Postdocs in Neuroscience and Biomechanics

The Department of Biology at the University of Southern Denmark seeks postdoctoral fellows to study the motor control and biomechanics of voice production across vertebrates. 

The Vocal neuromechanics lab  (https://www.sdu.dk/en/forskning/sound-communication-behaviour/research-labs/vocal-neuromechanics-lab) uses a combination of experimental and computational approaches to study motor control and physical mechanisms of sound production in the vocal vertebrates. We use and develop methods from biomechanics, electrophysiology, acoustics, and behavior at different levels of organization (cellular, whole organ, in vivo). 

Examples of our work: Elemans et al (2024) Nature627: 123–129; Adam et al (2023) Nature Communs. 14: 7787; Madsen et al (2023) Science 379: 928-933.

Preferred Qualifications
We are looking for:

• applicants with a PhD in biomechanics, bio-imaging, engineering, neuroscience, or a related field. 
• experience in signal analysis and programming (Python, Matlab, or equivalent) present a distinct advantage.
• excellent written and oral English language communication skills.
• good interpersonal skills, as you will be working in a team.

We seek scholars with one of the following distinct profiles, but also other types or researchers: 

1. Experience in biomechanics: We will use combined in vitro and ex vivo approaches studying effects of muscle recruitment on sound production in songbird and rodents.  Experimental techniques: high-speed imaging, 3D motion capture, muscle mechanics, kinematic analysis, mechanical tissue properties and microscopy.
2. Experience in image analysis. We aim to use Synchrotron-microCT to image structure of vocal organs and their neural innervation at mesoscopic level in a comparative context.

The positions are available per November 2024, or until filled, for a two-year period. 

Workplace Description
The Vocal Neuromechanics lab is part of the Sound Communication and Behavior group at the Department of Biology, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark. 

The open positions are located in Odense, Denmark and part of an interdisciplinary, international consortium funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation and Carlsberg Foundation (Denmark). The consortium consists of three nodes: the Vocal Neuromechanics lab at the University of Southern Denmark (SDU, Odense, Denmark), the Sober lab at Emory University (Atlanta, USA) and the Complex Flow Modeling and Simulation lab at the Rochester Institute of Technology (USA). 

Application deadline: 16 September 2024 at 23:59 hours local Danish time.
 Please see the full call, including how to apply, on www.sdu.dk.