Postdoctoral position in the group of Prof. Igor Pivkin

A postdoctoral position is available in the Faculty of Informatics at the University of Lugano (Switzerland).

The candidates must have demonstrated expertise in Molecular Dynamics (MD) or Dissipative Particle Dynamics (DPD), high performance computing (HPC) and have some background in biology. The successful candidate will participate in the development of methods and software for multiscale modeling of blood cell motion and transport of oxygen and solutes in healthy and cancer tumor induced microvascular networks. The project will require an efficient use of high performance computing resources including Europe's largest supercomputers.

DURATION OF APPOINTMENT: The position is for one year with the strong possibility of renewal.

SALARY: About CHF 60,000 (~68,000 USD) per year.

 

Inquiries should be directed to Professor Igor Pivkin (igor.pivkin@usi.ch).

Please email a cover letter and curriculum vitae including a list of publications and contact information of three references to igor.pivkin@usi.ch.

 

2 PhD positions in the group of Prof. Igor Pivkin

Two Ph.D. student openings are available in the Faculty of Informatics at the University of Lugano (Switzerland) with a start date in March or September 2012. The students will be enrolled in the graduate program in the Faculty of Informatics, and will work with Prof. Igor Pivkin on multiscale modeling of tumor induced microcirculation. The work will be done in collaboration with Prof. Petros Koumoutsakos group at ETHZ.

DESCRIPTION: The flow of blood and the transport of solutes in healthy and tumor induced microvascular networks will be investigated by developing novel multiscale particle methods.

The microcirculation in vascular networks is an inherently multiscale phenomenon. The endothelial cell glycocalyx and plasma proteins are nano/micro scale structures that affect the micro/macro scale transport of fluid and solutes near and through the vessel walls.  In turn the flow modification affects through  shear stresses the signaling and proliferation of the endothelial cells as well as the dynamics of the Red Blood Cells (RBC) in small capillaries.

The multiscale modeling of microcirculation presents a number of methodological challenges that are addressed in this project  through the use of particle methods. Particle methods provide  a unifying formulation for the description of phenomena across different scales and recent progress in molecular models, fast algorithms, and scalable software  have enabled simulations using billions of computational elements that can readily describe phenomena across scales.

Specific aims of the present project include:

• Development of  a coarse-grained model of the glycocalyx, bridging atomistic and mesoscopic phenomena affecting the flow in microcirculation
• Large scales blood flow simulations in order to obtain functional relationships that quantify the transport of blood and solutes across the vessel wall in tumor induced microcirculation
• Quantification of leakage in tumor vasculature and its relation to effective drug delivery.

 

The present study will enhance our understanding of the relative  importance of phenomena associated with transport processes in the microvasculature. The results will help to quantify transport phenomena in healthy and tumor induced vasculature thus contributing to the development of rational strategies for cancer therapy. 

PREREQUISITES: Candidates should have a background in particle based methods, strong programming skills, some knowledge of biology, an M.Sc. degree in Applied Mathematics, Computer Science or a relevant engineering discipline. The project will require an efficient use of high performance computing resources including Europe's largest supercomputers. Knowledge of Linux and high performance computing environments is preferable, but not mandatory.

DURATION OF APPOINTMENT: 3 years (+an eventual fourth year).

FELLOWSHIP: Stipend starting from CHF 40,000 (~ 46,000 USD) per year pending on qualifications.

Inquiries should be directed to Prof. Igor Pivkin (igor.pivkin@usi.ch).

For admission procedures, requirements and a description of the Faculty of Informatics program, please consult the URL: www.inf.usi.ch.

 

We are looking for talented PhD students interested in high-performance parallel computing to join our Institute of Computational Science at the University of Lugano (Switzerland). This position are part of an ongoing research effort to develop a code generation and autotuning framework for parallel iterative stencil computations on modern microarchitectures that is used for structured grid computations in computational science.

Requirements

Our group is especially interested in highly motivated students who might have experience in

• a strong technical background, particularly in math (discrete and continuous) and some depth in at least one systems area (architecture, compilers, programming languages, operating systems);
• direct experience in high-performance parallel algorithms and programming, e.g., performance analysis, experience with "specialized" machine architectures such as clusters, multicore systems, GPUs, and/or Intel MIC;
• solid English speaking and writing skills;

Offer

The research group of Prof. Olaf Schenk has strong expertise in high-performance computing, scientific computing with multicore and accelerators, in particular emerging many-core architectures, and combinatorial scientific computing. You will be working in a highly stimulating international research environment within an interdisciplinary team of the University of Lugano and the Swiss Center of Supercomputing (CSCS). The salary offered is according to the guidelines of the SNF. The position is available immediately, starting date upon agreement.

Application Deadline

November 15, 2011, yet applications will be accepted until the positions are filled. Please submit your application electronically in PDF format, including copies of degrees, grades, CV and the names of two references to:

Prof. Olaf Schenk
Institute of Computational Science
University of Lugano, Switzerland
Email until December 2011: olaf.schenk@unibas.ch
Email as of January 2012: olaf.schenk@usi.ch

 

 

Two PhD Positions at the Università della Svizzera Italiana (USI) in Lugano, Switzerland

Two PhD positions are funded through the new Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) research project "Mathematical modeling of credit and equity risk beyond homogeneity and stationarity assumptions: statistical factor models and high-performance data mining". The project is supervised by I. Horenko (USI Informatics Department and Institute of Computational Science), P. Gagliardini (USI Department of Economics), and William Sawyer (ETHZ and Swiss National Supercomputing Centre). The positions will be at USI, and are available starting May 2012.

The Project

Analysis and prediction of financial risks, such as market and credit risks, is one of the central problems in modern economy. The task of adequate mathematical description of the available risk data, which has a very complex nature resulting from the presence of different temporal and spatial (i.e., regional, sectorial and global) scales, is becoming increasingly important in the context of the recent evolutions of the world economy.The main aim of this project is to develop new methods of time series analysis for parameterizing the risks as a spatially coupled non-stationary and non-homogeneous stochastic process under the influence of global and local impact factors (e.g., gross national product, level of depth, stock market indicators, etc.). Conceptual development of new mathematical models and statistical analysis methods for market and credit risks will go hand-in-hand with the implementation and comparison of various methods on high-performance computing platforms at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) in Lugano. Resulting methods and algorithms will then be applied to transparent analysis of the available financial databases for identification of statistically significant regional and global inter-dependencies and extraction of the significant external factors influencing the Swiss economy.Following this new line of research, the doctoral student will investigate and implement new mathematical and statistical methods for credit and equity risk analysis on high-performance architectures, and apply them to realistic financial data. The work will be done in a close collaboration between the USI faculties of Informatics and Economics, and CSCS.

The Candidate

Candidates should possess a master degree and a solid background in one or several of the following areas: applied mathematics, econometrics, computer science, or physics. Strong mathematical background and excellent programming skills (Matlab and/or C/C++) are expected. Only candidates showing excellent creative skills will be considered. The successful candidate will become a doctoral student at USI and must fulfill the enrollment requirements of the USI Informatics or Economics departments' doctoral program.

The Application

Applications, including the CV, a transcript of master studies (with marks) and a letter of intent, should be sent electronically to the following e-mail addresses: horenkoi-at-usi.ch, patrick.gagliardini-at-usi.ch, and wsawyer-at-cscs.ch. The application deadline is May 31, 2012.

The Faculty of Informatics, Institute of Computational Science, is offering work projects for Master students during the academic year 2011/2012.  The work projects - ICS@HP2C Program - runs along the Master courses in Computational Science at the Università della Svizzera italiana (University of Lugano) and is intended to deepen and specialize the topics included therein. Depending on previous experience and knowledge, the students will work together with scientists from ICS on topics of current interest in various fields of HPC research, e.g.

·       Parallel Finite Element Methods

·       Fast and parallel summation algorithms, such as multipole methods, FFT

·       Domain decomposition techniques

·       Parallel linear algebra

·       Applications, e.g. fluid dynamics, contact problems, geosciences and meteorology, biology and biomedicine

Participating students are paid 800 CHF per month for 15 hour per week of work as student assistants at ICS. For further financial support please refer to the website  www.master.inf.usi.ch/study-grants.

 

How to apply

Applicants are expected to have a strong interest and first practical experiences in parallel programming, numerical modeling and simulation. A successful application must include:

·       Letter of motivation, including special interest in a particular field of research.

·       Complete CV with detailed descriptions of the level of knowledge in the relevant disciplines

·       At least one reference from a University advisor/professor

·       Certificate of bachelor degree or equivalent (or an overview of current grades)

 

Application deadline: September 2^nd, 2011.

Please send your complete application by email or postal mail to:

Dean’s Office, Faculty of Informatics
Università della Svizzera italiana
Via Giuseppe Buffi 13
CH-6904 Lugano, Switzerland
decanato.inf@usi.ch

Please specify work projects - ICS@HP2C Program at the top of the motivation letter.

 

Institute of Computational Science (ICS)

ICS at the Univeristà della Svizzera italiana (University of Lugano) provides a unique research environment in the fields of mathematical modeling and high performance methods in numerical simulation. Strong competences in modeling, mathematics, simulation and information science come together in an open and application oriented atmosphere. Exploiting the capabilities of modern supercomputers, increasingly complex problems can be tackled - covering a very broad spectrum of disciplines, from exact and natural sciences to economics and social sciences, including biomedical, environmental, materials, and engineering sciences. Within the Swiss Platform for High Performance and High Productive Computing (HP2C), the core project group concentrates the basic competences in computational sciences required to support the development of high-performance high productivity applications. The ICS, where parts of this core group are located, is looking for Master students, who are interested in numerical modeling in the area of high performance computing and algorithms.

 

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