Logic List Mailing Archive
Two PhD student positions and two postdoctoral positions for logic in AI, Utrecht (The Netherlands), Deadline: 1 Feb 2014
Two PhD and two postdoc positions in logic for AI - Utrecht University
Deadline for application: February 1st, 2014
For the ERC consolidator project "Responsible Intelligent Systems" (REINS) we
are looking for 2 PhD students and 2 postdocs to be employed in the division of
artificial intelligence at the department of information and computing
sciences.
REINS
The REINS project aims to provide a framework for automating responsibility,
liability, and risk checking for intelligent systems. As intelligent systems
are increasingly integrated into our daily life, the division, assignment and
checking of responsibilities between human and artificial agents become
increasingly important. From robots in medicine, the military and
transportation (self-driving cars); to automated trading agents on the
financial markets (algotrades); to automated monitoring, prediction and
protection systems (pacemakers, automated surveillance, early warning systems);
we delegate more and more responsibility to intelligent devices. By delegating
responsibilities to intelligent devices, we run the risk of losing track of our
indirect legal and moral liabilities.
Sub-project 1: "Logics of Collective Responsibility"
Vacancies: 1 PhD student (4 years), 1 postdoc (2 or 3 years)
Starting date: March 1st, 2014 (later dates may be negotiated)
Goal: Suitable logical representation languages for individual and collective
responsibilities.
Scientific context: computer science, philosophy, logic, artificial
intelligence
The "Logics of Collective Responsibility" sub-project undertakes the
formalization of the concept of responsibility, with a focus on the
generalization of existing formal theories to the collective case. The concept
of responsibility is highly non-trivial. It has been the subject of extensive
debates in philosophy and legal theory and revolves around issues like free
will, moral luck and collective action. In our opinion the conceptual and
philosophical complexities involved in the understanding of the notion of
responsibility ask for the clarity and expressivity of logical formalizations.
While for the case of individual responsibility several formal languages have
been proposed, for the case of collective responsibility, the logic literature
is lacking concrete suggestions. The key objective in this sub-project is to
fill this knowledge gap.
Sub-project 2: "Grades of Responsibility relative to Normative Systems"
Vacancies: 1 PhD student (4 years), 1 postdoc (3 years)
Starting date: March 1st, 2014 (later dates may be negotiated)
Goal: A logic theory of grades of responsibility relative to normative systems
Scientific context: computer science, legal theorie, deontic logic, artificial
intelligence
In the "Grades of Responsibility relative to Normative Systems" sub-project we
will develop systems of formal deontic logic in relation to classes of
responsibility (as developed in sub-project 1) and probabilistic, possibilistic
or evidence-based action. The possibility to model actions and events using
probabilities has been investigated in the area of Markov Decision Processes
and in Bayesian Networks. However, in the context of deontic reasoning, actions
with uncertain effects have not been considered. Yet it is very natural to
think of having responsibilities relative to a normative system as having to
optimize the chance to obey obligations and having to avoid the risk of
violations. We can even make a stronger claim: responsibility typically only
shows in normative contexts where uncertainty and risk play a central role. The
project aims to combine existing theories on responsibility, risk-taking action
and deontic logic with existing theories of probabilistic, possibilistic or
evidence-based reasoning.
*Utrecht University*
Utrecht University has great ambitions for its teaching quality and study
success rates. This also applies to its clear research profiles which are
centred around four themes: Sustainability, Life Sciences, Youth & Identity,
and Institutions. Utrecht University plays a prominent role in our society and
contributes to finding the answers to topical and future societal issues.
*Faculty of Science*
The Faculty of Science consists of six departments: Biology, Pharmaceutical
Sciences, Information and Computing Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, Chemistry
and Mathematics. The Faculty is home to 3500 students and nearly 2000 staff and
is internationally renowned for the quality of its research. The Faculty's
academic programmes reflect developments in today's society.
*Department of Information and Computing Sciences*
The Department of Information and Computing Sciences is nationally and
internationally well known for its fundamental research in computer science and
as an initiator in the area of game technology. The department's research
activities are clustered into four divisions, viz. Virtual Worlds, Artificial
Intelligence, Interaction Technology, and Software Systems. The Department of
Information and Computing Sciences offers educational bachelor programs in
computer science and information science, and four (English) research master
programs, viz. Game and Media Technology, Computing Science, Business
Informatics, and Artificial Intelligence. Three years ago the Department
introduced a track on Game Technology in the bachelor program in computer
science, which led to a substantial annual increase of bachelor students. The
bachelor programs are the largest computer science and information science
programs in the Netherlands
*Division Artificial Intelligence*
The division Artificial Intelligence comprises the chairs Intelligent Systems,
Decision Support Systems and Algorithmic Data Analysis. Together these groups
cover a broad spectrum of subjects in Artificial Intelligence, ranging from
symbolic logic approaches to sub-symbolic evolutionary approaches; from agent
programming to machine learning; from knowledge discovery to knowledge
representation; from Bayesian networks to applied algorithmics for AI.
*Job Description*
Candidates are expected to:
- complete and defend a PhD thesis within the nominal time-frame (applies only
to PhD candidates);
- assist in the supervision of the PhD student in the sub-project (applies only
to postdocs);
- regularly present intermediate research results at our internal colloquium
and at international workshops and conferences;
- collaborate with the other researchers in the REINS project;
- participate in the organization of research activities and events such as
conferences, workshops and symposia;
- Assist in teaching tasks and/or take on teaching responsibilities
*Conditions of employment*
PhD candidates are offered a full-time position for 4 years. Salary starts at
2,042.- and increases to 2,612.- gross per month in the fourth year of the
appointment. The salary is supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8% and an
end-of-year bonus of 8,3% per year. In addition we offer: a pension scheme, a
partially paid parental leave, flexible employment conditions. Conditions are
based on the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities. More information
is available on:
http://www.uu.nl/EN/informationfor/jobseekers/Working-for-Utrecht-University/terms-of-employment/Pages/default.aspx
Postdoc candidates are offered a position for 2 or 3 years. The positions are
full-time, but part-time (80%) employment is negotiable. The gross salary
depends on qualifications and experience and ranges from 2,919 to 3,831 per
month. (Salary scale 10) The salary is supplemented with a holiday bonus of 8%
and an end-of-year bonus of 8,3% per year. In addition we offer: a pension
scheme, a partially paid parental leave, flexible employment conditions.
Conditions are based on the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities.
More information is available on:
http://www.uu.nl/EN/informationfor/jobseekers/Working-for-Utrecht-University/terms-of-employment/Pages/default.aspx
*How to apply*
Candidates are invited to send (1) a motivation letter, (2) a CV, (3) the email
address of a referee, and (4) a published paper (for postdocs) or a master
thesis plus grades (for PhD candidates) by following the instructions on the
vacancies page of our faculty
http://www.uu.nl/faculty/science/EN/AboutFBW/organisation/Pages/vacancies.aspx
or on the vacancies page of our departement http://www.cs.uu.nl/vacatures/en/
Deadline for applications is february 1st, 2014. For any further information on
the project or the vacancies one can contact dr. Broersen at email address
J.M.Broersen@uu.nl or professor John-Jules Charles Meyer at email address
J.J.C.Meyer@uu.nl