Application of open-loop and closed-loop sensory stimulation protocols during human sleep

Profile:

The IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca invites applications for two research fellowships in the field of cognitive neuroscience, with a specific focus on the neurophysiology of sleep and dreams. The ideal candidates will demonstrate a strong scientific interest in sleep research and will have documented experience with the acquisition of electroencephalographic (EEG) and polysomnographic (PSG) data, including high-density EEG systems (≥64 channels). Prior involvement in experimental paradigms that employ experience sampling during sleep, such as serial awakening protocols, will be considered an asset. The candidates must also have experience with standard sleep scoring procedures, including the use of established criteria (e.g., AASM). In addition, the candidates should have solid experience in the recruitment and screening of human participants for experimental studies, including the collection of clinical history and the administration of questionnaires and standardized cognitive assessments. A working knowledge of at least one programming language commonly used for data analysis in neuroscience (e.g., MATLAB or Python) is also desirable.

Activity:

The appointed fellows will be actively involved in research projects aimed at investigating the effects of specific stimulation protocols on brain activity and/or dream content during sleep. Their main responsibilities will include: preparation and execution of overnight experimental sessions involving healthy volunteers; acquisition of multimodal physiological data, including high-density EEG (64–256 channels), electrooculography (EOG), electromyography (EMG), electrocardiography (ECG), and respiratory activity; implementation of serial awakening paradigms, including real-time monitoring of sleep stages, induction of awakenings, and structured collection of dream reports and other subjective data; management of all phases of data acquisition, including equipment setup, application of stimulation protocols, and participant interaction; assistance in data pre-processing and organization in collaboration with other lab members. The fellows will also be expected to contribute to the overall management of experimental protocols, including scheduling of participants and documentation of procedures in compliance with ethical standards.

Formal requirements:

• master’s degree (Laurea Magistrale) or equivalent in Psychology, Neuroscience, Biomedical Engineering, or related disciplines OR a Bachelor’s degree (Laurea di primo livello) in “Tecniche di Neurofisiopatologia” or equivalent qualification obtained abroad;
• good command of English (spoken and written).

Specific requirements:

• prior experience with serial awakening protocols and dream report collection;
• basic programming skills in MATLAB and/or Python;
• experience in collecting and analyzing physiological data (EEG, EMG, ECG, respiratory signals);
• familiarity with ethics and safety procedures in human sleep research;
• at least one year of documented, hands-on experience in the acquisition of EEG and/or PSG data in human participants;
• familiarity with high-density EEG systems (≥64 electrodes);
• experience in standard sleep scoring according to established criteria (e.g., AASM);
• proven experience in recruiting and screening participants, including administration of questionnaires and/or cognitive tasks;
• availability to conduct overnight experimental sessions;

Duration:

12 months

Gross amount:

€ 16.243,00

Project:

The scholarships referred to in this call for applications are funded, the first, with funds from the ERC TweakDreams project - GA 948891 (overhead costs), code UGOV P0187, CUP D64G21000020006, and the second with funds from the FARE REMEDY project - code R2049C8YN3 (overhead costs), code UGOV P0269, CUP D67G22000540006.

Application:

Applications must be submit through PICA website only using the link at the bottom of this page.
Please note that for the submission of applications on PICA website, login via SPID IS NOT AVAILABLE at the moment - Please register using the alternative methods.

Si segnala che per la presentazione delle candidature sul sito PICA al momento NON E' DISPONIBILE il login tramite SPID - Si prega di effettuare la registrazione secondo le modalità alternative.