A pre-doctoral contract is offered to train a doctoral candidate under the FI-SDUR call from AGAUR. This position is available at the Graphics and Imaging Laboratory (GILAB) of the University of Girona. The thesis will be carried out under the supervision of a senior researcher in the group.

Research Area: This PhD project analyses deep neural networks (DNNs) using information theory to uncover their performance and operation principles.

Objectives:

• Investigate DNNs through the lens of information theory, considering networks as Markov models.
• Explore the information bottleneck hypothesis in convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to understand their learning process.
• Apply information theory tools to image analysis, including fusion of unimodal and multimodal images, and color-to-gray transformations.
• Develop and test new information-theoretic measures as cost functions and for dimensionality reduction in deep learning.

Expected Outcomes:

• Deeper insights into the internal workings of DNNs.
• Enhanced methods for image segmentation, clustering, and image retrieval using information theory.
• Improved data processing and feature extraction efficiency within various applications, including visual computing and economics.

Required Education Level

Applicants must have completed the studies granting access to official doctoral programs between January 2021, and July 2024, or at the time of application, applicants must be enrolled in a degree program that allows them to enrol in the doctoral program for the 2023-2024 academic year.

• Computer Science: Master’s Degree or equivalent with a minimum average grade of 6.5 (on a scale of 0 to 10)
• Mathematics: Master’s Degree or equivalent with a minimum average grade of 6.5 (on a scale of 0 to 10)
• For studies completed abroad, the average grade of the academic transcript must be calculated according to the current resolutions of the Ministry of Universities for grade equivalencies.

Skills/Qualifications

• Experience and knowledge in neural networks with TensorFlow, PyTorch or other libraries
• Previous experience with programming (e.g., Matlab, C++, Python, etc.) is highly valued
• Experience and knowledge in image processing is a plus
• A good level of English is an asset (minimum B2)

Contract Conditions: The conditions will align with the FI-SDUR call from AGAUR. The main conditions are:

• Duration: 3 years
• Remuneration: €1,386.57/month gross for the 1st and 2nd year, and €1,485.61/month gross for the 3rd year
• Grant: €3,000 for training and internationalization activities
• Start Date: The contract must start from 1 April 2025. Exceptionally, non-EU nationals may join until 1 October 2025.

How to Apply >> Send your CV, academic record*, and motivation letter to cristina.diaz@udg.edu by 14 July 2023. We will support selected candidates in applying for the FI-SDUR fellowship at the AGAUR site.

* For studies completed abroad, the average grade of the academic transcript must be calculated according to the current resolutions of the Ministry of Universities for grade equivalencies.

Please ensure that you meet all requirements for pre-enrolment for the doctoral program at the Universitat de Girona (here).

Oriol Vila, researcher at the GILAB research group and member of the Institute of Informatics and Applications, obtained a PhD on 29 January. His dissertation was supervised by Imma Boada and Esteve Farrés and is entitled “Methods for remote stock monitoring using depth sensors”.

Adrià Julià, researcher at the GILAB research group and member of the Institute of Informatics and Applications, obtained a PhD on 11 November. His dissertation was supervised by Imma Boada and Marc Ruiz and is entitled “Medical imaging techniques for the analysis and measurement of composite materials”.

Núria Banús, researcher at the GILAB research group and member of the Institute of Informatics and Applications, obtained a PhD on 16 December. Her dissertation was supervised by Imma Boada and Pau Xiberta and is entitled “New solutions to control robotic environments: Quality control in food packaging”.

The Visualization for Transparency Foundation (ViT) has developed an interactive application for the United Nations Environment Programme that has just been published. Check it here.

This interactive application allows visualising the causes and impacts of air pollution around the world and the different policies that countries are adopting to reduce it.

The project has been led by Xaquín Veira, professor of the Master in Data Science and the Master in Visual Tools to Empower Citizens and member of the research group GILab, and has involved the participation of students Aleix Alvarez, student of the degree in Computer Engineering, and Miguel Villalobos, of the degree in Design and Development of Video Games, have participated through a Workplace Internship, under the technical direction of Matt Osborn, also a professor of the master’s degree in Visual Tools to Empower Citizens.

This position is available at the Graphics and Imaging Laboratory (GIlab) of the University of Girona under the framework of INNOTEC 2020 project DOC2BE (Analysis and improvement of the image to optimize the generation of quality electronic documents) funded by ACCIO (ref. ACE014/20/000058).

DOC2BE project, led by Prof. Mateu Sbert, aims to develop new low-quality documentation management methods that combine the use of image enhancement algorithms and a tool for selecting the most appropriate algorithm in each case, based on artificial intelligence.

We are looking for a candidate with studies in the field of computer science or mathematics and Knowledge of image processing to support in research and development for the programming and testing of algorithms for improving lighting in images, their conversion to grayscale, and their classification, within the framework of the DOC2BE project.

REQUIREMENTS

REQUIRED EDUCATION LEVEL

• Computer science: Bachelor Degree or equivalent
• Mathematics: Bachelor Degree or equivalent
• Or any related areas

SKILLS/QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience and knowledge of image processing with OpenCV.
• Previous experience with programming (like Matlab, C ++, etc.) and either machine-learning will be valued.
• A good level of English will be an asset (minimum B2).

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

BENEFITS

• The contract will have a maximum duration of 1 year, beginning in September.
• Annual gross salary: € 30,500.

ELEGIBILITY CRITERIA

Applications are evaluated based on the information provided by the applicant:

• CV including information on their education background and work experience.
• Transcript of records from Bachelor or any other courses.

SELECTION PROCESS

Send your CV, academic record and a motivation letter to cristina.diaz@udg.edu by the 15^th June 2021.

For further information, contact Cristina Díaz at the e-mail address given and visit our website.

A pre-doctoral contract is offered for the training of a doctor under the coming FPI 2020 call from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation. This position is available at the Graphics and Imaging Laboratory (GIlab) of the University of Girona to develop a doctoral thesis within the framework of the “Interactive technologies for improving serious games for education, health and industry” project, led by Prof. Mateu Sbert and Prof. Imma Boada.

The objective of the project is the improvement of interactive technologies, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), for serious games and its applications to education, health and industry, where specific sectors of STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) education, rehabilitation, labour risk prevention, product presentation and others will be targeted.

The doctoral thesis will probably focus on the modelling and interactive visualization of eye-tracking trajectories for VR environments, but other subjects would be possible within the context of the project. The thesis will be carried out at GIlab under the supervision of a senior doctor of the group.

GILab is the Graphics and Imaging Laboratory of the University of Girona with many years of experience in image processing and visualization techniques, computer graphics, serious games, multimedia platforms and online training environments with a high capacity for technology transfer.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CANDIDATES

Candidates need a master’s degree in computer science or related subjects, and have to register at the School of Doctoral Studies of the University of Girona by the start of the contract. They may not apply or agree to recruitment in case of having started their pre-doctoral training with funding from other national grants or to be in possession of a Doctor’s degree, by any Spanish or foreign university.

In addition to the requirements of the call, it will be assessed a good level of English (minimum B2).

CONTRACT CONDITIONS

The conditions are those set by the FPI 2020 Call Subprogram for the training of research personnel of the State R+D+I Plan, Ministry of Science and Innovation:

• The contract will have a maximum duration of 4 years, beginning the next course 2021/2022.
• If you obtain your PhD before the 43rd month, you have a postdoctoral contract for the remaining months.
• Annual gross salary: € 16,250 for the first two years, € 17,410 for the third year and € 21,760 for the fourth year (or € 28,800 if you already have the postdoctoral contract).
• Additional aid: € 6,860 for tuition fees and for stays of at least one month in another centre.
• Teaching tasks: maximum of 180 hours, not exceeding 60 hours per year.

HOW TO APPLY

Call deadline: October 27^th, 2020 (14:00 Barcelona time).

The website you must request the grant is https://www.ciencia.gob.es/portal/site/MICINN/menuitem.dbc68b34d11ccbd5d52ffeb801432ea0/?vgnextoid=490233572bed4710VgnVCM1000001d04140aRCRD for project PID2019-106426RB-C31.

Send your CV, academic record and a motivation letter to cristina.diaz@udg.edu by the 22^nd October 2020. We will support selected candidates to apply for the FPI fellowship at the MICINN site.

The final resolution is expected to be published next spring.

For further information, contact Cristina Díaz at the e-mail address given.

We are proud to announce that Xaquín González Veira, PhD Student at Gilab, was part of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting with the ‘Disaster in the Pacific’. This is an investigation on the staggering leadership failures that led to deadly accidents in the Navy and Marines by T. Christian Miller, Megan Rose and Robert Faurtechi of ProPublica.

National reporting category can be in any format that most clearly and powerfully tells the story and Xaquín is an expert in data visualization, visual explanations, and interactive storytelling.

The Pulitzers are generally regarded as the highest honour that U.S.-based journalists and organizations can receive. Congratulations!

Take a look at the report here.

Pau Xiberta, researcher at the GILAB research group and member of the Institute of Informatics and Applications, obtained a PhD on 25 May. His dissertation was supervised by Anton Bardera and Imma Boada and is entitled ‘Medical imaging applied to teaching and meat science’.