Interested in doing a PhD with us? Check out the post below for details! 😊

🦠 Friend or foe? Modeling microbe-microbe interactions in diverse environments

PhD position in Computational Sciences within the national Data-Driven Life Sciences program

The project: Why do microbes interact in the ways they do? We know that microbes have many possible options, or strategies, regarding what resources they consume to grow. Depending on these choices, pairs of microbes may either compete or cooperate. What actually happens depends on the ability of microbes to correctly assess the situation, i.e. solve a type of inference problem. Yet, little is known about the difficulty of this inference problem or what heuristics organisms might evolve. This research project is a collaboration between Eric Libby and our research group; it involves using machine learning techniques to infer the mechanisms by which microbes make decisions, bioinformatic techniques to compare these mechanisms to empirical data, and game theory and modeling approaches to improve our understanding. The project has many exciting directions and opportunities for different quantitative tools and approaches. In addition, the student will be based at the interdisciplinary center, IceLab, where they will gain professional training in communication as well as in conducting interdisciplinary research.

Required educational background: See here for detailed qualifications.

Required programming skills: Proficiency in one or more relevant programming languages suited for the project (e.g., Python, Rust, R, Julia, Matlab, C++).

Application: Click here to apply! 🤗