Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Not-for-profit UARC delivering national security research

Data Scientist New Grad - Computer Scientist, Decision Systems

Full-TimeDeadline 9/4/27
$105k - $245k/yr

+ Bonus + Sign-on bonus + Relocation benefits + Locality allowance + Discretionary performance payments

Entry
PhD
Laurel, MD, USA
In Person
No H1B Sponsorship
US Citizenship, US Top Secret Clearance Required

About the job

Requirements
  • Possess a terminal degree, such as a PhD or DEng, in Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Electrical Engineering, or a similar field.
  • Be proficient in at least one programming language commonly used in data science or full-stack development, such as Python, Java, or JavaScript.
  • Possess written and oral communication skills, organizational skills, and relationship-building ability.
  • Be able to obtain an Interim Secret clearance to start and a final Secret-level security clearance.
  • Meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information, including U.S. citizenship.
Responsibilities
  • Design and develop high-performance, scalable, and resilient decision support systems.
  • Collaborate with internal and external partners to understand and translate system concepts into plans of action.
  • Develop proof-of-concept prototypes to explore new technologies in the context of sponsor missions.
  • Conduct research and analysis to move approaches from a reactive to a proactive posture.
Desired Qualifications
  • Prior experience as a researcher or practitioner in Generative AI, Adversarial AI, AI Interpretability, Deep Learning, Optimization, Natural Language Processing, Operations Research, Supply Chain Analysis, Software Engineering, Data Visualization, Data Engineering, DevOps or MLOps, Public Health Surveillance, or Health Informatics.
  • A record of communicating analyses of real-world datasets to audiences with broadly varying technical backgrounds.

About the company

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory

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Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) is a not-for-profit university-affiliated research center that provides solutions to complex national security and scientific challenges through technical expertise, prototyping, research and development, and analysis. It uses engineering, simulations, and studies to design prototypes and deliver analyses that support government and partner organizations. Unlike many commercial firms, APL operates as a non-profit affiliated with Johns Hopkins and focuses on mission-oriented research rather than selling finished products. Its goal is to provide practical, thoroughly tested solutions to public-sector customers by performing research, developing prototypes, and offering expert analysis.

Company Size

5,001-10,000

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

null

Founded

1942

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What believers are saying

  • R&D 100 wins on Aug. 6, 2026 validate health, comms, and manufacturing depth.
  • Aug. 7, 2026 Douglas-Bradshaw hire strengthens NASA civil-space execution.
  • Sep. 9 and Sep. 16, 2026 biosurveillance and quantum-sensing work expands addressable missions.

What critics are saying

  • APL depends on U.S. Navy, NASA, and Army budgets for almost all revenue.
  • FY2027 federal shutdown freezes sponsor payments and stalls mission-area programs.
  • Leadership churn across mission areas in 2026 strains continuity and retention.

What makes Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory unique

  • Sea++ on Sep. 22, 2026 gives APL dedicated on-water prototyping capacity.
  • APL spans defense, space, and health, unlike single-domain labs.
  • In-house fabrication, testing, and transition compress iteration from concept to fielding.

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NewsATW
Sep 24th, 2026
Predictive anatomical guidance system helps novice users acquire trauma ultrasound images.

Predictive anatomical guidance system helps novice users acquire trauma ultrasound images. Ultrasound is widely used in emergency and trauma care because it can provide rapid information at a patient's bedside. One of its most common applications is the focused assessment with sonography for trauma (FAST) examination, which helps clinicians look for signs of internal bleeding and free fluid in injured patients. Discover more Politics (Right) However, ultrasound is highly dependent on the operator. Obtaining useful images requires knowledge of anatomy, probe positioning and hand movements, making the technique difficult for inexperienced users to learn. Research published in the Journal of Medical Imaging describes a new system designed to help novice users locate the correct ultrasound views more reliably during trauma examinations. The research team, led by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, developed an anatomically guided ultrasound acquisition system that combines a subject-specific predictive anatomical model with real-time ultrasound imaging and mixed-reality guidance. The goal was to help novice users position and orient the ultrasound probe, even when prior medical imaging of the patient is not available. Body measurements guide probe placement. The system uses external body measurements to generate a predicted model of the individual's internal anatomy and aligns that model with the body. As the user moves the tracked ultrasound probe, a mixed-reality headset displays live imaging and anatomical information to guide probe placement and movement. The researchers focused on trauma ultrasound because the exam requires several standardized views that can be challenging for beginners to obtain consistently. To evaluate the approach, the investigators tested the system with novice users performing ultrasound scans. Participants used the guidance platform to locate and capture trauma-relevant ultrasound views. Their performance was compared with more conventional ultrasound acquisition methods. The study assessed factors including image quality, the ability to obtain the required anatomical views and user performance during scanning. Novices capture target views more reliably. The results showed that anatomical guidance helped inexperienced users acquire clinically relevant ultrasound images more successfully. Users were better able to identify the appropriate scanning locations and obtain views that matched the desired anatomical targets. The authors found that the approach could help bridge the gap between advanced imaging data and bedside ultrasound. By supplying anatomical context during scanning, the system provided users with information that would normally come from extensive training and experience. The results suggest that image-guided assistance may make ultrasound more accessible to users who do not perform the procedure regularly. Potential beyond trauma examinations. The work could have implications for emergency medicine, trauma care and other settings where rapid imaging is needed but expert ultrasound operators may not always be available. Training remains essential, the researchers note, but guidance technologies could help users obtain more reliable images while reducing cognitive workload during examinations. The study adds to ongoing efforts to make medical imaging easier to use at the point of care. As ultrasound devices become increasingly portable, systems that provide predictive anatomical guidance may help extend the benefits of bedside imaging to a broader range of health care providers while supporting more consistent image acquisition. More information. Robert S. Armiger et al, Development and evaluation of an anatomically guided system for ultrasound image acquisition in trauma assessment, Journal of Medical Imaging (2026). DOI: 10.1117/1.jmi.13.4.045001 Who's behind this story? MA in English, copy editor since 2021 with experience in higher education and health content. Dedicated to trustworthy science news. Full profile Bachelor's in mathematical biology, Master's in creative writing. Well-traveled with unique perspectives on science and language. Full profile Discover more Government Newspapers Campaigns & Elections Citation: Predictive anatomical guidance system helps novice users acquire trauma ultrasound images (2026, September 23) retrieved 24 September 2026 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-anatomical-guidance-novice-users-trauma.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Sep 22nd, 2026
Johns Hopkins APL expands maritime research capabilities with new test vessel.

Johns Hopkins APL expands maritime research capabilities with new test vessel. Sep 22, 2026 Katie kerrigan. Deploying the next generation of technologies for warfighters requires more than innovative ideas - it requires the opportunities to evaluate those ideas in realistic operational environments. To accelerate the development and transition of emerging capabilities, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, has expanded its maritime testing capabilities with the addition of the Sea++, a dedicated test boat that provides researchers with a flexible platform for on-water experimentation, demonstrations, and prototype evaluation. The custom-designed 36-foot utility vessel, christened Sea++ in a nod to the foundational programming language C++, is based near Annapolis, Maryland, and serves as a configurable research platform for testing maritime technologies across a broad range of applications. In addition to enabling rapid experimentation, the vessel reduces many of the logistical constraints associated with chartering commercial vessels, allowing research teams to move from concept to on-water testing in weeks rather than months. "Maintaining our maritime advantage depends on our ability to learn and adapt faster than emerging threats," said Vernon Parks, who leads APL's Sea Control Mission Area. "The Sea++ gives us a flexible environment to rapidly evaluate new ideas, reduce technical risk, and deliver more mature capabilities to our sponsors." Designed with adaptability in mind, the vessel is equipped with a modular electronics rack, internet connectivity, integrated lifting systems including an A-frame and movable davit (boat crane) for deploying and recovering equipment, and dedicated mounting points that allow it to be quickly configured for a wide range of experiments, testing everything from autonomous surface vessels and advanced sensors to communications systems, robotics, and other emerging maritime capabilities. In one demonstration, the vessel showcased how unmanned systems, including unmanned aerial and surface vessels (UAVs and USVs, respectively), could be used to enable agile logistics for resupplying platforms deployed far from sea. In the demonstration, UAVs landed on the Sea++ as it was transiting in the water, allowing engineers to fine-tune the perception, guidance, and control required for UAVs to land on a moving target. In another experiment, APL researchers ventured aboard the Sea++ to test the Vitals for Open-water Location and Tracking (VOLT) system. VOLT is a compact, water-resistant device designed for search-and-rescue missions. Worn beneath the collar, it transmits the sailor's position over satellite links and provides confirmation that help is on the way. "Sea++ provides far more than just a platform to conduct our testing," said Jason Tiffany, an APL engineer and principal investigator of VOLT. "Its onboard communications and connectivity allowed us to maintain real-time coordination with our Coast Guard partners and keep our sponsor engaged throughout the test. APL's captains went above and beyond to support the effort, from capturing aerial imagery that gave us valuable additional perspective to safely recovering equipment using the vessel's integrated lifting systems. Those capabilities helped make the test both more efficient and successful." Beyond accelerating access to on-water testing, Sea++ has expanded where and when researchers can operate. During one test, the team traveled more than 100 nautical miles to Cape Charles, Virginia, to collect data, an expedition that would not have been practical using smaller platforms. The vessel's enclosed cabin also enables testing in colder weather and more challenging sea conditions, providing a protected workspace for researchers while exposing technologies to operationally relevant maritime environments. "Instead of engineers staying on shore while we're out on the water relaying information back and forth, they can now be onboard to see the testing firsthand," said Nick Duff, a U.S. Coast Guard-licensed captain and maritime electrician at APL. "That immediate visibility gives them a much better understanding of what's happening and helps streamline both software and hardware development." For projects involving sensitive technologies, operating from a Laboratory-owned and -managed platform also provides greater flexibility to support secure testing activities without many of the constraints associated with commercial vessels. "Whether a team is developing autonomous systems, testing new sensors, or evaluating emerging technologies, this vessel makes it easier to get on the water, experiment, and iterate," said Adam Watkins, who oversees APL's Maritime Robotics Group and Sea++ operations. "By removing many of the logistical barriers to testing, we're helping engineers move at the pace today's missions demand." Areas of impact. Mission Area. The Applied Physics Laboratory, a not-for-profit division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu. Media contact.

Securities.io
Sep 9th, 2026
Tempus wins up to $9.5 million ARPA-H award for Heart Failure AI agent.

Tempus wins up to $9.5 million ARPA-H award for Heart Failure AI agent. Published September 9, 2026 Ren Ishikawa Bioinformatics & Precision Medicine, AI Research Agent Tempus AI, Inc. announced on September 9, 2026 that it has been selected by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to receive an award of up to $9.5 million to build what the company describes as the first autonomous clinical AI agent capable of providing safe and effective care to patients with heart failure. The funding comes through ARPA-H's ADVOCATE (Agentic AI-EnableD CardioVascular CAre TransfOrmation) program and will support development of the product as well as clinical validation of the AI system in a multi-center prospective study. Tempus said the initiative will produce an AI agent that functions as an extension of the clinician team and is capable of delivering and coordinating cardiovascular care without direct human intervention. ARPA-H's award directory lists the Tempus project under the title "TEMPUS ADVOCATE: A Tailored, Empathetic Multimodal Patient-facing Unified System for Cardiovascular Care," with a directory entry dated September 8, 2026. Proposed agent design and existing Tempus products. According to the company, the Tempus solution establishes continuous surveillance across both clinical data streams, such as electronic health records, and consumer-generated data streams, such as home-based heart rate monitors. This enables a platform featuring a patient-facing autonomous agent to manage symptoms, medications, virtual rehabilitation and scheduling, and the platform will connect back into the electronic health record to ensure documentation and coordination are accurate and consistent. Tempus said the proposed agent builds directly on its existing suite of AI products. Those include Olivia, an agentic patient concierge that centralizes and organizes multimodal data from clinical histories; Tempus Next, a care-gap software product that has already screened more than 2.7 million cardiology patients, according to the company; and a portfolio of three FDA-cleared ECG-AI products designed to proactively identify risk of undiagnosed cardiovascular diseases. In its own announcement of the performer teams, ARPA-H described the Tempus project as a clinical AI agentic system extending the existing Olivia patient health app, adding continuous monitoring with deeper clinical analysis when it detects meaningful changes in a patient's health. ADVOCATE Program structure and selected teams. ARPA-H announced the teams receiving ADVOCATE contract awards on September 9, 2026, stating that its commitment is up to $33.7 million in the first year of the four-year, $62.7 million program. Tempus was selected in the program's TA1 technical area, whose teams will develop a patient-facing clinical AI agentic system capable of autonomously supporting patients with heart failure between healthcare visits and escalating to the human care team. TA1 performers must submit an FDA-authorization package for the product within 24 months of contract award, according to ARPA-H. The other TA1 performers are Atman Health, which is developing a clinical AI agentic system built on an evidence-based clinical decision engine with large language models behind a voice-first interface that adjusts on the fly to ask each patient the diagnostic questions most likely to be useful, and Updoc, whose system separates conversational intelligence from clinical authority through a clinician-built rules system that validates every proposed action against approved protocols before execution. Stanford University is the program's TA2 performer, developing a disease-agnostic supervisory AI system that will continuously monitor the TA1 clinical agents after deployment, detecting unsafe recommendations and out-of-distribution behavior in real time. ARPA-H said Stanford's system uses a three-stage, compute-escalating pipeline of outlier filtering, rule-based screening, and a deep-research auditing agent that produces inspectable per-claim rationales. The TA3 implementation performers are Duke University and Kaiser Permanente. Duke will provide a multi-site validation platform testing ADVOCATE agents across five health systems and rural sites on both Epic and Cerner/Oracle electronic health records, amplified by the American Heart Association's national reach. Kaiser Permanente will provide an enterprise-scale deployment across 21 medical centers and more than 260 clinics, embedding ADVOCATE agents into Epic software workflows for heart failure patients and generating reusable deployment blueprints through shadow-mode deployments and pragmatic randomized clinical trials. ARPA-H said it has contracted with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory as its external evaluation partner to provide independent assessment of technical performance and clinical outcomes. The agency also said ADVOCATE will engage the U.S. Food and Drug Administration throughout the program lifecycle to develop the regulatory framework for this class of patient-facing clinical AI, and that selected performers will work with ARPA-H to establish shared evaluation standards, interoperability requirements, and reimbursement pathways. Rick Abramson, M.D., Director of the FDA Digital Health Center of Excellence, said in the ARPA-H announcement that patient-facing agentic AI is one of the most consequential frontiers in digital health and that getting the regulatory framework right requires close, iterative collaboration between developers, clinicians, and the FDA. More than 6 million Americans live with heart failure, and nearly half die within five years of diagnosis, according to Tempus' announcement. The company said less than 25 percent of patients with heart failure receive all guideline-recommended care, citing a JACC: Heart Failure study by Jing et al., and that nearly 46 percent of U.S. counties lack a single practicing cardiologist. "Heart disease remains the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, driving hundreds of billions of dollars in annual healthcare costs," said Brandon Fornwalt, MD, PhD, Senior Vice President of Cardiology at Tempus. "In part, that's because our healthcare system simply doesn't have enough people to deliver the care we know these patients need." On the ADVOCATE program page, ARPA-H states that more than 200,000 Americans die each year from preventable impacts of cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the country, and that the U.S. spends almost half a trillion dollars on heart disease annually while experiencing much worse outcomes than many similar nations. In its awards announcement, the agency said that if the program succeeds, ADVOCATE will save lives, reduce preventable hospitalizations, and generate an estimated $28 billion in annual cost savings across the heart failure population alone. "What we are trying to achieve with ADVOCATE is a technology that can serve as a clinician-extender: an autonomous agent smart enough to understand a patient's treatment needs, capable of providing certain care autonomously, and equally capable of engaging the clinical team when needed," said ADVOCATE Program Manager Haider Warraich, M.D., a practicing cardiologist. ARPA-H first announced the ADVOCATE program on January 13, 2026, according to the program's news listing. The agency said performers across the technical areas will work closely together to develop technical interfaces, safety benchmarks, and evaluation protocols throughout the program. Ren Ishikawa is an AI-generated markets research agent at Securities.io, covering Bioinformatics & Precision Medicine and the public companies, market infrastructure and investable technologies shaping that field. Ren Ishikawa monitors bioinformatics, multi-omics, liquid biopsy, precision diagnostics, clinical data platforms and biomarker-led therapeutics; validation, reimbursement, partnerships and public-company read-throughs. Coverage follows a data-literate, evidence-demanding, clinically grounded perspective, prioritizing first-party announcements, company fundamentals, competitive positioning and developments with material relevance for investors. Articles authored by Ren Ishikawa are AI-generated and reviewed by Securities.io's editorial team to ensure factual accuracy, source quality and responsible coverage. Content is provided for educational purposes and does not constitute investment advice.

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Sep 9th, 2026
Lippa named to lead Johns Hopkins APL's Global Health mission area.

Lippa named to lead Johns Hopkins APL's Global Health mission area. Audio generated using AI voice technology. Sep 9, 2026 The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, has named Tim Lippa as the Global Health mission area executive, where he leads efforts spanning warfighter health and readiness, biosurveillance, and technologies to counter chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high-yield explosive (CBRNE) threats. Throughout his career, he has conceived, developed, and transitioned CBRNE sensing, detection, and test and evaluation capabilities that accelerate technology deployment and operational impact. Lippa has spent more than two decades at APL, leading research and development initiatives and advancing the capabilities and technologies the Lab delivers to support national security. "Tim's leadership and expertise in the physical sciences, advanced sensing, and mission-focused innovation will help accelerate capabilities that strengthen mission readiness, address evolving CBRNE threats, and protect those who serve our nation," said APL Director Dave Van Wie. Lippa joined APL in 2003 and has held a number of leadership roles, including branch supervisor for electromagnetic sensing systems and physical and life systems. Prior to joining the Laboratory, he gained wide-ranging research and development experience spanning scientific hardware and instrumentation development for chemical and biological detection and medical applications, as well as the design of fiber-optic subsystems for use in telecommunications networks. He holds a doctoral and master's degree in chemistry from the Johns Hopkins University as well as a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Loyola University Maryland. Areas of impact. Mission area. The Applied Physics Laboratory, a not-for-profit division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu. Media contact. Amanda mantiply.

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Sep 8th, 2026
Johns Hopkins APL earns eighth straight selection to Fast Company's 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators list.

Johns Hopkins APL earns eighth straight selection to Fast Company's 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators list. Audio generated using AI voice technology. Sep 8, 2026 The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, has been named by Fast Company as one of the Best Workplaces for Innovators for the eighth year in a row. APL placed 26 on this year's list of the 100 global companies that are dedicated to a culture of innovation, selected from nearly 1,000 applicants. With this recognition, APL has now earned eight consecutive placements in the Top 50, making the Laboratory the only organization to achieve this feat since the award's inception in 2019 - and one of only two companies to have been named to the list every year. "This distinction is a testament to the culture of innovation and mission-focused spirit that we collectively have built across the Laboratory," said APL Director Dave Van Wie. "Our exceptional staff is focused on delivering the high-impact breakthroughs and capabilities that are at the core of APL's commitment to strengthening our nation's security in an increasingly complex world." Through significant internal investments in research and development, deep staff expertise, cross-domain collaborations, and specialized laboratories and tools, APL provides researchers and teams with the resources and spaces necessary to explore emerging concepts, mature promising technologies, and transition capabilities to the government. Developed in collaboration with Accenture, Fast Company's Best Workplaces for Innovators list ranks 100 winning organizations in various industries - from technology to healthcare to marketing, among others. The Lab has previously appeared on Fast Company lists of top innovative companies for breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, space science, robotics and autonomy, healthcare, and more. A total of 11 APL innovations have been honored with Fast Company World Changing Idea awards, including APL's Augmented Reality for Lifesaving Trauma Care recognized this year. APL was also named one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies of 2026, for developing cybersecurity tools that help protect industrial control systems supporting essential services such as electricity, water, and transportation. Let's solve the nation's challenges together. The Applied Physics Laboratory, a not-for-profit division of The Johns Hopkins University, meets critical national challenges through the innovative application of science and technology. For more information, visit www.jhuapl.edu. Media contact. Katie kerrigan.