STEP - Science and Technology in the European Periphery

ANNOUNCEMENT OF A PHD SCHOLARSHIP IN THE HISTORY OF MATHEMATICAL
SCIENCES IN INDIA

An international project on the history of computational methods in
Sanskrit mathematics has recently been awarded a three-year grant from
New Zealand's premier fund for research excellence, the Marsden Fund
Council, administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand.
(http://www.royalsociety.org.nz/2010/09/24/2010-round-press-releases/)

As part of the activities of this project, the investigators are
offering a doctoral study and research opportunity with the title
"Research Associate" with three years of full support for 2011-2013
for the completion of a doctoral degree at the University of
Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand (http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/).

The scholarship will provide for an annual living allowance/stipend of
$NZ25,000 and tuition costs for three years, and is tenable for study
towards the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the appropriate
department or program (for example, the Department of Mathematics and
Statistics, the History and Philosophy of Science program) on the
topic of the history of mathematical sciences.

The Research Associate will research and write under the supervision
of the Principal Investigator a Ph.D. thesis relating to the project
goals, preferably a critical edition with translation and commentary
of a previously unpublished text on Sanskrit computational astronomy.
He or she is also expected to assist (at a workload of 12 hours per
week) in the design, maintenance, and data entry for the database and
digital text processing resources created by the project investigators
for the study of Sanskrit astronomical texts.

The successful applicant will meet the following criteria at the time
of appointment:

* attainment of a sufficiently advanced level of study (preferably a
Master's degree) to permit completion of the doctorate within the
three years of the project.

* sufficient knowledge of and interest in some combination of relevant
fields of study, within history of the mathematical sciences and/or
Indology, to design and complete under the supervisor's guidance a
doctoral thesis relating to the project's objectives.

* initiative and adaptability to cope with tasks in the Research Associate
workload ranging from routine data entry to learning (with assistance
from the project investigators) the use of new software tools and
techniques for software design and implementation.

* fulfillment of the academic requirements for enrollment in the
University of Canterbury for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

With the approval of the Principal Investigator, this position may be
held concurrently with any other scholarship, award, or bursary,
excluding any such award requiring teaching or other duties separate
from this project.

How to Apply

To apply, please send a cover letter briefly describing your relevant
background and interests, a recent academic curriculum vitae, and the
names and contact information of two references.

Application deadline is 5 January 2011

Applications and queries should be sent to (pdf format preferable)

Dr Clemency Montelle:
c.montelle@math.canterbury.ac.nz
or
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
University of Canterbury
Private Bag 4800
Christchurch, 8140
New Zealand

Dr Clemency Montelle (Principal Investigator)
c.montelle@math.canterbury.ac.nz
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
University of Canterbury
Christchurch, New Zealand

Dr Kim Plofker (Associate Investigator)
plofkerk@union.edu
Department of Mathematics
Union College
Schenectady NY, United States