Job Description
Position Details
School of Chemistry, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences
Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,130 to £45,413 with potential progression once in post to £48,149. As this vacancy has limited funding the maximum salary that can be offered is Grade 7, salary £36,130.
Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to May 2027. Closing date: 14th April 2025. Please note that we reserve the right to close this vacancy early once a sufficient number of applications have been received.
UK and International travel may be required for this role.
Background
We are seeking applications for a 24-month Research Fellow position to work on Dr. Oliver Maguire's European Research Council Starting Grant 'Electrochemically Programmable Biochemical Networks for Animate Materials' and to support all activities in Dr. Maguire's research group.
Life's biological materials are animate materials, capable of adapting to their surroundings by actively changing in response to the environment. A key distinguishing feature of animate materials is their ability to autonomously make decisions over how to respond to stimuli. An example of an animate material is your skin: on cold days the hairs on your skin rise to trap warm air without your conscious thought. The ability of living materials to make decisions arises from biochemical reaction networks (e.g. protein signalling) in the material. The networks process environmental information and decide how to adapt the material in response. Artificial animate materials promise to be superior for many applications (e.g. soft robots, MedTech) compared to their inert counterparts as their decision-making abilities will enable them to leverage advantageous events into better outcomes and limit the damage from disadvantageous ones. However, currently, there is not a well-established route to fabricate artificial animate materials.
Role Summary
You will create novel chemical reaction networks out of redox-sensitive proteins and organic molecules that will make decisions in response to electrochemical signals. You will achieve this by combining detailed kinetic studies of enzymatic and organic reactions with modelling to identify the location and scope of the targeted decision-making behaviour. You will demonstrate the full networks under out-of-equilibrium conditions. You will work towards integrating the networks into hydrogels to create actuators which autonomously make decisions about their movement.
* To write papers for publication in peer reviewed scientific journals.
* Participate in and present at conferences.
* To support research within the Maguire group to solve problems, collaborate and innovate in scientific directions for the group.
* To produce regular written and oral reports on the projects; attend regular group meetings; give regular presentations to the group; proof-reading of papers, reports etc.
* To contribute to supervising research students, be responsible for installation and maintenance of equipment and training of personnel on equipment.
* Operate within area of specialism.
* Analyse and interpret research findings and results.
* Work within specified research grants and projects and contribute to writing bids.
* Contribute to generating funding.
* Contribute to licensing or spin out deals with demonstrated commercial success (such as revenues, asset or company sales, IP generated) and/or public understanding of the discipline or similar.
Main Duties
The responsibilities may include some but not all of the responsibilities outlined below.
* To work on Dr. Oliver Maguire's funded European Research Council Starting Grant 'Electrochemically Programmable Biochemical Networks for Animate Materials' and to support all activities in Dr. Maguire's research group.
* Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required.
* Collect research data; this may be through a variety of research methods, such as scientific experimentation, literature reviews, and research interviews.
* Analyse and interpret data.
* Progress the research project towards realising deliverables and hitting milestones.
* Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines.
* Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods.
* Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding.
* Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc.
* Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters.
* Contribute to writing bids for research funding.
* Work effectively with collaborators.
* Supervise students on research related work and provide guidance to PhD students where appropriate to the discipline.
* Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research.
* Undertake management/administration arising from research.
* Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration in the Maguire group.
* Promote equality and value diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.
* Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the project, the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader.
Person Specification
* Candidates must have a PhD or be near to completion, in Chemistry or a related discipline.
* Experience in areas such as reaction kinetics, enzyme/protein chemistry, DNA/RNA nucleotide chemistry, electrochemistry, hydrogels and organic synthesis would be a strong advantage (note, you are not expected to be familiar with all these areas).
* Candidates should be familiar with a range of different analytical techniques, such as NMR, fluorescence, UV-Vis spectroscopy, microscopy, mass spectrometry, HPLC (though expertise in all is not required).
* Interest in interdisciplinary research and willingness to learn new techniques.
* A successful applicant will have an independent and diligent work ethic with a keen interest in the project.
* High level analytical capability.
* Ability to write papers, deliver oral/poster presentations and communicate complex information clearly.
* Fluency in relevant models, techniques or methods and ability to contribute to developing new ones.
* Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively.
* Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes.
* Contribute to the planning and organising of the research programme and/or specific research project.
* Work effectively in a research team, including collaborative research.
* Ability to install and maintain a broad range of equipment within the group and to train other personnel on their operation.
* Co-ordinate own work with others to avoid conflict or duplication of effort.
* Ability to keep up to date with new developments in relevant research fields.
* Ability to work both independently and as part of a team, both as a leader and team member, on research programmes.
* Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day to day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.
Informal enquiries to Dr. Oliver Maguire, email: o.r.maguire@bham.ac.uk
We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy.
You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.
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