, and the link to apply, are available at: https://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/CWS142/research-associate (but note that the closing date is the 5th of February, not the 5th of March as listed on jobs.ac.uk).
Applicants are strongly encouraged to make a pre-submission enquiry before making an application: william.sedley@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx