Research Assistant in Computational Philosophy and AI

About the Opportunity

The Role

Northeastern University London wishes to appoint Research Assistants to support research in the Computational Philosophy Lab (CPL) in collaboration with Cognia AI Research Assistants will support ongoing interdisciplinary research at the intersection of philosophy artificial intelligence network science and natural language processing. Depending on skills and interests successful candidates will contribute to one or more of the following research strands:

Natural language processing to support an automated literature review in AI ethics including data preparation semantic analysis and topic analysis.

Data analysis of epistemic networks as part of the PolyGraphs project including working with simulated network data to study patterns of information flow belief formation and reasoning.

Analysis of natural language data as part of a prompt engineering project studying the techniques for eliciting effective answers from human and AI responders.

The Research Assistants will support the research team in applying computational and formal methods to philosophical and AI-related questions. Tasks may include preparing and cleaning datasets natural language processing running and interpreting analyses producing visualisations and contributing to documentation and research outputs.

Research Assistants will work under the supervision of Dr David Freeborn Prof. Ioannis Votsis and Prof. Brian Ball contributing to data preparation analysis visualisation and interpretation and supporting the dissemination of research outputs.

We wish to appoint Research Assistants who are comfortable working with data and computational methods and who have an interest in philosophy artificial intelligence or related fields. Desirable skills include high competency with Python programming experience with natural language processing or data analysis libraries statistical methods some exposure to network or graph-based analysis and an ability to engage carefully with complex research questions. However the precise balance of skills will depend on the particular project. Good written English skills are also essential as the role will involve contributing to the interpretation and presentation of research findings.

Core duties will include working with members of the London-based CPL team to prepare analyse and interpret data; documenting methods and results; and supporting the dissemination of research outputs.

Research Project Description

The Research Assistants will contribute to a broader programme of work in the Computational Philosophy Lab that applies computational formal and data-driven methods to questions in philosophy AI ethics and social epistemology. The projects involve the analysis of textual and network-structured data to better understand reasoning knowledge production and interaction in contemporary AI-related contexts. This role is funded by the externally supported Cognia Lab research programme (project code GR4935).

The positions are based at the London campus and are part-time fixed-term 10 hours per week for 20 weeks with some flexibility. The successful candidates will work closely with the London-based research team including David Freeborn Ioannis Votsis and Brian Ball.

Discipline/ Faculty

This interdisciplinary research project brings together philosophy with computer science applying natural language processing to an inherently interdisciplinary body of literature. It will involve working with a team from the philosophy department.

Additional Information

This role is paying 16.64 per hour

Position Type

Additional Information

They can be reached at the following:

However all applications must be made in accordance with the application process specified.

Application process

Applications should be made by 00:00 on the job postings end date (if applicable).

Participation in the equal opportunities section is encouraged but voluntary.

Applications must include a covering letter of no more than one page that addresses the criteria for the role and a full curriculum vitae.

The panel will be shortlisting for this position on a rolling basis so please apply as soon as possible. We reserve the right to close this post before the closing date if we receive a large number of applications.

Please note all employees of Northeastern University London are required to undergo at least a basic DBS check. Our organisation acknowledges the duty of care to safeguard protect and promote the welfare of our students and staff and is committed to ensuring safeguarding practice reflects statutory responsibilities government guidance and complies with best practice and Ofsted requirements. You must adhere to the above if you are offered a role with NU London.

For staffs own wellbeing for part time roles the expectation is if you have multiple roles they should not exceed full time (37.5 hours per week) and for full time roles the expectation is that this will be your only role (apart from intermittent roles).

Applications are welcome from all sections of the community and will be judged on merit alone. We welcome applications from all underrepresented groups including the Global Majority. Candidates must be able to demonstrate their eligibility to work in the UK in accordance with the Immigration Asylum and Nationality Act 2006.