Postdoc in Data Science in the area of statistical signal processing of greenhouse gas emission data from agriculture

The Center for Quantitative Genetics and Genomics (QGG), Aarhus University seeks a data science postdoc to work with sensor-based greenhouse gas emission (methane) data from livestock. The position begins on 1 June 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter. The position is for 2 years of employment and there are possibilities for extension.

Starting Date and Period

The position is for 2 years and is available from 1 June 2024 or as soon as possible hereafter.

Job description

The “green transition” motivates sustainable food production. Among the number of sustainability factors, the level of livestock-derived methane emissions is one of the key factors to drive the climate change. To ensure sustainability in relation to methane emissions from dairy cattle, continuous emissions monitoring and diverse emission mitigation strategies are of great interest. In this context, a sniffers-based gas emission measurement technique plays a crucial role. Unfortunately, the quality and reliability of acquired data from sniffers are of great concern due to the faults associated with the technique’s hardware and data pipeline. A number of factors and their interplay form a complex unpredictable system of emission variations leading to an embedded noise that is constantly appearing in sniffer-sourced records.

The aim of this position is to advance the sniffers technique to allow high-capacity and high-quality operations and results. In particular, develop and validate a fully automated pipeline, enabling effective monitoring and treatment of methane emission records from sniffers, with software modules performing equipment faults detection, data filtering and quality control, to provide condensed reliable phenotypes records ready for quantitative genetic analysis, breeding value estimation and design of emission mitigation strategies.

Tasks and responsibilities:

• Using statistical signal processing methodology to develop methods of fault detection for snifferes measurement system.
• Develop methods of noise filtering for sniffer-sourced gas emission data.
• Develop a mathematical model of methane emission phenotypes.
• Implementation of developed methods in relevant software.
• Summarize and publish the obtained results in relevant scientific journals.

Your profile

Applicants should hold (or be expected to hold) a PhD degree in electrical engineering, statistics, physics, applied mathematics, computer science, or other related fields with a strong statistical and programming background.

The ideal candidate will:

• Have the knowledge and experience, supported by the related scientific publication records, of developing models and/or automated data processing.
• Have some experience in software development.
• Knowledge in statistical signal processing is an advantage but not an absolute requirement.
• Have effective communication skills in written and spoken English, for the presentation of their research to various audiences – from experts to the general public.

Personal qualifications/social skills (relevant to the position):

• Have good interpersonal skills, are ambitious, takes ownership and are scientifically self-motivated and creative.
• Can work both independently and in groups.

Possess good communication skills, being friendly, helpful and able to contribute to a good work environment.

Who we are
QGG

is an international research center with more than 70 employees and visitors from more than 22 nations worldwide. We offer a dynamic research environment where we value ownership, responsibility and a respectful workplace culture. We conduct basic and applied research within quantitative genetics and genomics and our research is characterized by a very close collaboration with industry partners. Hence, you will be part of a research environment where results are put to practice and are used by industry and in public sector consultancy to facilitate the green transition.  QGG is part of

Aarhus University (AU)

, a world class university. The city Aarhus is an exciting place to live with a strong

student community

 and a high standard of living.

Place of Work

The place of work is C. F. Møllers Allé 3, 8000, Aarhus C, in the centre of the Aarhus University main campus, and neighboring highly related departments.. 

Contact Information

Further information about the position may be obtained from Center leader and Professor, Mogens S. Lund, e-mail:

[email protected]

, phone +45 20751222 or Viktor Milkevych, e-mail: [email protected]

Deadline

Application deadline is 10 March 2024.

Application procedure

Shortlisting is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the appointment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. All applicants will be notified whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee, and each applicant is given the opportunity to comment on the part of the assessment that concerns him/her self. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.

Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.

Formalities and salary range

Technical Sciences refers to the

Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation

.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities .

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

Research activities will be evaluated in relation to actual research time. Thus, we encourage applicants to specify periods of leave without research activities, in order to be able to subtract these periods from the span of the scientific career during the evaluation of scientific productivity.

Aarhus University offers a broad variety of services for international researchers and accompanying families, including relocation service and career counselling to expat partners. Read more here . Please find more information about entering and working in Denmark here .

Aarhus University also offers a Junior Researcher Development Programme targeted at career development for postdocs at AU. You can read more about it here .

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.