News and Events: Open Positions

Are you a passionate teacher and excellent researcher doing fundamental research on Artificial Intelligence? Do you have the ability to bridge symbolic and sub-symbolic methods used within AI? Does your area of specialisation in AI fit with ILLC’s research on formal methods in the study of information, and also complement its existing expertise? We have a preference for candidates whose research is not well-represented by current ILLC staff.

The Knowledge Representation and Reasoning (KRR) research group at the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering of the KU Leuven has an open position for a PhD student or Postdoc.

The group of prof. Marc Denecker and prof. Gerda Janssens explores the Knowledge Base paradigm in which domain knowledge is expressed in a declarative Knowledge Base (KB) and (re-)used to solve various computational problems by applying suitable forms of inference. Application-wise, it focuses on knowledge intensive applications where many functionalities are required to support the user and where the knowledge base method may strongly reduce the effort of building and maintaining such applications (20x,.., 50x,...). The group designs language constructs and methodologies for knowledge representation languages and develops the Knowledge Base system IDP. It also uses other state of the art technology (e.g., systems from Answer Set Programming, Constraint Programming and Sat Modulo Theory systems such as Z3).

Your research will cover the following topics.
- You will learn formal and informal aspects of KR languages.
- You will learn about implementation of inference techniques for KB systems.
- You will use such tools to develop KB solutions for knowledge intense business and legal applications.
- Much focus will be on interactive applications where many functionalities are required and a range of interesting inference tasks arise. You will design new language constructs to improve KR in these fields.
- You will develop tools that help domain experts in expressing their knowledge in natural but formally precise way.

Umeå University, the Department of Computing Science, is seeking outstanding candidates for a Wallenberg Autonomous Systems Program (WASP) PhD student position in Computer Science with focus on socially intelligent systems for human-agent collaboration. In this project, we will investigate to what extent and how AI can be designed and used to behave in line with ethical principles and social values. In particular, we aim to investigate the impact of AI systems on self-determination and on democratic processes and values.

Candidates are expected to have very good knowledge in Artificial Intelligence and on the interaction between people and intelligent systems, in particular in the health domain. Demonstrable knowledge of systems design and modelling, multi-agent systems, or agent-based simulation is an advantage. Since research is conducted in an international research environment, the ability to collaborate and contribute to teamwork, documented experience from multidisciplinary collaboration, and a very good command of the English language, both written and spoken, are key requirements.

A PhD project on the analysis of probabilistic and concurrent systems using machine learning techniques is available at the Department of Computer Science of the University of Liverpool, UK. The successful candidate will be supervised by Dr Dominik Wojtczak (Department of Computer Science, and receive a studentship of tuition fees paid at the Home/EU rate for 3.5 years and a stipend of £15,009 and a research support fund of £1,000 per annum for 3.5 years.

Applications from non-EU students are welcomed, however, in that case the scholarship will only pay for tuition fees and the applicant would need to come up with alternative arrangements to cover their subsistence costs.

The University of Barcelona offers a PhD position in collaboration with the Catalan industrial sector. The industrial component of the PhD revolves around the development and verification of legal software in Coq within Formal Vindications SL. This work will be complemented with the formalization of parts of logic/mathematics. We are looking for candidates with a background in theoretical computer science and/or mathematical logic. Apart from the required knowledge of Coq and Ocaml, other IT skills are recommended, especially knowledge/experience with other functional programming languages.

We offer a three-year position in the PhD program in Mathematics and Computer Science which is located in the very center of Barcelona. The group where this project will be embedded works on ordinal analysis via modal logic and reflection principles; we expect collaboration with the main group to arise, but we are open to alternative proposals. The PhD student will be part of a large and active research group led by Joost J. Joosten.  If after three years the PhD has not been finished, but there is realistic expectations that it will be finished soon, the company will consider continuing the position in its major characteristics. Apart from the usual PhD trajectory, the candidates will participate in cutting edge formalization developments in an industrial setting.

The Institute of Computer Engineering at Technische Universität Wien (TU Wien) is seeking a candidate for a research assistant position (PhD student, 4 years). The successful applicant will carry out his/her PhD in the research area of formal methods applied to the specification and monitor of large-scale, spatially-distributed, stochastic systems, contributing to the recently acquired project: 'High-dimensional statistical learning: new methods to advance economic and sustainability policies'.

The successful candidate will be a PhD student of the LogiCS Doctoral Program and she/he will be supervised by Prof. Ezio Bartocci and co-supervised by Dr. Laura Nenzi.

We are hiring two lecturers/associate professors at Umeå University on Responsible AI and human-AI interaction, with focus on but not limited to design for values, ethics, argumentation, verification, impact evaluation or explanation. Jobs are part of the Responsible AI group lead by Prof. Dr. Virginia Dignum, and will contribute to the WASP HS program and graduate school. Both are permanent (tenured) positions with competitive packages. Deadline for applications is 20 August.

For more information see:
1. (Responsible and Ethical AI) https://www.umu.se/en/work-with-us/open-positions/associate-professor-in-artificial-intelligence_279040/
2. (Human-AI interaction) https://www.umu.se/en/work-with-us/open-positions/associate-professor-in-artificial-intelligence_278992/

The Australian Centre for Transforming Maintenance through Data Science aims to train a new generation of data scientist specialists, equipping them with the skills needed to develop new data science methods for solving complex modelling and optimisation challenges in asset maintenance. This cohort of data scientists will drive an exciting transformation of maintenance practice in the Australian resources industry based on new advances in machine learning, artificial intelligence and optimisation.

To be considered for this role, you will demonstrate:

• A PhD in a relevant discipline within engineering, physics, computer science, or mathematics.
• Research experience in Natural Language Processing and Knowledge Representation.
• Track record of research publication and in seeking and obtaining grant funding (relative to opportunity).
• Written and verbal communication skills in the preparation of high-quality reports, presentations and publications.
• Organisational skills and demonstrated ability to set priorities and to meet deadlines.

KU Leuven offers a full-time PhD position for four years, in the context of the FWO-funded project 'The Limits of Factive Knowability'.

Famously, the Church-Fitch paradox of knowability is a deductive argument from the thesis that all truths are knowable to the conclusion that all truths are known. In the argument knowability is analyzed in terms of having the counterfactual possibility to know, which is a non-factive notion, i.e., a notion that does not imply truth. Several philosophers claim that, if the knowability thesis is reformulated with the help of factive concepts of knowability, then omniscience can be avoided. A factive notion of knowability is one that implies truth. In this project we will research different notions of factive knowability, relating these to non-factive epistemic -ability concepts, while taking into account general theories of so-called 'blankables' (e.g., 'thinkable'). Where needed, formal models will be constructed. Then we will investigate whether actual omniscience and possible omniscience, i.e., the existence of a 'state' at which every truth is known, can be avoided. The aim is to gain a deeper understanding of the limits of knowledge.

The Collaborative Research Centre SFB 1287 "Limits of Variability in Language: Cognitive, Grammatical, and Social Aspects" in Potsdam, Germany, invites applications for short-term fellowships available in 2020.

We are offering several three- to twelve-month fellowships to external PhD candidates who would like to do their research within one dedicated project of the CRC. The main focus of the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) is on exploring the systematicity and the limits of variability in linguistic behaviours and identifying the constraints of the underlying linguistic system. The fellowship should take place between November 2019 and December 2020.  The fellowships require completed academic studies at an institute of higher learning (Master's degree or equivalent) and enrolment in a PhD programme.

The Chair for Software and Systems Engineering (Prof. Stefan Leue) of the University of Konstanz has the immediately opening of a definite term full-time Research Assistant / PhD Student / Post-Doc position available for up to three years, with the possibility of a finite extension.

We are primarily looking for a PhD Student interested in working on formal methods for the design and analysis of complex systems. While preference will be given to candidates intending to pursue a PdD, applications from post-doctoral researchers with fitting interests will also be considered. The salary is according to the payscale Entgeltgruppe 13 of the TV-L labor agreement.

The Logic, Information and Interaction Research Group at the Department of Information Science and Media Studies at the University of Bergen is looking for a PhD candidate who wants to work on the research frontier of formal logic with applications in artificial intelligence and multiagent systems. Project proposals on formal logics for reasoning about social networks are particularly welcome, but the position is also open for qualified applicants within other areas of information science, including for instance computational social choice.

The Department of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Helsinki invites applications for a doctoral student position in Theory and Applications of Dependence Logic for a fixed-term of three years (with a possibility of extension if further funding can be obtained later). The starting date of the full-time position is September 1, 2019, or earlier by agreement.

Read more about the project on the homepage of Dr. Fan Yang: https://sites.google.com/site/fanyanghp/. The doctoral student will be supervised by Dr. Fan Yang and Prof. Juha Kontinen. This research is embedded in the Helsinki Logic Group. For more information about the Group, please visit: https://wiki.helsinki.fi/display/Logic/Home.
Applicants are expected to hold a Master’s degree in mathematics, computer science, philosophy or some other relevant subject by the time of the start date. An ideal candidate should have a strong background in mathematical logic, and a keen interest in interdisciplinary research.

The Mathematical Institute of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at the University of Bonn invites applications for a W2- Professorship (tenured) in Pure Mathematics, to be filled as soon as possible. The successful candidate will be offered a membership at the Hausdorff Center for Mathematics. He/she is expected to actively participate in the acquisition of further third party research funding.

Successful candidates are expected to be internationally renowned in an area of pure mathematics complementing and strengthening the areas represented by the existing research groups. The usual teaching requirements are an integral part of the professorial position. Prior knowledge of the German language is not required.

We are looking to hire an exceptionally able and highly-motivated PhD student in the area of logic and verification to work in UCL's PPLV group. We are particularly keen to find someone who is interested in systems modelling and verification and their underlying logical theory. The studentship is aligned with the IRIS project which is focussed on understanding and reasoning about the compositional structure of systems models and the supporting idea of an interface --- and will be supervised by Professor David Pym and Dr. James Brotherston.

In more detail, area of the studentship is in logic and its application to program and systems verification, with a particular interest in the development and application of logical tools based on bunched logic, separation logic, and concurrent separation logic (and related ideas) and their use to reason about the correctness of interfaces between programs, systems, and organizations. The project may range from theoretical work in logic (semantics and proof theory) through the theory of system modelling tools to the design and implementation of modelling and verification tools.

The Mathematics Department of the university of Luxembourg has an opening for 11 PhD positions, co-financed by a grant from the Luxembourg National Research Fund. One of them is related to algebraic logic, universal algebra, and order theory.

Starting date: not before March 2019. Applications will be treated on a rolling basis.