SFI | Postdoctoral Research Fellowship: Computational Complexity and Social Evolution

About the project

The Santa Fe Institute—a private, not-for-profit research and education facility—has an opening for a two-year full-time postdoc. We are seeking a highly motivated scholar with expertise in Computer Science and a desire to apply their expertise to analyze the evolution of human social systems from pre-historic times up to the present. This two-year position is part of a project inspired by recent results uncovering deep connections among information theory, energy expenditure and harvesting, and computation. The goal is to investigate the long-term evolution of human social complexity through the lens of computer science theory. This position is based in-person in Santa Fe, NM.

The project aims to model societies as computational systems, examining how they process and store information to adapt to dynamic environments while leveraging increasing computational power to extract more energy from the environment in order to sustain and grow. By combining insights from theoretical computer science, social science, stochastic thermodynamics and complex systems research more broadly, this work seeks to uncover how social complexity scales with population size, energy systems, economic development, and technological advancements. The research also aims to illuminate both historical transitions and pressing contemporary challenges, such as the societal impacts of AI and other transformative technologies.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with PIs Kyle Harper and David Wolpert along with other team members to advance this project through research, publication, workshop organization, etc.;
• Collaborate with social scientists to model social systems as computational processes;
• Collaborate with social scientists to apply theoretical computer science tools to develop understanding of how the intrinsic computational limitations of human social systems depend on the sizes, communication networks, technologies, etc., of those social systems.

Preferred Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Computer Science, Computational Social Science, or a related field (by start date).
• Experience with natural language processing, machine learning, or network analysis.
• Interest in interdisciplinary collaboration with historians, archaeologists, and social scientists.
• Strong programming skills and familiarity with handling large, diverse datasets.

What We Offer

• An intellectually vibrant and collaborative environment at the forefront of complex systems research.
• Opportunities to publish in high-impact journals and engage in innovative team research.
• Competitive salary, generous benefits, paid family leave, paid time off, modest relocation support and support for conference travel and professional development.
• The start date for the position is flexible, but with a rough target of September 2025. Applications will be considered as they are received.

Application

When applying you will need to upload the following:

1. CV
2. 1-page research statement
3. The names, email addresses, and phone numbers for three references

You may also email questions to Kyle Harper (kyleharper@ou.edu) or David Wolpert (david.h.wolpert@gmail.com).

U.S. citizenship is not a requirement, however, you must be legally able to work in the US. SFI will sponsor a J1 Visa for successful candidates. SFI is not able to sponsor a H1B Visa for candidates.

Source and application: https://santafe.edu/about/jobs/postdoc-comp-complexity