PhD Project on Modelling Audiovisual Speech Perception



DTU Compute would like to invite applications for a 3-year PhD position starting December 1, 2013. The starting date is flexible for the right candidate. The project is financed by the Oticon Centre of Excellence for Hearing and Speech Sciences.

Project Description
Face-to-face conversation is perhaps the most important mode of communication between humans. Speech perception in face-to-face communication differs from speech perception without the sight of the interlocutor because the perceptual system integrates phonetic information from sound and sight in a process of multisensory integration. Under normal circumstances this facilitates speech perception (Sumby and Pollack, 1954) but when a phonetically incongruent voice is dubbed onto a video of a talking face it can lead to the McGurk illusion (McGurk and MacDonald, 1976) of hearing a phoneme not mediated by either face or voice. The current project seeks to develop and test a model of the information processing underlying these phenomena. The work will include the design of audiovisual speech stimuli, execution of psychophysical experiments as well as model development and evaluation.

Requirements
Candidates must have a master degree or equivalent academic qualifications in psychology, cognitive science, acoustics, computer science, engineering, applied mathematics, or a closely related field. Skills and experience in psychophysical methods, signal processing, mathematical modelling and machine learning methods are definite advantages. Furthermore, good command of the English language is essential.

Approval and Enrolment
The scholarships for the PhD degree are subject to academic approval, and the candidates will be enrolled in one of the general degree programmes of DTU. For information about the general requirements for enrolment and the general planning of the scholarship studies, please see the DTU PhD Guide.

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Assessment 
The assessment of the applicants will be made by Tobias Andersen.

Salary and appointment terms
The salary and appointment terms are consistent with the current Danish rules for PhD degree students.

Further Information
Further information concerning the project can be obtained from Associate Professor Tobias Andersen.

Further information concerning the application is available at the DTU Compute PhD homepage, or by contacting the responsible ITMAN Graduate School coordinator: Ulla Jensen, DTU Compute, phone: + 45 4525 3359.

Application
To apply, please read the full job advertisement at the Apply button below.

Application deadline: 15 November 2013.

DTU Compute conducts research and provides teaching in the fields of mathematics, modelling and computer science. The expanding mass of information and the increasingly complex use of advanced technology in society demand development of advanced computer based mathematical models and calculations. The unique skills of the department are in high demand in IT innovation and production.

DTU is a technical university providing internationally leading research, education, innovation and public service. Our staff of 5,000 advance science and technology to create innovative solutions that meet the demands of society; and our 7,000 students are educated to address the technological challenges of the future. DTU is an independent academic university collaborating globally with business, industry, government, and public agencies.

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