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School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences

Computational analysis of chick vocalisations: from categorisation to live feedback

  • Supervisor: Dr Emmanouil Benetos (EECS)
  • Funding: Queen Mary Principal's Studentship
  • Deadline: 21st February 2022

The following fully-funded PhD studentship is available to start in September 2022. The successful student will join the School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science.

Project description

The assessment of animals’ emotional state and welfare is a central issue for behavioural neuroscience and ethical farming. Animal vocalisations provide a rich set of information on the inner state of animals and can be used to influence animal behaviour in industrial settings, such as chicken farms. However, there is limited research on using vocalisations for monitoring animal welfare, and on the use of audio technologies for automatic welfare assessment of poultry in industrial settings.

In this project, we will develop computational methods to automatically categorise vocalisations of domestic chickens, infer their emotional state, provide live feedback and identify stimuli that can improve animal welfare. The PhD project will build upon pilot work led by the supervisors on automatic recognition of chick calls using machine learning and signal processing methods. This project will lead to computationally efficient and robust machine learning methods and systems for automatically monitoring poultry welfare from audio, as well as will investigate research questions related to poultry development, behaviour, and well-being in industrial settings. Prospective candidates should be curious, self-motivated and have experience in one or more of the following: Bioacoustics, Cognitive Science, Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, Digital Signal Processing.

Funding

This studentship is funded by QMUL. It will cover tuition fees, and provide an annual tax-free maintenance allowance for 3 years at the Research Council rate (£17,609 in 2021/22).

The project is open to UK and international students. The higher fees for international students (including EU) may be covered for up to 2 candidates applying for the Queen Mary Principal's PhD Studentships: Environment, Biodiversity and Genomics.

Eligibility and applying

Applications are invited from outstanding candidates with or expecting to receive a Masters degree at distinction or first class level, or equivalent, in Computer Science, Biology, Psychology, Cognitive Sciences, or Electronic Engineering. In exceptional circumstances we accept applicants with a first class Bachelors degree who do not hold a Masters degree, provided that applicants can provide evidence of equivalent research experience or specialist training.

Applicants from outside of the UK are required to provide evidence of their English language ability. Please see our English language requirements page for details.

Informal enquiries about the project can be sent to Dr Emmanouil Benetos (emmanouil.benetos@qmul.ac.uk). Formal applications must be submitted through our online form by the stated deadline including a CV, personal statement and qualifications.

Apply Online

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