The IAC (Tenerife) invites applications for ONE postdoctoral contract to work on topics within the project “Morphology with Deep Learning for Euclid” under the "SEVERO OCHOA PROGRAM" (SEV-2015-0548), led by Dr. Marc Huertas-Company, and in the Supercomputing Projects of the IAC, under the supervision of Dr. Nicola Caon.

Research topics at the IAC include most areas of astrophysics: solar physics, planetary systems, stellar and interstellar physics, galaxy formation and evolution, and cosmology and astroparticles. These research lines are supported by an ambitious instrumentation program. The IAC has been selected as a Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence by the Spanish Government in 2015, a prestigious recognition awarded for the second time to the IAC as a leading research institute in Spain. Further information about the IAC's research programme, its Observatories and the 10.4m GTC is available at the IAC's web page (http://www.iac.es).

Duties: The main purpose of the offered position is to develop machine learning based algorithms for galaxy morphology to be included in the EUCLID ground segment pipeline. It includes galaxy classification, deblending and also structural decomposition of galaxies. The candidate will be full member of the EUCLID consortium and work in close collaboration with the team developing the ground segment pipeline.

The selected candidate will work on supercomputing projects at the IAC:

- Improve the administration and the use of the distributed computing system HTCondor, by implementing new usage policies that increase its efficiency, taking advantage of new related tools (Python bindings, Docker Universe, cgroups, etc.).

- Carry out a cost-benefit analysis of the usage of Cloud Computing, assessing whether it can be a valid and cost-effective alternative to on-site dedicated hardware.

- Educate users about the available supercomputing resources: parallel and distributed computing (for instance jobs and queue management), parallel programming (MPI, OpenMP), advanced programming and code optimization, GPU, Cloud Computing. All of this both by giving technical courses and seminars, and by writing on-line manuals and tutorials.

Position requirements: The candidates must have a good publication record and provide evidence of experience in leading original research, and:

- Experience in the installation of supercomputing facilities such as clusters, Condor distributed computing, etc.

- Excellent knowledge of Parallel programming (MPI, OpenMP, etc.) and of jobs/queue management tools, as well as of the most important programming and scripting languages.

Qualification requirements: To be eligible for admission, applicants must have obtained a Ph.D. degree in Astrophysics, Physics or Informatics, by the application deadline (January 15, 2019). A copy of the degree or corresponding stamped certificate (issued by the University where the degree was obtained) must be included. Applicants who have not completed their Ph.D. degree within the application deadline will not be considered.

Selection stage: The selection process will consist of two stages: a merit assessment phase and an interview.

In the merit assessment stage, the Selection Committee will verify and rate the merits documented by the applicants. The maximum score that can be awarded for the assessment of merits will be 80 points, which will be calculated as the sum of the scores obtained in each of the sections.

A) Maximum score: 60 points

• Scientific and technical contributions to the field of research.
• Scientific publications, in quality and quantity, listed in the Science Citation Index (SCI conference contributions, teaching tasks, participation in scientific committees, membership of scientific conference committees, conference organization, journal refereeing, and stays at other research centres.
• Every career stage since the defense of the doctoral thesis will be taken into consideration.

B) Maximum score: 20 points

Adequacy of the candidate’s training and experience for the contract applied for

• Deep Learning
• Galaxy Evolution - Galaxy morphology
• Image processing
• Experience in the installation of supercomputing facilities such as clusters, Condor distributed computing, etc.
• Excellent knowledge of Parallel programming (MPI, OpenMP, etc.) and of jobs/queue management tools, as well as of the most important programming and scripting languages.

Method of accreditation for both sections: Research statement, which includes a report on the technical and research activity carried out, accompanied by documentation that proves what was stated in it.

C) Interview. Maximum score: 20 points

Candidates who have obtained the minimum score to pass the first phase (50 points) will be called to the second assessment phase at a specific time and date. The second phase will consist in an interview that can take place either in person at the IAC headquarters or using internet communication software (e.g., skype or zoom) that allows voice and image transmission.

During the interview, the candidates will present, for a maximum of 10 minutes, their vision about the suitability of their professional profile to the position applied for and the development of their research activity if awarded the contract. The Selection Committee may then ask questions about the contents of the presentation and any other aspects that they deem relevant.

The presentation may be in either Spanish or in English.

In this exercise a score of 0 to 20 points will be awarded, of which:

Up to 10 points, correspond to the suitability of the professional profile to the position applied for.

Up to 10 points, correspond to the candidate's vision of the future and planned research activity in the context of the position applied for.

To pass this second phase a minimum score of 15 points will be necessary.

To pass the selective process, it will be necessary to obtain a minimum score of 65 points.

In order to ensure the effective equality of opportunity for men and women, in pursuance of the provisions of the IAC's Second Plan of Equality, and to ensure that certain documented circumstances of candidates do not prejudice the success of their application, the following special circumstances will be taken positively into account:

• Maternity leave, up to 18 months after the date of birth or adoption.
• Paternity leave, as provided for by Social Security, for the duration of the corresponding permit.
• Severe illness or accident with medical leave for a minimum of 3 months.
• Care of dependents for a minimum period of 3 months, as provided for by Law 39/2006.
• Work permits for the care of dependent children or adults.

Training: Those candidates who have done their Ph.D. research at the IAC must have undertaken a period of training in other research centres. This period must consist of either one continuous year or 18 accumulated months (including periods of training during their doctoral period).

Duration: The appointment will be for a period of two years.  The starting date is expected to be in February 2019.

Remuneration: The gross annual salary is 34.092 Euros, subject to up to 20% income tax and Social Security contributions (depending on the personal situation of the candidate). Medical insurance under the Spanish National Health Service will be provided for the candidate and will also cover spouse or registered partner (de facto partner) and children (if relevant).

Relocation allowance: This call includes a relocation allowance (for the appointed candidate only) comprising: the cost of the flight ticket (booked and issued by the IAC), temporary accommodation for up to two weeks (organized by the IAC) and a per diem rate up to two weeks. The allowance cannot exceed the amount of 2,500 Euros.

Non-UE citizens: Applicants who are not citizen of a country belonging to the European Union are invited to apply for this position, but, if selected, will be allowed to sign the contract with the IAC only after obtaining the compulsory documentation required to live and work in Spain. 

How to apply: The required documentation must be submitted using the online application system http://www.iac.es/jobs/research/, and received by the application deadline. Alternatively, candidates may follow the instructions in the official announcement (in Spanish only).

The following documentation will be sent in in a single file in PDF format:

• Application form (Annex I, duly completed and signed, including title and code number for the position)
• Curriculum Vitae, including publication list
• Research activity report and statement of suitability for the position (maximum of 2 pages)
• Copy of the Ph.D. degree certificate (Spanish or English version)
• Copy of the national identity document or passport

In addition, the names and e-mails of at least two scientists (maximum three) familiar with the work of the candidate must be indicated.

Those applications that do not include the Application Form (Annex I, a mandatory document whose absence cannot be rectified), will be automatically rejected. In the case of incomplete applications, applicants will have a period of five (5) working days (starting from the day after publication of the provisional list of accepted and excluded candidates) to provide the missing documentation, except for those rejected applicants who failed to include Annex I.

Contact: For scientific enquiries please contact Dr. Marc Huertas-Company (mhuertas@iac.es ) and Dr. Nicola Caon (ncaon@iac.es).