"Postdoctoral Research Scholar"

Job Details

Posting Number: PG191550PD

Position Number: 00111607

Position Type: Post Doc

Department ID: 150401 - Forestry & Environmental Resources Academic Research

Department: 150401 - Forestry & Environmental Resources Academic Research

Job City & State: Raleigh, North Carolina

Essential Job Duties:

The Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources has a wide variety of strengths in forestry and natural resources management, policy and economics, environmental science and technology, wildlife and conservation biology, tree improvement, silviculture, forest biotechnology, and international forestry. The Department has over 90 full time faculty and staff, and more than 750 undergraduate and 150 graduate students. Inclusiveness and diversity are integral to our mission and commitment to excellence in education, extension, and research. Faculty, staff, and students work together with business, industry, government, community groups, and non-government organizations to address a wide range of challenges facing our state and the world. These partnerships facilitate research and discovery, teaching and learning, and outreach and service. Additional information about the department can be found at http://cnr.ncsu.edu/fer.

The College of Natural Resources (CNR) at North Carolina State University is a world leader in the sustainable use of natural resources. The college’s comprehensive approach to teaching, research, and service encompass the many and varied ways in which people’s physical, economic, and social needs are met through the wise use of natural resources.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Creating AI algorithms and workflows for extracting relevant data from large image datasets and integrating this extracted data with environmental information.
• Ensuring the public accessibility of developed AI workflows and software and maintaining computer infrastructure to run these models.

Other Work/Responsibilities:

• Presenting research findings at conferences and leading or contributing to peer-reviewed publications, with first authorship strongly encouraged.
• Opportunities for mentoring undergraduate researchers while working in the Biodiversity Lab at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences, which is on public display.
• Professional development opportunities will include accessing training on teaching techniques and career paths, and attending workshops focused on interdisciplinary research, data sharing, and coding.
• Contribution to science communication efforts, including public engagement products like physical exhibits, podcast episodes, and videos, will also be encouraged.
• Developing and maintaining a project website and ensuring the public accessibility of developed AI workflows and software on platforms like GitHub, Hugging Face, PyPi, and Zenodo.
• The postdoc will also be encouraged and supported to lead or collaborate on grant preparation with other team members.

Department Required Skills:

Expertise in developing, implementing, and optimizing advanced artificial intelligence (AI) models and algorithms for data analysis and extraction. This includes strong proficiency in programming languages such as Python and R to create and manage data workflows and conduct statistical analyses. Experience with machine learning frameworks and techniques pertinent to image processing and data integration is essential. A key responsibility will be the ability to manage, collate, and integrate large datasets from various sources, including environmental and sensor data. Commitment to ensuring the public accessibility of developed AI workflows and software, through code repositories and user-friendly platforms, is required. Excellent communication and presentation skills for scientific dissemination and public engagement.

Preferred Years Experience, Skills, Training, Education:

Candidates should preferably: Hold a Ph.D. in Computer Science, Quantitative Ecology, or a closely related field with a strong emphasis on AI and data science. Demonstrated experience in developing and applying computational tools to large-scale scientific problems is highly valued. Familiarity with interdisciplinary research approaches, particularly at the nexus of computer science and environmental or biological sciences, is desirable. An interest in contributing to educational and outreach initiatives and mentoring junior researchers, such as undergraduate students, is also preferred. Prior experience in preparing and contributing to scientific publications and grant applications would be beneficial.

Anticipated Hiring Range:

$64,000 - $66,950

Work Schedule:

Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM.