Missions

The post-doc will conduct neurophysiological experiments in healthy humans to record from peripheral nerves, then stimulate the skin with different surfaces and objects to quantify the neuronal responses to naturalistic touch. This will be coupled with perceptual psychophysical experiments that measure the subjective experience of the touch (e.g. pleasantness, intensity).

Activités

The post-doc will recruit healthy participants to take part in neurophysiological experiments, where they will make recordings from the peripheral nerves of the arm and/or leg. Tactile stimuli like drops of water, creams, and different surfaces will be applied to the skin and the neuronal responses measured. The post-doc will analyze the responses and summarize the findings in papers. Accompanying this, they will also perform similar psychophysical experiments to determine the perceptual experience of the different types of touch, including analyzing these data and writing it up as papers.

Compétences

- Knowledge: Basics of neuroscience, particularly sensory physiology
- Skills: Conducting electrophysiological experiments
- Soft skills: Good interpersonal skills, teamwork, patience, and rigor

Contexte de travail

The person will be based at the Centre for Research in Psychology and Neuroscience (CRPN), which is situated on the St Charles Campus in Marseille. They will be in the SomatoSense team, which works on peripheral and central mechanisms in the encoding and interpretation of touch.

Contraintes et risques

No foreseen constraints or risks