A world leading research institute in the history of science, the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, is among the forerunners in the innovative application of digital methods for research in the humanities. To strengthen its digital research and benefit from the growing opportunities of digital scholarship, the Institute is seeking an expert in Digital Humanities in the role of an

IT Researcher (f/m)
(initially for two years)

As an IT Researcher you lead the digital aspects of research projects at the Institute, identify new research opportunities based on current developments in digital methods and conduct original research within your particular field of expertise.

Your Responsibilities Include:

• Collaborating with researchers on digital projects that leverage Machine Learning for Natural Language Processing, Text Analysis, Image Analysis and Recognition, among other common tools of the Digital Humanities workflow
• Contribute to the Institute's digital research infrastructure and overseeing the implementation of research services, APIs, and standards for data exchange
• Planning the technical aspects of research projects, developing and implementing digital tools using state of the art programming languages, and outsourcing software development to external companies
• Keeping track of current IT developments in industry and academia, evaluate and implement novel digital methods in all areas of Digital Humanities
• Collaborate on the digital methodology of research projects, conduct original research and initiate joint research projects with other researchers and external partners

Your Profile:

• PhD degree, or Master’s degree and equivalent research experience in an area relevant for the Digital Humanities (computer science, HCI, linguistics, information science, digital history, etc.)
• Interest in the history of science and prior experience in working in a humanities context
• Expertise in working with text and image analysis using state-of-the-art methods, including applications of machine learning
• Experience in software operation, system integration, API implementation and system architecture (Docker, S3, REST services, Linked Data Platform)
• Experience in managing projects and agile development methods
• Ability to communicate complex issues to both technical and non-technical audiences
• Familiarity with current development methods and ability to rapidly acquire new knowledge in relevant programming languages and software libraries
• (optional) experience in user experience research and user interface design
• (optional) experience with Asian languages

The Max Planck Society wishes to increase the proportion of women in those areas in which they are currently underrepresented. We therefore specifically encourage women to apply. The Max Planck Society is committed to employing more disabled individuals, and applications from people with disabilities are especially welcome. At the Institute, we attach great importance to the compatibility of work and family life. We support our employees through the family-friendly organization of working hours, including opportunities to work from home, and help them to find suitable childcare and schools.

Please send your application—letter, résumé, copies of qualifications, samples of your scholarly work (for example a publication), contact details of two referees—as separate PDF documents exclusively through our online application portal: https://recruitment.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/position/11960331.

Your application must be received by August 20, 2018 (23:59 CET).

Please note: we can only accept applications submitted electronically through the application portal.

The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, offers guest residencies of up to two months each. The objectives of the fellowship program are to support high-quality journalism in the area of the history of science, promote the public dissemination of topics in the history of science, and strengthen the dialogue that the history of science enables among the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. At the same time, the program offers scholars at the Institute the opportunity to find ways of enhancing the public communication of their research.

As a fellowship recipient, you will shadow a research project in one of the Institute’s departments and carry out your own research. You will be able to attend the colloquiua and workshops of the various departments. During your residency, you will be mentored by an MPIWG researcher and the Head of Communications. We expect you to offer an internal colloquium event on a theme related to journalism and science.

Remuneration for the period of the residency will be €3,000 per month. The MPIWG also provides desk space and the use of its library resources.

We welcome applications from the fields of print, radio, and especially online journalism. Your application should include a curriculum vitae, three samples of your work with relevance to the history of science, evidence of extensive experience in journalism, a brief portrait of your own journalistic work, a short outline (max. half a page) of your proposed research during your stay at the Institute, and details of your preferred dates (within the academic year 2018–19).

These documents must be submitted as single PDF files by July 31, 2018 (23:59 CET), via the following online portal: https://recruitment.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/position/11960330

Please note that we can only accept applications submitted electronically through the application portal.