PhD position:
BIOLOGICALLY INSPIRED HERDING OF ANIMAL GROUPS
Key information:
Closing date: 23 January 2023
Subject areas: Collective animal behaviour, flocking, swarm systems, agent-based models, robotics, UAVs
Project start date: 1 October 2023
Project supervisors: Dr Andrew King https://www.shoalgroup.org/, Dr Miguel Lurgi https://www.swansea.ac.uk/staff/miguel.lurgi/
Project description:
A single sheepdog can bring together and manoeuvre hundreds of sheep from one location to another. Engineers and biologists are fascinated by sheepdog herding because of the potential it provides for bio-inspired strategies for herding real animal groups. Herding of animal groups over the sea, on land, and in the air using UAVs (for example) has potential to solve a variety of ecological problems that are currently impossible, dangerous, and/or costly for humans to manage directly. Project details- The student will use existing data and collect new data on a variety of animal systems to research and develop biologically inspired models for herding animal groups – “bioherding”. The student will be based at www.SHOALgroup.org, Swansea University, and supported by a highly interdisciplinary team of international collaborators that includes biologists, mathematicians, and engineers. The student will travel to collaborator labs to complete specific project objectives.
Timeline:
Candidates will be shortlisted and invited to interview early February 2023. A panel will meet soon after 20 February 2023 to decide on the successful candidate.
Eligibility:
This scholarship is open to candidates of any nationality. Candidates must normally hold an undergraduate degree at 2.1 level in Biosciences or a related subject, or a master’s degree with a minimum overall grade at ‘Merit’ (or Non-UK equivalent as defined by Swansea University). See - Country-specific Information for European Applicants 2019 and Country-specific Information for International Applicants 2022. We are looking to hire a biology graduate with strong quantitative skills, or an maths/engineering/computer scientist graduate with a strong interest in biology. An enthusiasm for tackling challenging computational problems is essential and prior experience with programming (e.g., in R, Python, MATLAB, etc.) is required. The candidate should have strong interpersonal skills and be enthusiastic about working across disciplines.
English Language requirements: If applicable – IELTS 6.5 overall (with at least 6.0 in each individual component) or Swansea recognised equivalent. Details on the Swansea University English Language entry policy can be found here.
Funding:
This scholarship covers the full cost of tuition fees and an annual stipend at UKRI rate (currently £17,668 for 2022/23). Funding providers: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) DTP and Swansea University's Faculty of Science and Engineering. Additional research expenses will also be available.
How to Apply: