The consortium Emergence at all Scales is the national flag-carrier of the NWA route 2 game changer Dutch Institute for Emergent Phenomena (d-iep.org). EAAS combines 8 Dutch and 1 Ukrainian university as well as Statistics Netherlands (CBS) in an interdisciplinary and collaborative endeavour aimed at understanding emergent phenomena across scales, combining multiple fields including physics, mathematics, astronomy, history & philosophy of science, and social science. Its approach to societal engagement throughout the project’s 5-year lifetime is equally interdisciplinary, with a wide variety of activities ranging from art/science programmes, large scale science festivals, citizen science and educational initiatives at various levels. EAAS is hiring a total of 20 PhD/postdoc scientists to join the team, and our project/group leaders share the ambition of gender parity in hires across EAAS.
Within this context we invite interested candidates to apply for the PhD/PD position, and work on the sub-project `Emergence of irreversibility and the arrow of time'. We particularly encourage women and candidates from other under-represented groups to apply.
The topic of this PhD project revolves around the concepts of `reversible and irreversible behaviour'. Some phenomena in the real world are `reversible': for instance, a video of the solar system can be run forward and backward, and the two both look reasonable. Other phenomena are `irreversible': a video of an ice cream melting can not be reversed without this being obvious to any human observer. The ice cream has an `arrow of time' that points clearly in one direction.
This distinction becomes an interesting question when one realizes that microscopic physics (e.g. quantum mechanics) is reversible, while macroscopic physics (the ice cream) often is not; how is this compatible with `macroscopic' and `microscopic' being in the eye of the observer, the human being? While Boltzmann was the first to address this, and this question has raised much discussion since, many aspects are still unresolved.
In this PhD project we will build on recent developments around algorithmic (Kolmogorov) randomness to understand the emergence of the arrow of time in a more fundamental manner. We will combine this with theory and ideas from partial differential equations and stochastic processes; in the process of your PhD you will learn about all these fields (and more).
You will be employed by and primarily be located at TU/e, specifically within its Center for Analysis, Scientific Computing, and Applications (CASA, https://casa.win.tue.nl/home/), which is part of the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. Moreover, you will benefit from the Emergence at all Scales (EAAS) consortium, which combines interdisciplinary collaborations across fields and geographical locations within the Netherlands, and offers you the opportunity to acquire skills by participating in science communication activities, interacting with public audiences, and taking part in a pilot programme where experience can be acquired in high-school science teaching. In the context of EAAS you will be supervised by Mark Peletier (TU/e), Klaas Landsman (RU), Frank Redig (DIAM, TU Delft), and Erik Verlinde (UvA), with associated embeddings in the Dutch Institute for Emergent Phenomena (DIEP, https://www.d-iep.org/diep-uva) at the UvA and the Radboud Center for Natural Philosophy (RCNP, https://rcnp.science.ru.nl/index.html) at the RU.
A meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. In addition, we offer you:
About us
Eindhoven University of Technology is an internationally top-ranking university in the Netherlands that combines scientific curiosity with a hands-on attitude. Our spirit of collaboration translates into an open culture and a top-five position in collaborating with advanced industries. Fundamental knowledge enables us to design solutions for the highly complex problems of today and tomorrow.
Curious to hear more about what it’s like as a PhD candidate at TU/e? Please view the video.
Information
Do you recognize yourself in this profile and would you like to know more?
Please contact the hiring manager Mark Peletier at m.a.peletier@tue.nl and https://mpeletie.win.tue.nl/.
Visit our website for more information about the application process or the conditions of employment. You can also contact HR Services at HRServices.MCS@tue.nl.
Are you inspired and would like to know more about working at TU/e? Please visit our career page.
Application
We invite you to submit a complete application by using the apply button.
The application should include a:
We look forward to receiving your application and will screen it as soon as possible. The vacancy will remain open until the position is filled.