Post Doctoral Position: Phonetic analysis of dysarthric speech by speakers of different varieties of Italian

The Laboratory of Speech Technology Language and Machine Learning (STMLab) at the Kore University of Enna has a vacancy for a Researcher Fellowship in the recently funded Phonetic analysis of dysarthria speech by speakers of different varieties of Italian project. 

The position includes a stay at NTNU in Trondheim.

The project focuses on idiopathic Parkinson’s disease dysarthric speech, produced by speakers of two varieties of Italian that show different segmental (consonantal, vocalic) and prosodic characteristics. It aims to:

1. Identify phonetic features that impact on speech intelligibility and accuracy, separating variability due to dysarthria from features due to sociolinguistic variation;
2. Develop perspectives and tools for clinical practice that take variation into account.

We aim to achieve those goals by:

1. Collecting the first acoustic and articulatory corpus on dysarthric speech produced by speakers of two varieties of Italian;
2. Analyzing the phonetic features of two severity levels of dysarthric speech, taking into account b1) both segmental and prosodic characteristics, b2) articulatory information, as well as acoustics, b3) the phonological features of the linguistic systems of the speakers;
3. Realizing a tool based on both acoustic and articulatory data, aimed to orient and customize rehabilitation;
4. Implementing a dual purpose software (based on acoustic and articulatory data) for the objective assessment of speech accuracy/intelligibility, with regard to both dysarthria severity and the early diagnosis of dysarthria.

As a researcher, you will combine deep knowledge of speech technology and machine learning for heath-related tasks. The research will be documented in scientific publications in appropriate journals and relevant conference proceedings, and in Open Source software tools.

Work environment

The qualified candidate will be hosted at the Speech Technology and Machine Learning Laboratory (STMLab), Kore University of Enna, Sicily, Italy. However, the project is a joint collaboration between the University of Salento (Prof. Barbara GILI FIVELA) and University of Bari (Prof. Maria Luisa FIORELLA). The primary work will be conducted at the Kore University of Enna under the supervision of Prof. Siniscalchi, but the candidate will have the opportunity to spend up to five months at NTNU working with Prof. Giampiero Salvi and Prof. Torbjørn Svendsen

What we expect from you

• A PhD in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Machine Learning, or Signal Processing;
• Experience in speech technology, image processing and/or machine learning;
• Experience with PyTorch,  Keras, and/or Tensorflow ;
• Fluency in spoken and written English;
• Experience with Python and Bash Scripting;

What we offer

• Employment: Temporary Researcher / Assegnista di Ricerca
• Researcher for an initial period of 12 months, after which the performance will be evaluated. If the evaluation is positive, the contract will be extended to one more year.

Would you like to know more? For further information, please contact Prof. Sabato Marco Siniscalchi by email: marco.siniscalchi-at-unikore.it

PhD Positions