Create and release your Profile on Zintellect – Postdoctoral applicants must create an account and complete a profile in the on-line application system.  Please note: your resume/CV may not exceed 3 pages.

Complete your application – Enter the rest of the information required for the IC Postdoc Program Research Opportunity. The application itself contains detailed instructions for each one of these components: availability, citizenship, transcripts, dissertation abstract, publication and presentation plan, and information about your Research Advisor co-applicant.

Additional information about the IC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program is available on the program website located at: https://orise.orau.gov/icpostdoc/index.html.

If you have questions, send an email to ICPostdoc@orau.org.  Please include the reference code for this opportunity in your email. 

Research Topic Description, including Problem Statement:

An extensive body of work has sought to model the navigational modalities of human beings in urbanized environments by leveraging agent-based computational modeling (ABM) techniques. However, this literature has assumed simple travel distance cost-optimization strategies, encoded in the decision-rules followed by individual model agents (cf. the canonical Dijkstra algorithm). Recent, groundbreaking research leveraging anonymized en masse data collection has revealed that human beings rather employ more complex decision-rules in their navigational choices.

This project seeks to address the problem: how can we more accurately model human navigation to better inform large-scale models of human mobility in urbanized environments? The project will support development of novel computational approaches that more accurately reproduce real-world navigational choices now revealed in empirical data. Candidates for consideration will demonstrate deep competence in large-scale modeling of human mobility in urbanized environments, leveraging advanced computational techniques.

Example Approaches:

Empirically-informed large-scale agent-based computational modeling of human mobility in urbanized environments, leveraging research-grade high-performance computing resources for model development, testing and evaluation. 

Relevance to the Intelligence Community:

DNI Priority 4: Promoting expertise, data, science, and innovation. Drawing on external and internal expertise, developing new expertise, consistently promoting knowledge as a resource and underlying on evidence-driven insights to innovate.

IC STG Goal 4: Create the Future Operational Landscape. Find, create, and deploy scientific discoveries and new technologies, nurturing innovative thought, advancing tradecraft, and improving mission and business processes.

Identified IC S&T Needs addressed by the proposed work are:

• Develop/enhance theoretical concepts related to activity-based intelligence.
• Develop/enhance computational methods for analysis of geospatial information to detect anomalies.
• Develop/enhance computational methods related to the interdisciplinary field of human geography for discovery of complex patterns and processes.
• Develop/enhance capabilities to flag anomalies within massive data sets.

Key Words: human mobility, human navigation, human trajectory analysis, agent-based modeling.

Postdoc Eligibility

• U.S. citizens only
• Ph.D. in a relevant field must be completed before beginning the appointment and within five years of the appointment start date
• Proposal must be associated with an accredited U.S. university, college, or U.S. government laboratory
• Eligible candidates may only receive one award from the IC Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program

Research Advisor Eligibility

• Must be an employee of an accredited U.S. university, college or U.S. government laboratory
• Are not required to be U.S. citizens

• Citizenship: U.S. Citizen Only
• Degree: Doctoral Degree.
• Discipline(s):
  • Chemistry and Materials Sciences (12 )
  • Communications and Graphics Design (4 )
  • Computer, Information, and Data Sciences (17 )
  • Earth and Geosciences (21 )
  • Engineering (27 )
  • Environmental and Marine Sciences (14 )
  • Life Health and Medical Sciences (46 )
  • Mathematics and Statistics (11 )
  • Other Non-Science & Engineering (2 )
  • Physics (16 )
  • Science & Engineering-related (1 )
  • Social and Behavioral Sciences (30 )