Postdoc position (2-3 years, 0.8-1.0 FTE)

The project and its Principle Investigator Prof. Marie Safar Postma home base is the department of Computational Cognitive Science at the Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Science.

The postdoc’s primary responsibility will be to contribute to work package 4 of the project that concerns the Ethical, legal, and societal framework for Human Swarm Teaming (HST). Collaborators of this team are Prof. M.M.S.K. Sie (work package leader, department of philosophy), Prof. L. Peperkamp (NLDA/Radboud University), Mr. Dr. C. Cuijpers (Avans/Fontys), the Air Defence C2 Group, MindLabs. The main questions this researcher will focus on are the following.

How can swarm technology be deployed in an ethical and responsible way? What legal and moral frameworks are applicable to HST? Are these frameworks sufficiently tailored to the specific ethical and legal challenges raised by HST? Is the primacy of human control required for the moral and legal legitimacy of these kinds of technologies? Should it be? And more specifically tailored to this project, under which circumstances is it ethically and legally acceptable to measure human cognitive performance in HST systems and to use the results?

Main objectives:

• Provide an overview of the conditions and requirements under which swarm technology could be deployed responsibly.
• Determine the required role and meaning of human control and/ or appropriate human judgment in HST.
• Determine under what conditions human agents retain a sense of agency and responsibility when part of a HST.
• Specify the applicable legal and moral frameworks for HST, including how those determine our sense of agency and responsibility.
• Examine the properties autonomous systems should have to make them more acceptable within society.

Deliverables:

• Participation in the discussion on ethical and legal aspects of HST (two academic, peer reviewed publications).
• Clarity on the type of contrrol or judgement required in HST and a hypothesis on how this perceived by stakeholders and society (a report).
• Hypothesis on possible conditions of accountability and responsibility in relation to HST that will be discussed with ethical and legal experts and stakeholders (a report). 
• Articulation of several moral claims with respect to HST that can be tested on the broader public and stakeholders in panels and discussions organized at MindLabs (report, panel discussion). 
• Overview of the relevant regulatory framework for the development and deployment of HST (report). 
• Roadmap for civilian BVLOS first responder operations (report). 

The postdoc will primarily collaborate with the other team members of work package 4. The postdoc will also engage with the broader STEADFAST consortium and collaborate with the researchers on the other work packages to gain sufficient grip on the technology and provide input for the deliverables of work package 5 that develops roadmaps and training packages for the technology. The interdisciplinary and comprehensive approach within the STEADFAST consortium allows a broad understanding of the research theme and ensures relevant overall results. 

The STEADFAST project 
Situational awareness (SA) is crucial in disaster response and especially in military (special) operations, where real-time monitoring and fast decision-making are vital. Efficient and accurate SA in dense urban and natural environments can be achieved by intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, leveraging collective intelligence and capabilities of human-swarm teaming (HST). However, successful HST deployment is problematic due to a combination of scientific and societal challenges. The desired impact of this project is to enable faster response, better decision-making and more effective deployment of military and first responder operators and assets, thereby reducing collateral damage and minimizing casualties. 

For further information on the project see: 
https://www.nwo.nl/en/news/three-projects-on-collaboration-between-humans-and-semi-autonomous-systems-awarded-funding 
https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/current/press-releases/nwo-grant-research-swarms-small-drones

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher who satisfies the following requirements: 

• A completed PhD in philosophy and/or law, with a demonstrable affinity and knowledge of technology.
• A strong, promising track-record of international peer-reviewed publications. 
• Excellent speaking and writing skills in English, as demonstrated by published work. 

We offer a temporary position of 2 to 2.5 years (1.0 FTE) or 2.5 to 3 years (0.8 FTE) in a stimulating and dynamic interdisciplinary research environment. You will work in close collaboration with the project’s principal investigator and have regular team meetings with the other members of the group. The position will be ranked in the Dutch university job ranking system (UFO) as Researcher 3 (“Onderzoeker 3”). In accordance with the conditions as indicated in the CAO NU, the salary is dependent on the candidate’s experience and is set at CAO NU scale 11 with a minimum of €4.573 and a maximum of €6.209 gross per month, on a full-time basis. 

Tilburg University is rated among the top of Dutch employers and has excellent terms of employment, such as a holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3% (annually), an options model and reimbursement of moving expenses. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may qualify for a tax-free allowance. During the first 20 months, 30% of the salary will be reimbursed untaxed. In the next 20 months, this percentage drops to 20% and during the last 20 months, the untaxed reimbursement is 10% of the salary. The university will apply for such an allowance on their behalf. The Tilburg School of Humanities and Digital Sciences will provide assistance in finding suitable accommodation. The collective labor agreement of the Dutch Universities applies. Successful candidates must remain at least 80% of their working days in the Netherlands (as a requirement of tax and social security laws).

Tilburg University
Tilburg University is an inspiring university offering a stimulating and challenging environment for students, staff, and alumni. The university highly values authenticity, academic freedom, professionalism, and continuous development. In its top-quality education and research programs in the disciplines of the social sciences and the humanities, the university is committed to addressing equality issues in society at national and international levels. It does so by training people for positions of responsibility in society and by contributing to socially sustainable solutions. 

Tilburg University draws on a rich tradition which nourishes reflection and which also encourages the academic community's awareness of its philosophy in relation to academic discipline.

Tilburg University is committed to the value of diversity and, in that spirit, welcomes applications from underrepresented groups within philosophy and academia, including members of minority groups and people with disabilities. Information about the various measures Tilburg University has undertaken to increase gender equality, diversity and inclusion can be found on the Working at Tilburg University /Gender & Diversity page.

The Department of Philosophy (DFI) at Tilburg University is both an important center of academic teaching and internationally recognized for its research. It offers a lively, amicable and stimulating teaching and research environment. The department provides a supportive, collegial environment that takes the transition to new ways of recognizing and rewarding scientists seriously. Philosophical research at Tilburg is often done in an interdisciplinary framework.

For inquiries about the positions and the project, please contact:
Prof. Sie (m.m.s.k.sie@tilburguniversity.edu),
Dr. Cuijpers (C.M.K.C.Cuijpers@tilburguniversity.edu) or
Prof. Peperkamp (L.Peperkamp@mindef.nl).

The candidate should submit all of the following documents: 

1. a letter of application, in which you describe your personal motivation and qualifications for the position. Please include explanations of any circumstances that you would like to be taken into account when considering your application (e.g. impact of Covid-19 restrictions a few years ago, parental leave, etc.);
2. a CV, including the names and contact information of two referees. (reference letters will be requested only for shortlisted candidates); 
3. a short research plan explaining your potential contribution to the project (i.e. research ideas with respect to work package (max. 1000 words). 

Note for PhD students: your application will only be taken into account if you have successfully defended your PhD or if you can provide an official guarantee that your thesis has been approved by the committee and will be defended before the end of 2025.

The deadline for applications is before 16th of April, 2025 (07.00). We will inform shortlisted candidates, before April 30th, 2025. Interviews will be held on 16th of May from 10.00-14.00. Decisions will be announced before June.

Applications must be submitted online (see application button on the vacancy website of Tilburg Unviversity).