[Air-L] Research Scientist Position

[Derek Hansen]

AIR-Lers,

I've been working with Jenny Preece, David Jacobs, and colleagues at
the Encyclopedia of Life on this fascinating project and we're hoping
to bring in someone else with some experience and interest in citizen
science (see details below).

Regards,
Derek Hansen
Brigham Young University

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Research Scientist: Melding humans and technology in citizen science

We seek a highly qualified research scientist to work on NSF-funded
research projects. We conduct research on how technology design and
humans’ social behavior impacts citizens’ contributions, curation and
use of digital data (photos, comments, GPS, sounds, ratings). We
research how and why citizens do what they do, what encourages and
what discourages their participation. Our research is multi-method and
includes: how algorithms in machine learning and computer vision can
be developed and integrated with human input, surveys, interviews,
case studies, network analysis, data logging and experimental
interventions. We use combinations of machine vision, serious games,
grounded theory, research through design and cross cultural analysis.
Our design activities focus on smart phone apps and Microsoft surfaces
(table-top displays) in the field and in the lab.

This is a full-time, 12-month appointment. The salary will range from
$40,000-$48,000depending on qualifications, and includes full
benefits. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to
increase his/her salary through grant income. A half-time position is
also a possible. The position may be renewable for a second year if
satisfactory progress is made during the first year. The research
scientist will work with faculty members, doctoral, masters and
undergraduate students from the iSchool and Computer Science Dept. at
the University of Maryland where the position will be located, as well
as with researchers from Brigham Young University, University of North
Carolina, Charlotte, and University of Colorado, Boulder. The position
does not have a formal teaching requirement. The start date is
flexible but fall 2012 is preferred.

The ideal appointee will have skills and interests in the general area
of technology and social behavior. Applicants should have a PhD in
Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Communication, Cognitive
Science, Information Science, Computational Biology or a related
field. We are especially interested in applicants with an interest in
data curation that involves mixed data and big data, search, machine
vision, machine learning, and crowdsourcing. Applicants should have
experience conducting independent research, a record of communicating
research results via publications and presentations, and be willing to
participate in collaborative, interdisciplinary research. Applicants
shouldhave excellent communication skills and be prepared to take a
leadership role in grant writing and management, and be willing to
help in coordinating research activities. Direct experience of
research in citizen science is not essential but willingness to become
fully engaged in this topic is.

Interested candidates should submit: (1) a cover letter stating
background, experience, interest in the position, and career
objectives, (2) a CV, (3) the names and contact information for two
referees, and (4) a sample of published or submitted work to Dr.
Jennifer Preece and Dr. David Jacobs (preece at umd.edu,
djacobs at cs.umd.edu) with the subject line “research scientist
application 2012”. Review of applications will begin immediately until
the position is filled.