Dear Colleagues, The Idiap Research Institute in partnership with the Department of Mathematics at Mahidol University seek two PhD students to work on Bayesian Optimisation and training techniques for spiking neural networks. Funded by the Swiss NSF, one student will be based in Martigny in the Swiss alps, the other in Bangkok in Thailand. Exchanges between the two are planned. In addition to promising better understanding of biological processes, spiking nets have persuasive low-power implications. However, they present difficulties associated with their many hyperparameters, binary nature and non-differentiability of the emitted spikes. At Idiap, the project will build on our recent work that has shown that spiking networks are plausible solutions for speech processing tasks. The Bayesian approach will be twofold: In a first thread we will attempt to show that prior information can compensate for discontinuities in the error landscape arising from the binary nature. In a second thread, we will use Bayesian Optimisation techniques to handle the increased number of hyperparameters associated with spiking neurons. At Mahidol, the team will be responsible for designing frameworks for LPNet and neural networks to address the vehicle routing problem (VRP). The project will explore the effectiveness of these approaches in solving VRP and identify their limitations. The ultimate aim is to enhance VRP solutions through our spiking neural network (SNN) framework. The ideal student should have a master's (or equivalent) degree in engineering, computer science, physics, or mathematics. They should have a good background in mathematics, statistics, and programming (C/C++, Python, scripting languages). Candidates should have a deep understanding of ANNs and, ideally, familiarity with SNNs. For more information and to apply, for Idiap: https://careers.werecruit.io/en/idiap/offers/phd---bayesian-methods-for-spik... for Mahidol: https://mathematics.sc.mahidol.ac.th/scholarship-for-phd-in-mathematics-swis... The SNSF SPIRIT program is especially concerned with gender and identity inclusivity; we will emphasize this through the hiring process. In this sense, we particularly encourage applications from female candidates. Sincerely, -- Phil Garner http://www.idiap.ch/~pgarner