Openings

Prospective Graduate Students

Position are available at the beginning of each academic year in both robotics and bioinformatics. Candidates should contact Lydia Kavraki directly for more information:
    Lydia E. Kavraki
    kavraki/AT/cs.rice.edu
    tel: 713 348-5737

Postdoctoral Research Associate Position in Computational Structural Biology/Bioinformatics

A full-time research associate position is available in the Physical and Biological Computing Group in the Computer Science Department at Rice University, Houston, TX (http://www.kavrakilab.org). The position offers a one-year initial appointment and can be extended to a second year.

Our group's focus is the development of representations and algorithms for addressing complex geometric problems arising in the physical world. We work in two main applications areas: robotics and bioinformatics. The position is related to our work in bioinformatics with emphasis on problems arising in structural computational biology and systems biology. We are looking for a person who will complement our existing efforts in studying conformational changes in large molecules and macromolecular complexes as well as our efforts in protein function annotation.

Ideal applicants for this position will hold a PhD in Computer Science or a related discipline (or expect to receive their degree before starting on this position). Specialization in robotics, graphics, algorithms, or computational geometry is a plus. Some basic training in Biosciences is desirable but not necessary for the position as we can train the successful applicant in this area. Applicants from Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering, or Mechanical Engineering with a strong Computer Science background are also encouraged to apply. Applications will be considered until the position is filled.

You will be working with a team of computer scientists, bioengineers, structural biologists, and chemists who have close connections to the Baylor Medical School, the University of Texas Medical School and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. The work has a development and system building component but also a strong algorithmic component.

Interested applicants should contact Lydia Kavraki directly for more information:
    Lydia E. Kavraki
    kavraki/AT/cs.rice.edu
    tel: 713 348-5737

To apply for the position, please send a resume and the names of three references to kavraki/AT/rice.edu

Undergraduate Research Opportunity in Robotics

This is a research job for an undergraduate interested in modeling and simulating physically realistic robot motions.

You will gain experience in physics-based simulation using physics engines that are used in many computer games. You will also learn to use a 3D modeling program to create robot models including joints, mass properties, and other physical parameters. This project involves the use of several software libraries. The focus is on integrating physics simulators with the motion planning code developed in our group.

The main requirement is programming experience. C++ experience is preferred. Experience with ruby/python is also desirable. It is helpful if you have experience with version control software (such as subversion) and have worked with others on large software projects. Creativity and mathematical knowledge will be helpful for creating the robot models. This is a full time summer job, with potential to continue through the school year part time. For more information please contact Professor Lydia Kavraki (kavraki/AT/rice.edu). It may also be helpful to visit the group's web site: http://www.kavrakilab.org.

Undergraduate Research Opportunity in Bioinformatics/Systems Biology

This is a research job for an undergraduate interested in working on a computationally focused research project related to metabolic networks and metabolic engineering.

You will gain hands on experience working on data integration, analysis, search and visualization of metabolic networks. The algorithms and techniques you will be using and developing have potential to generalize to many different types of data. This project consists of a number of components ranging from graph theory to user interface design. Therefore, the specific focus of the project can be tailored based on your interests and skills. So bring your creativity and initiative along to advance science!

The main requirements are programming experience (any language) and excitement about working on novel computational problems related to biology. This is a full time summer job, with potential to continue through the school year part time. For more information please contact Professor Lydia Kavraki (kavraki/AT/rice.edu). It may also be helpful to visit the group's web site: http://www.kavrakilab.org.