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PhD Position in Ancient Manuscript Analysis

Employer
NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY - NTNU
Location
Gjøvik, Norway
Closing date
15 Mar 2020

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Academic Discipline
Computer Science, Engineering & Technology
Job Type
Academic Posts, Postdocs
Contract Type
Temporary
Hours
Full Time

About the position

The Department of Information Security and Communication Technology (IIK) has a vacancy for a PhD position in "The Lying Pen of Scribes: Manuscript Forgeries, Digital Imaging, and Critical Provenance Research" project (Lying Pen).

The Lying Pen project is funded by a FRIPRO Toppforsk-grant from the Research Council of Norway (2019-24), hosted by the University of Agder (UiA), and chaired by Professor Årstein Justnes. In this project, an interdisciplinary team of researchers at UiA, NLA University College,

MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion, and Society, and NTNU - Norwegian University of Science and Technology will work together to produce a comprehensive resource of data, methods, and procedures for the interdisciplinary analysis of Hebrew and Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls manuscripts and fragments through a combination of physical analyses, digital imaging, machine learning, study of scribal practices and media, and provenance research. See https://lyingpen.uia.no for more information about the project.

This is a researcher training position aimed at providing the promising researcher the opportunity of academic development in the form of a doctoral degree.

The positions working place is at NTNUs campus in Gjøvik and reports to Head of Department.

Main duties and responsibilities

The appointment is for a term of three years. The position will have a focus on image and machine learning based pattern analysis for classification and identification of various kinds of images and metadata related to ancient manuscripts, especially dead sea scroll fragments.Depending on the skills of the candidate, different aspects may be emphasized, for instance by focusing on

  • Writer identification
  • Temporal alignment of letters and text as well as the period the text belongs to
  • Manuscript identification
  • Localization of text etc.

The research will be carried out at the Department of Information Security and Communication Technology under guidance of Associate Professor Sule Yildirim Yayilgan, Professor Årstein Justnes (UiA) and Associate Professor Sony George.

Qualification requirements

The PhD-position's main objective is to qualify for work in research positions. The qualification requirement is completion of a master’s degree or second degree (equivalent to 120 credits) with a strong academic background in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Security or similar or equivalent education with a grade of B or better in terms of NTNU’s grading scale.

Required qualifications:

  • Experience with Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Image analysis
  • Preferably previous experience with studying ancient manuscripts, hand writing recognition, feature extraction and representation and possibly natural language processing techniques
  • High motivation for research
  • Good programming skills

Applicants with no letter grades from previous studies must have an equally good academic foundation. Applicants who are unable to meet these criteria may be considered only if they can document that they are particularly suitable candidates for education leading to a PhD degree.

The appointment is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerning State Employees and Civil Servants and national guidelines for appointment as PhD, postdoctor and research assistant.

NTNU is committed to following evaluation criteria for research quality according to The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment - DORA.

Other qualifications:

  • Eager to cooperate with other members and partners of the project, exchange experience and knowledge
  • Eager to learn new knowledge a required besides the core competence of the candidate
  • Attend and follow up project meetings physically
  • Publication activities in the aforementioned disciplines will be considered an advantage
  • High motivation for research work and ability to work independently
  • Good organization and communication skills with interest in wider context of own research and ability to engage in cross-disciplinary teams.
  • Eager to disseminate research results through publications and presentations at international conferences.  
  • Good written and oral English and Norwegian language skills. Applicants who do not master a Scandinavian language must provide evidence of good English language skills, written and spoken. The following tests can be used as such documentation: TOEFL, IELTS or Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) or Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE). Minimum scores are:
    • TOEFL: 600 (paper-based test), 92 (Internet-based test)
    • IELTS: 6.5, with no section lower than 5.5 (only Academic IELTS test accepted)
    • CAE/CPE: grade B or A.

Personal characteristics

We are searching applicants who are:

  • Highly motivated for fundamental scientific research of practical relevance is essential.
  • Highly motivated for research work in a multidisciplinary way and ability to work independently.
  • Well organized and with interest in wider context of own research and ability.
  • Eager to disseminate research results through publications and presentations at international conferences.

In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experience and personal suitability, as well as motivation, in terms of the qualification requirements specified in the advertisement

We offer

Salary and conditions

PhD candidates are remunerated in code 1017, and are normally remunerated at gross from NOK 479 600 before tax per year. From the salary, 2 % is deducted as a contribution to the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.

The period of employment is 3 years. Appointment to a PhD position requires admission to the PhD programme in Information Security and Communication Technology (https://www.ntnu.edu/studies/phisct).  

As a PhD candidate, you undertake to participate in an organized PhD programme during the employment period. A condition of appointment is that you are in fact qualified for admission to the PhD programme within three months.

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerning State Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to NTNU. After the appointment you must assume that there may be changes in the area of work.

General information

A good work environment is characterized by diversity. We encourage qualified candidates to apply, regardless of their gender, functional capacity or cultural background. Under the Freedom of Information Act (offentleglova), information about the applicant may be made public even if the applicant has requested not to have their name entered on the list of applicants.

Questions about the position can be directed to Sule Yildirim Yayilgan, phone number: +47 466 231 72, e-mail: sule.yildirim@ntnu.no.

About the application:

Publications and other academic works that the applicant would like to be considered in the evaluation must accompany the application. Joint works will be considered. If it is difficult to identify the individual applicant's contribution to joint works, the applicant must include a brief description of his or her contribution.

Please submit your application electronically via jobbnorge.no with your CV, diplomas and certificates. Applicants invited for interview must include certified copies of transcripts and reference letters.

  •  A cover letter (1 page) explaining your motivation and how your skills and experience relate to the research focuses of the position
  • A draft research proposal outlining a possible approach for the position (1 page).
  • CV with list of publications and GRE scores or other supporting documents (as proof of the candidates’ study and language abilities)
  • Relevant transcript of grades, diplomas, and certificates The documents have to be translated to English unless they are in Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, German or English.
  • A copy of the master thesis (in PDF), or, for those who are near to completion of their MSc, an extended abstract combined with a statement of how and when the applicant plans to complete the thesis.
  • Names and contact information of at least two persons, preferably from academic supervisor(s).
  • Applicants from universities outside Norway are kindly requested to send a diploma supplement (for European Master Diplomas outside Norway) or a similar document that describes in detail the study and grading system and the rights for further studies associated with the obtained degree.

Please refer to the application number 2020/3545 when applying.

Application deadline: 15.03.2020.

NTNU - knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

Department of Information Security and Communication Technology

Research is vital to the security of our society. We teach and conduct research in cyber security, information security, communications networks and networked services. Our areas of expertise include biometrics, cyber defence, cryptography, digital forensics, security in e-health and welfare technology, intelligent transportation systems and malware. The Department of Information Security and Communication Technology is one of seven departments in the Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering .

Deadline 15th March 2020
Employer NTNU - Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Municipality Gjøvik
Scope Fulltime
Duration Temporary

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