Post-doc position at the Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands

Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
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The faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science
(EEMCS) is known world wide for its high academic quality and social
relevance of its research programs. The faculty’s excellent facilities
accentuate its international position in teaching and research. The
faculty offers an interdisciplinary setting for its 500 employees, 350 PhD
students and 1700 undergraduates. Together they work on a broad range of
technical innovations in the fields of sustainable energy,
telecommunications, microelectronics, embedded systems, computer and
software engineering, interactive multimedia and applied mathematics.
EEMCS: Your Connection to the Future.

The section Man-Machine Interaction aims to design and build intelligent
support systems and gain an understanding of the way humans experience
such systems. The group works at the cross-roads of visual perception,
virtual reality, multi-modal communication, cognitive engineering, and
artificial intelligence applied in domains as negotiation, health care,
crisis management, display quality and experiences.

Job description
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MMI wishes to expand its research in applied visual perception related to
virtual reality (VR). Several display devices have been developed, ranging
from very small displays on mobile devices to large, CAVE-like VR systems.
This range of displays is primarily developed with different applications
in mind, and thus, the constraints to image quality also differ. For each
display type, we want to understand how to optimize image quality to
provide an optimal viewing experience. Additionally, it is assumed that
these different types of display systems evoke different levels of
immersion and experience. Thus, it is important to know to what extent
these different levels of immersion affect the sense of presence in the
displayed image content for the viewers, and as such, influence their
feelings, performance, natural behaviour and attitude in various contexts
such as: 1) Feeling connected to or present with other (virtual) people in
a social context, e.g. education, gaming, or electronic partners; 2)
Therapy to overcome phobias such as fear of heights or social contacts, or
screening for post-traumatic stress disorder; 3) Trust in human-human
(human-avatar) social communication, e.g. during negotiation; 4) Trust in
the evaluation of products, e.g. in the context of selling/buying a
product. An additional parameter is the way the context is rendered on
each display device.

Requirements
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We seek a post-doc who is highly motivated to conduct research in the
field of visual perception in collaboration with other group members.
Ideally, candidates should have a PhD in the area of applied visual
perception and an affinity for the field of Human-Computer Interaction.
The post-doc is also expected to participate in writing research
proposals, for example a NWO-VENI. Furthermore, the post-doc will be
involved in the daily coaching of both Dutch and international PhD
students working in the area of visual perception research. The candidate
will work closely with Prof. Dr. I. Heynderickx, Dr. Ir. W-P. Brinkman,
and Dr. A.H.J. Oomes. For more information, please contact W-P Brinkman
(W.P.Brinkman@tudelft.nl), or Ingrid Heynderickx
(Ingrid.Heynderickx@tudelft.nl).

Conditions of employment
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This position has a temporary employment basis of three years. The
estimated starting salary is € 2,916 (based on scale 10.5) with a maximum
of € 4,284 per month gross (based on scale 11, with a full-time
appointment and depending on experience). TU Delft offers an attractive
benefits package, including a flexible work week, free high-speed Internet
access from home, and the option of assembling a customized compensation
and benefits package (the ‘IKA’). Salary and benefits are in accordance
with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities.

Information and application
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For more information about this position, please contact Willem-Paul
Brinkman, phone: +31(0)15-2783534, e-mail: W.P.Brinkman@tudelft.nl. To
apply, please send a detailed CV and publication list along with a letter
of application by 16 January, 2009 to Mekelweg 4, 2628 CD  Delft, The
Netherlands, or e-mail to: peno-ewi@tudelft.nl.
When applying for this position, make sure to mention vacancy number
EWI2008-57.

Website
EEMCS – http://www.ewi.tudelft.nl/en
MMI – http://mmi.tudelft.nl/