Research Associate in Evolutionary Data Mining
School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences
Applicant Information – Reference No. 332/07
The School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences specialises in computer science, mathematics and actuarial
mathematics and statistics. Our courses are designed to meet the needs of students and their future employers,
offering the highest degree of flexibility and choice within the wide range of topics available. The School enjoys an
international reputation for its research and its close connection with the professional and industrial world of science,
engineering and technology, reflecting the importance that the University attaches to the quality of its teaching,
research and student support.
Job Description
The Research Associate will work on the EPSRC project “A Multiobjective Evolutionary Approach to Understanding
Parkinson’s Disease”. This project will develop computational tools that can perform objective accurate diagnosis and
prognosis of neurodegenerative diseases using inexpensive devices, with a focus on Parkinson’s disease and its
variants. The approach will make use of multiobjective evolutionary algorithms to search for and classify diagnostically
relevant signals present within recordings of patients undergoing cognitive and motor assessments, and will be carried
out in close partnership with our clinical collaborators in the UK and USA. In particular, we seek a candidate with
experience in data mining, and ideally with knowledge of multiobjective evolutionary algorithms. Previous experience
with handling medical data and/or movement data recorded on graphics tablets would also be an advantage.
The post will be located in Heriot Watt University's School of Mathematics and Computer Science (MACS), under the
supervision of Dr. Michael Lones and Prof. David Corne. The project involves collaboration between Heriot-Watt
University, Leeds NHS Trust, the University of California San Francisco, and the University of York. The successful
candidate should be able to communicate effectively with people from other disciplines, and will be required to travel
to meetings with our partners in the UK and USA.
The post is available from 30th March for a period of 12 months.
Key Duties and Responsibilities
The key research duties are:
- Training classifiers and classifier ensembles using multiobjective evolutionary algorithms
- Analysing the behaviour of evolved classifiers to improve disease understanding
- Carrying out comparisons against conventional data mining techniques
- Translating research results into clinical tools for use in evaluating new patients
- Handling and processing clinical data, including graphics tablet and MRI data
The successful applicant will also be expected to:
- Contribute to conference papers and journal articles
- Present research outputs at project meetings and international conferences
- Communicate and collaborate with clinical partners
- Demonstrate good time management skills
Contractual Information
Job Title: Research Associate
Grade/Salary Range: Grade 7 £30,434 - £37,394
School: MACS/Computer Science
Pension Scheme: USS
Reporting to: Dr Michael Lones
Annual leave: 33 days plus Buildings Closed Days
Duration of Post: 12 months
Sickness benefits: 6 months full pay, 6 months half
pay
Working Hours: As required to fulfil the role
Disclosure Scotland Requirement: No
Start Date: As soon as possible.
Person Specification
This section details the attributes e.g. skills, knowledge/qualifications and competencies which are required in order to
undertake the full remit of the role.
Attributes
Essential
Education & Qualifications
(technical, professional,
academic qualifications and
training required)
Experience
(Examples of specific
experience sought. For
Academic posts state type of
publications expected as well
as teaching, research,
professional / industrial /
commercial, consultancy,
managerial and administrative
experience )
Competencies, Skills&
Knowledge
(e.g. effective communication
skills, initiative, flexibility,
leadership etc)
A PhD in computer
science or a cognate
discipline (or near
completion)
Experience with data
mining and
classification.
Good programming
and software
development skills.
Effective
communication skills.
Good time
management.
Desirable
Means of Assessment
Certificate
Experience with
multiobjective
evolutionary
algorithms.
Experience with
experimental data
collection and analysis.
Interdisciplinary
research experience.
Application form and
interview
Application form and
interview
Essential Criteria – these are attributes without which a candidate would not be able to undertake the full remit of the
role. Applicants who do not clearly demonstrate in their application that they possess the essential requirements will
normally be eliminated at the short listing stage.
Desirable Criteria – these are attributes which would be useful for the candidate to hold. When short listing, these
criteria will be considered when more than one applicant meets the essential criteria.
Other Relevant Information
Please contact Dr Michael Lones by email for informal enquiries (M.Lones@hw.ac.uk).
Application Process
Applications should be completed on our application form, available here http://www.hw.ac.uk/hr/htm/vacancies/HRStandard-Appl-form-2009.doc or if you are unable to access this please call 0131-451-3022 for a paper application
form.
Forms should be returned to Human Resources no later than 30 March 2015. Applications can be submitted by email
to hr@hw.ac.uk or by post to Human Resources, Lord Balerno Building, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS.
For all applications and correspondence about your application, please quote ref: 332/07
The University is committed to equality of opportunity.
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