Research Assistant

A Research Assistant post is available in the Connectomics Group directed by Greg Jefferis in the Department of Zoology at the University of Cambridge., The successful candidate will join a team based in Zoology with 15 team members, carrying out data processing and computational analysis of neuronal reconstruction data. They will interact closely with a similar team at Harvard Medical School (Wei-Chung Allen Lee) as well as experimental groups at the MRC LMB in Cambridge (Greg Jefferis) and Boston University (Meg Younger). Candidates will need to be highly motivated and develop a good understanding of the nature of the data and the scientific aims of the project. This will be critical to setting priorities as the project develops. Close teamwork and a collaborative spirit will be essential, but team members will have increasing opportunities for scientific independence as their expertise develops. Candidates will report to a co-Principal Investigator based in Zoology and will be mentored by an experienced post-doc. There will be opportunities to contribute to the training of new team members as the group expands, as well as to

Dr Elizabeth Marin and Dr Greg Jefferis have obtained a collaborative Wellcome Discovery Award to proofread, annotate, and analyse the first mosquito brain connectome, with an initial focus on the chemosensory circuits involved in human host-seeking. Applicants will work with electron-microscopy image data, annotate and proofread automatically segmented reconstructions of neurons, develop open source tools for data analysis/processing, and perform neuron morphology, connectivity, graph/circuit analyses etc. to obtain biological insight. A background in neurobiology and/or a strong quantitative preparation (e.g. in bioinformatics/computer science) and sustained attention to visual detail will be essential.

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for up to 2 years, with a possibility of extension subject to project status and funding.