Applications invited for Project Assistant Trainee in the Spatial Navigation Laboratory

Job Description 

Department of Life Sciences, School of Natural Sciences, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (Deemed to be University), Delhi NCR (Shiv Nadar IoE) invites applications from bright and motivated individuals for the position of Project Assistant (Trainee) in the Spatial Navigation Laboratory led by Dr Sachin Deshmukh. The Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence strongly supports the national imperative for increasing female representation in STEM, and accordingly female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.

Roles & Responsibilities:

The lab is interested in understanding hippocampal function. We perform in vivo recordings of neuronal activity in the hippocampus and the entorhinal cortex in freely behaving rodents to understand how they create representation of space, and how this representation is used to navigate in familiar and novel environments. Please see the lab publications listed at https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=6eKwOWcAAAAJ&hl=en for further details. 

The work involves hardware design and manufacture, writing software (for experiment control and quantitative analysis) as well as performing actual implantation surgeries, neural recordings and behavioral experiments followed by histology to localize electrodes. People working in the lab get trained in these techniques. 

The two projects presently available in the lab involve computer vision and automation. The project assistants will be making multi-camera systems to track rats in two and three dimensions in complex, cluttered environments (see description of an earlier prototype designed for tracking rats in large, open 2D spaces: https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/jn.00215.2018). The project assistants will also make automated behavior systems for rats in which the relevance of the visual and olfactory cues will be altered to study change in representation of these sensory modalities in the hippocampus to solve behavioral navigation puzzles. 

Qualifications:

Bachelors’ or masters’ degree with training in a quantitative field (engineering/computer science/ physics/ mathematics etc.) and ability to program (python/ C/ C++/ matlab or any other language).

Willingness to work with rodents (rats) is a must, though you are not expected to have previously worked with animals of any kind.

Tenure:

The duration of the contract shall be for one year, to be extended based on continuation of the project as well as satisfactory assessment of progress.

Compensation:

The position offers a consolidated stipend of Rs 20,000 per month for the duration of the contract. The position is not eligible for any other benefits. 

How to apply:

Please email the following documents to Dr Sachin Deshmukh, Associate Professor, Department of Life Sciences at [email protected]

• Resume 

• Any other relevant information, including projects, dissertations etc.

If you have any specific queries in relation to this position, please contact Dr Sachin Deshmukh, Associate Professor, Department of Life Sciences at [email protected]

Application Deadline: Open