PhD position in computational media forensics at MediaFutures
Deadline: 31.01.2021
University of Bergen
The University of Bergen is a renowned educational and research institution, organised into seven faculties and approximately 54 institutes and academic centres. Campus is located in the centre of Bergen with university areas at Nygårdshøyden, Haukeland, Marineholmen, Møllendalsveien and Årstad.
PhD position in computational media forensics at MediaFutures: Research Centre for Responsible Media Technology & Innovation
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PhD position in computational media forensics at MediaFutures: Research Centre for Responsible Media Technology & Innovation
There is a vacancy for a PhD position in Information Science, researching computational media forensics at MediaFutures: Research Centre for Responsible Media Technology & Innovation. The position is for a fixed-term period of 3 years.
MediaFutures is a new centre for research-based innovation at the Department for information science and media studies, University of Bergen, and will be located at Media City Bergen. The centre is a part of the Norwegian Research Council’s Research-based Innovation scheme. MediaFutures will in cooperation with industry partners from news media and media technology research topics like media experiences, recommender technology, content production and analysis, content interaction and availability, and Norwegian language technology. The goal is to develop responsible technological solutions to societal challenges like AI, fake news, echo chambers and political polarization. The results will be new digital tools, analytical methods and content types for the future of media. The center will also perform research training within media technology and innovation. This will create outputs such as new patents, prototypes, research articles and software, as well and innovative start-up companies.
Read more about the centre at www.mediafutures.no
About the project/work tasks:
This PhD position will be part of work package WP3 Media Content Production and Analysis, more specifically in the task T3.2 Deep Content Verification & Fact Checking. In this task, the focus will be on mapping multimedia modification techniques and fake news creation and on analysing how such manipulations impact the truthfulness of news.
This PhD research will focus on development and design of algorithms and tools that reveal the processing history of multimedia content, synchronously with fact checking, and supporting media authentication and modification detection.
The main objectives of the PhD position include:
Development of multimedia forensics algorithms and machine learning models to reveal the processing history of multimedia content
Evaluation of existing procedures, existing tools and methods for fact checking
Using multimedia forensics, machine learning and other techniques for fact checking
Qualifications and personal qualities:
The applicant must hold a master's degree or the equivalent in Computer Science, Information Science, ICT, or mathematics
The degree has to be completed by the application deadline
The requirements are generally a grade B or better on the Master thesis and for the Master degree in total. Applicants with no letter grades from previous studies must have an equally good academic foundation
As an applicant you should be able to work independently, have a considerable work capacity as well as an enthusiasm for research
Willingness to work in a collaborative research project
Excellent programming skills in at least one programming language (Python, C++, Java)
Solid background in image processing and/or digital image forensics
Good hands-on experience of analyzing real-world data in a numerical computing environment (Python, Matlab, R)
Good hands-on experience with and working knowledge of machine learning algorithms implementation and platforms
Fluent in English
Shortlisted candidates will be invited for an interview.
About the PhD position (applies to university PhD positions):
The duration of the PhD position is 3 years. The employment period for the successful candidate may be reduced if he or she previously has been employed in a PhD position.
As a PhD research fellow, you will take part in the PhD programme at the Department of Information Science and Media Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, UiB. The programme corresponds to a period of three years and leads to the PhD degree in Science. To be eligible for admission you must normally have an educational background corresponding to a master’s degree with a scope of 120 ECTS credits, which builds on a bachelor’s degree with a scope of 180 ECTS credits (normally 2 + 3 years), or an integrated master’s degree with a scope of 300 ECTS credits (5 years). Master’s degrees must normally include an independent work of a minimum of 30 ECTS credits. It is expected that the topic of the master’s degree is connected to the academic field to which you are seeking admission.
The applicant who holds a 4-year integrated Master’segree with honour with an exceptional level of results documented, will be also considered. See this link for details.
We can offer:
Exciting development opportunities as part of your role in a strong professional environment
A cross-disciplinary, interactive and challenging working environment
Salary at pay grade 54 upon appointment (Code 1017) on the government salary scale (equivalent to NOK 479.600 per year). Further promotions are made according to length of service in the position
Enrolment in the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund
For more information about moving to Bergen and Norway, please visit this link , and this link.
Your application must include:
A cover letter including a brief account of your research interests and motivation for applying for the position
The names and contact information for two reference persons. One of them must be the main advisor for the master's thesis or equivalent thesis
CV
Transcripts and diplomas showing completion of the bachelor's and master's degrees.
Relevant certificates/references
A list of academic publications
Academic publications that you want to submit for assessment (including your master’s thesis or equivalent)
If you have a master's degree from an institution outside of the Nordic countries, or a 2-year discipline- based master's degree (or the equivalent) in a subject area other than the one associated with the application, you may later in the application process be asked to submit an overview of the syllabus for the degree you have completed
Incomplete applications or applications sent as e-mails will not be considered. Only submitted documents will be subjected to an expert assessment.
General information:
Additional information about the position is obtainable by contacting work package leader Andreas Lothe Opdahl (andreas.opdahl@uib.no) or task leader Duc-Tien Dang-Nguyen (ductien.dangnguyen@uib.no) or Centre Director Christoph Trattner
Practical questions regarding the application procedures should be directed to Senior Officer – HR, Jannicke Lervik, Jannicke.lervik@uib.no.
Appointed research fellows will be admitted to the PhD programme at the Faculty of Social Sciences. Questions about the programme may be directed to Adviser-PhD: Hanne.Gravermoen@uib.no.
The state labour force shall reflect the diversity of Norwegian society to the greatest extent possible. Age and gender balance among employees is therefore a goal. It is also a goal to recruit people with immigrant backgrounds. People with immigrant backgrounds and people with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the position.
The University of Bergen applies the principle of public access to information when recruiting staff for academic positions.
Information about applicants may be made public even if the applicant has asked not to be named on the list of persons who have applied. The applicant must be notified if the request to be omitted is not met.
The successful applicant must comply with the guidelines that apply to the position at all times.
For further information about the recruitment process, click here.
