Job ID: 123476

Postdoc – statistical learning in auditory cortico-subcortical loops using electrophysiology and behaviour

Position: Post-doctoral Position

Deadline: 31 July 2025

Employment Start Date: 1 October 2025

Contract Length: 22-24 months

City: Berlin

Country: Germany

Institution: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin

Department: Neuroscience Research Center

Description:

Project: Learning is essential for survival, and takes place over various timescales to enable diverse abilities from language acquisition to the detection of environmental changes. Statistical learning happens implicitly, as the brain continuously scans and integrates sensory information, allowing us to become familiar with the environment and distinguish important sounds from background noise. Our project focuses on studying the neural circuits and mechanisms by which statistical learning in the auditory system enhances listening in noisy settings. We will study cortico-subcortical interactions between the inferior colliculus and primary auditory cortex of both passive and behaving mice using Neuropixels and other systems neuroscience tools.

Location: This position will be held in Berlin and will be jointly supervised by Einstein fellow David McAlpine (Macquarie University) and Livia de Hoz.

We are looking for scientists with experience in systems neuroscience, including Neuropixels and Matlab/Python coding. Ideally, this person would also have experience with behavior and/or optogenetics. Mainly we are looking for smart, motivated individuals with a passion for science.

We are a small, supportive, and dynamic group made of a diversity of people united by a passion for science and the brain. The lab asks questions such as how are noisy sensory inputs recognized and represented in the brain? What is the role of corticofugal projections in setting expectations and interpreting the sensory input? How does the auditory system integrate information over time? How does representation change with mental state (aroused, asleep, groggy)?

Please write to Livia de Hoz at livia.dehoz@charite.de for informal enquiries, as well as for formal applications. Applications should include your CV and a letter of interest. Please mention the job code.