Senior neuroscience research lead

Berkeley, CA       ·       Full time

Jhourney is hiring an ambitious, talented neuroscientist to form our founding team and lead research on the neural correlates of altered states of meditation. Candidates can look forward to helping set up and scale a research program in collaboration with world-class scientists and engineers with diverse technical backgrounds. 

About Jhourney

Jhourney is a neurotech company dedicated to making peak contemplative experiences more accessible by (a) mapping the neural correlates of such experiences and (b) engineering applications to help people learn to access them faster (e.g. neurofeedback). It also works closely with The Berkeley Alembic Foundation, a research and meditation center committed to scientific understanding of meditation in Berkeley, California. 

The opportunity

This is a distinct position at the intersection of academia and industry. The neuroscientist will lead an ambitious study to map the neural correlates of blissful, altered states of meditation known as jhanas (e.g., Hagerty et al. 2013, Dennison 2019). This is part of a larger, multi-year effort to make these high-valence states, which often require hundreds or thousands of hours of practice, more accessible. We’ll use the neural correlates to explore interventions like optimizing instructions, giving real-time feedback (auditory, visual, tactile, or multi-modal), or possibly brain stimulation.The position offers:

• High-impact role: The successful candidate will be responsible for using consumer-grade technology to lead and execute the mapping of the neural correlates. They’ll play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the research, the team, and the company. We’re hoping this person will grow into our Head of Science.
• High-impact work: Mental health interventions that make these states more accessible have the potential to be of unusually high impact. Jhana training results in the practitioner developing an ability to induce a high valence, positive emotional state independent of external input. This has significant implications for mental health and wellbeing applications. 
• Access to a rare population: We have access to a highly rare population of unusually proficient meditators as study participants, and we have recruited meditators with thousands or tens of thousands of hours of lifetime practice.
• Exposure to industry and machine learning: Jhourney is a neurotech startup in Silicon Valley, and there will be ample opportunity to interface with engineers and investors. This position will work in close collaboration with our Head of Machine Learning.

Responsibilities

This is a senior role with extensive responsibilities. The neuroscientist will co-lead the study from start-to-finish alongside an industry expert in data modeling (e.g., developing and deploying ML models at scale). Responsibilities include:

• Selection, maintenance, and setup of EEG and related equipment. We are currently working with consumer-grade devices but are open to securing research-grade equipment. Strong candidates will see the use of the most cost-effective tools for the job, whether consumer-grade or research-grade, as an exciting and pragmatic part of building something that works, rather than an undesirable constraint to research
• Study designs – our current research has been planned sufficiently to secure funding for the necessary equipment and logistics, and received input from several world experts, but the neuroscientist will be expected to take ownership of and justify tradeoff decisions in the ongoing and future study protocols
• Study start-up, data collection and analysis, development of data pipelines, management of data, and development of code repositories
• Shaping effective advisory conversations with advisors and experts
• Designing followup studies, such as validation of the correlates and development and testing of neurofeedback protocols
• External presentations designed to solicit feedback and establish awareness
• Optionally, development of manuscripts for feedback and publishing

You’ll be a great fit for this position if you:

• Are optimistic about our ability to use contemplative practice to make significant breakthroughs in mental health and wellbeing in our lifetimes. 
• Are specific and scientific in your optimism – you’re interested in ambitious moonshots by default, but require well-calibrated evidence in order to get excited.
• Don’t just inquire for inquiry’s sake – you want to build something that works more than publish results in a paper.
• Have a collaborative mindset. Ideally, you can tell us about hard projects you’ve worked on with others in the past.

Location

The role will be in the San Francisco Bay Area. Data collection will happen in Berkeley, California.

Duration: 2+ years

The initial purpose of this role is to lead from start to finish the mapping of the neural correlates, which we expect to take 18 – 24 months. There will be ample additional opportunities afterwards. 

Qualifications

Essential

• Ph.D. in Neuroscience or a related discipline
• Five years of experience (or equivalent) with acquiring, analyzing, and interpreting human subject EEG data
• A strong record of accomplishment in their field, including publications, presentations, and/or patents
• Strong computer programming skills (e.g., Matlab, Python, R)
• Excellent team player with references: organized, communicative, able to manage and contribute to team-wide dynamics and decisions, independent and self-directed, etc.

Ideal 

• Experience, personal or professional, with meditation or contemplative practice
• Experience with integrated EEG data collection and analysis (e.g. EEG and fMRI, EEG and other biosensors, EEG and VR, etc.)
• Experience with real-time neurofeedback

Compensation

Jhourney offers competitive industry compensation and benefits. Compensation will vary based on non-discriminatory factors (e.g. qualifications, experience).

Equal Employment Opportunity

Jhourney is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer that proudly pursues and hires a diverse workforce. Jhourney does not make hiring or employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion or religious belief, ethnic or national origin, nationality, sex, gender, gender-identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, military or veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws or prohibited by Company policy. Jhourney also strives for a healthy and safe workplace and strictly prohibits harassment of any kind. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance and other similar state laws and local ordinances, and its internal policy, Jhourney will also consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

How to apply

We are accepting applications by email. Please send your CV, two references, and a paragraph describing your interest and most relevant qualifications to stephen@jhourney.io.