Postdoctorant en Neuroimagerie/Neurophysiologie Comportementale chez le PNH (H/F) Institut Du Cerveau

CONTEXT

How do the brains of social beings make sense of their societies? As part of the European ERC project NEURO-SOCIETY, the Social Cognition Neurophysiology Team is seeking two outstanding postdoctoral researchers.
In the first project, the postdoctoral researcher (renewable term) will develop new approaches to examine the neural representation of social relationships in primates, combining neuroimaging and touchscreen behavioral testing.

In the second project, the postdoctoral researcher (renewable term) will study how different sensory modalities (vision, audition, olfaction) give rise to the same social concepts, combining neuroimaging and neurophysiology. These approaches will constitute a first step toward understanding the neuronal mechanisms underlying the creation of social concepts in primates.

At the Paris Brain Institute, the Social Cognition Neurophysiology team, led by Julia Sliwa, investigates the brain mechanisms that transform social perceptions into social knowledge, using a combination of ethological tests in primates, neuroimaging (fMRI), neurophysiology, and large-scale data analyses: www.sliwalab.org

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES:

Reporting to the Neurophysiology of Social Cognition team, the recruited person will be responsible of the following tasks:

Experimental work:

- Design and implementation of methods to study perception and social cognition in non-human primates (NHPs)
- Acquisition of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and/or neurophysiological data
- Development and programming of behavioral and cognitive tasks; animal training and testing
- Planning, preparation, and participation in surgeries, anesthesia, euthanasia, care, and treatments
- Compliance with ethical protocols and national guidelines
- Collaborative work with team members and core facilities

Data analysis:

- Development of tools and programs for statistical data analysis
- Analysis of imaging, behavioral, and/or neurophysiological data
- Documentation, traceability, and archiving of analyses and experiments (GitLab, Git, Wiki)

Presentation and dissemination:

- Literature review and bibliographic monitoring
- Presentation of results in team meetings and conferences
- Writing of scientific articles

Mentoring, team engagement, and collective tasks:

- Participation in and facilitation of journal clubs and team meetings
- Support for students and interns within the team
- Contribution to project and protocol writing
- Responsibility for a collective team task (e.g., safety officer, journal club organizer, IT referent)

SPECIFIC CONDITIONS:

- Some duties (animal care, veterinary treatments, imaging or behavioral protocols) may require weekend work.
- Travel within France (e.g., Station de Primatologie in Rousset, Centre de Primatologie in Strasbourg) may be required for sample collection or behavioral testing.
- The position is available starting November 2025, with an initial appointment of 1.5 years. Extension beyond this period is possible.
- The start date is flexible, and applications will be considered until the position is filled.
- The position is fully funded by a European ERC grant (NEURO-SOCIETY, PI: Sliwa) and a collaborative ICM/Pasteur/McGill grant (BBT4 PRIDES, PI: Sliwa). However, candidates are encouraged to apply for competitive personal fellowships (HFSP, FRM, Marie Sklodowska-Curie, etc.).

SALARY

From 38 500EUR annual gross