Postdoctoral researcher in Logic and Theoretical Philosophy

The Institute for Logic, Language and Computation is a research institute at the University of Amsterdam, in which researchers from the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Humanities collaborate. Its central research area is the study of fundamental principles of encoding, transmission and comprehension of information. Research at the ILLC is interdisciplinary, and aims at bringing together insights from various disciplines concerned with information and information processing, such as logic, mathematics, computer science, linguistics, cognitive science, artificial intelligence and philosophy.

Research is organized in three research groups: Logic and Computation (LoCo), Logic and Language (LoLa) and Language and Computation (LaCo). For information on the research being carried out in the different groups, please see 'Research at ILLC' (below). For research done by the individual staff members of ILLC, see  'People at ILLC' (below) and check their personal webpages.

The ILLC is looking for a postdoctoral researcher for two years. The position is connected to the LogiCIC project funded by the European Research Council, under the ERC starting grant awarded to Dr. Sonja Smets.

Project description

This position is part of the larger LogiCIC project on 'The Logical Structure of Correlated Information Change'.  The overall project aims to develop a uniform logical system that centres around correlated information change and can be used to explain and model various interactive scenarios. In particular, we will examine the correlations that arise in situations in which the very act of learning new information may directly change the reality that is being learnt. The project is interdisciplinary in nature and combines insights and techniques from a range of research domains, including logic, quantum mechanics, philosophy of science, belief revision theory, truth approximation and learning theory. We are looking for a post-doctoral researcher to join the team, which consists of two PhD students and the principal investigator.

The task of the postdoctoral researcher is to study the issues of approximation, verisimilitude and convergence to truth in a logical framework. The focus lies on the connection between (iterated) belief revision with higher-order information and the literature on truth approximation or verisimilitude in philosophy of science and learning theory. The work will be centered around some fundamental epistemological issues dealing with the contrast between 'joint or team learning by cooperating agents in a group' and 'individual private learning'.

Requirements

Applicants should have a PhD degree in any area connected to Logic, Philosophy, Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence. Fluent English is a prerequisite.

We are looking for a candidate with a strong interest in Logic (especially in any of the areas such as Modal Logic, Epistemic Logic and Dynamic Logic) and at least one of the following areas of research: Belief Revision Theory, Learning Theory, Truth Approximation Theory (in Philosophy of Science).

Preference will be given to a candidate who has published original work in several of the above areas (or interdisciplinary work at the interface of these areas).

Further information

For further information, please contact:

• Dr. Sonja Smets (S.J.L.Smets at uva.nl)

• Research at ILLC

• Staff at ILLC

Appointment

The postdoctoral position will be awarded for a period of 25 months. Based on a full-time appointment (38 hours per week) the gross monthly salary will range from €2,427 to €3,831 (salary scale 10). The salary will be augmented with an 8% holiday allowance and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus. The Collective Labour Agreement (CAO) of the Dutch Universities is applicable.

The successful applicant will work under the daily supervision of Dr. S. Smets. The preferred starting date is 1 January 2014.

Job application

Applications must be sent electronically to application-science@uva.nl to arrive no later than 15 November 2013. To process your application immediately, please quote vacancy nr. 13-313 and 'Postdoc ERC Smets'.  

Applications must contain:

• a Curriculum Vitae;
• a Letter of Motivation (maximum 1 page), explaining why you are interested in this position;
• a Research Statement (maximum 2 pages), explaining your research interests and how you think they can be related to the topic mentioned in the above given job description;
• a copy of your most important research paper, which appeared in or is submitted for publication to a scientific journal (can be co-authored);
• a short summary of your PhD thesis in maximum 2 pages;
• the name and contact details (including email address) of two referees who can provide details about your profile.

All these should be grouped in one single PDF attachment.

The University of Amsterdam is striving for a better balance in its staff whereby, by equal suitability, the appointment of a female candidate will have our preference. Women are, therefore, strongly encouraged to apply.

No agencies please