Cardiff University PhD Studentship in Psychology: Sleep and Memory
We spend 1/3rd of our life asleep, and the brain is very busy during this time. The neural oscillations of sleep have known restorative functions, and are also critical for memory consolidation and emotional processing. My laboratory studies all of these functions of sleep, and potential PhD projects include investigations into ways to manipulate sleep (called ‘sleep engineering’) in order to enhance all of these functions. Sleep engineering included manipulation of oscillations through auditory and electrical (tACS / tDCS) stimulation and manipulation of memory replay (targeted memory reactivation) in sleep. In my laboratory we are interested in enhancing sleep to improve health (for instance by counteracting the impacts of ageing which lead to reductions in deep slow wave sleep). We are also interested in manipulating memory consolidation by triggering the replay of selected memories in different combinations and in different sleep stages. This can lead not only to stronger memory, but to integration of new memories with each other and with existing knowledge, providing a basis for creativity.
Funding
This studentship consists of full UK/EU tuition fees, as well as a Doctoral Stipend matching UK Research Council National Minimum (£14,057 p.a. for 2015/16, updated each year).
One studentship is available.
As well as tuition fees and a maintenance grant, you will receive a participant allowance of £300 per annum, and conference funding (£100 in Year 1, £600 in Years 2 and 3). You will also receive a computer and office space, and access to courses offered by the University's Graduate Centre and become members of the University Graduate College.
Eligibility
Academic criteria: As only one studentship is available and a very high standard of applications is typically received, the successful applicant is likely to have a very good first degree (a First or Upper Second class BSc Honours or equivalent) and/or be distinguished by having relevant research experience in psychology, biology, neuroscience, mathematics, or engineering/computer science.
Students are expected to have good quantitative skills, including knowledge of a scripting language such as R, MATLAB, or python, high scores in statistics courses, and a demonstrated interest in quantitative questions.
Residency: This studentship is open to students of any nationality. Students classified as international for fee purposes have to self-fund the difference between home and international fees.
How to Apply
Consideration is automatic on applying for PhD in Psychology, with a start date of 1 October 2016 via Cardiff University's Online Application Service. In the research proposal section of your application, please specify the project title and supervisors of this project and copy the project description in the text box provided. In the funding section, please select "I will be applying for a scholarship / grant" and specify that you are applying for advertised funding from School Funding.
The deadline for applications is 1 May 2016 with interviews (either in person or by Skype) being held late May 2016 and decisions being made by 1st June 2016.
Cardiff University reserves the right to close applications early should sufficient applications be received.
Further Information
For further information please contact Dr Penny Lewis on LewisP8@cardiff.ac.uk
The successful candidate will have access to a wide range of state-of-the-art research facilities and resources, including 3T and 7T MRI scanners, EEG/MEG and behavioural testing labs, and high-performance computing cluster.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
http://courses.cardiff.ac.uk/funding/R2742.html