Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program is now accepting applications!

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Science is pleased to announce that the Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program is now accepting applications for the 2015 solicitation.  Applications are due 5:00pm ET on Tuesday April 14, 2015.

The SCGSR program supports supplemental awards to outstanding U.S. graduate students to conduct part of their graduate thesis research at a DOE national laboratory in collaboration with a DOE laboratory scientist for a period of 3 to 12 consecutive months-with the goal of preparing graduate students for scientific and technical careers critically important to the DOE Office of Science mission.

The SCGSR program is open to current Ph.D. students in qualified graduate programs at accredited U.S. academic institutions, who are conducting their graduate thesis research in targeted areas of importance to the DOE Office of Science. The research opportunity is expected to advance the graduate students’ overall doctoral thesis while providing access to the expertise, resources, and capabilities available at the DOE laboratories. The supplemental award provides for additional, incremental costs for living and travel expenses directly associated with conducting the SCGSR research project at the DOE host laboratory during the award period.

The Office of Science expects to make approximately 100 awards in 2015, for project periods beginning anytime between October 2015 and September 2016.

The 2014 program solicitation resulted in awards to 65 graduate students from 50 different universities to conduct thesis research at 15 DOE national laboratories. Detailed information about the program, including eligibility requirements and access to the online application system, can be found at: http://science.energy.gov/wdts/scgsr/.
The SCGSR program is sponsored and managed by the DOE Office of Science’s Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS), in collaboration with the six Office of Science research programs offices and the DOE national laboratories, and the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education (ORISE).
For any questions, please contact the SCGSR Program Manager, Dr. Ping Ge, at sc.scgsr@science.doe.gov <mailto:sc.scgsr@science.doe.gov>.

Congrats to (Dr.) Migun Shakya!

A well done presentation and defence from Migun Shakya (@microbeatic) today!  Presentation went well and if I wouldn’t have stumped him on the Ammonia oxidizer question would have been a near flawless defence!  Next he is off to the Molecular Evolution course at Woods Hole/MBL for 10 days, finishes up here in Tennessee with final revisions, then a Postdoc at Dartmouth.  Congrats!

Job Post: Ph.D.-positions in Biodiversity Research (Netherlands Institute of Ecology)

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) funds a large-scale grassland project “The Jena Experiment” (www.the-jena-experiment.de) on the relationship between Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning (Grant FOR 1451). On a 10ha field site in Jena, more than 470 grassland plots have been established where plant diversity is manipulated to measure the effect of diversity on multi-trophic interactions and nutrient cycling. Applications are sought for the following position:

Ph.D. position (PhD-TE-013060) – A short description of the position is given below.

The project is an international collaborative research effort of 11 universities and research institutes in Germany, three universities in Switzerland, two in The Netherlands as well as universities and research institutes in Austria, France and Canada. All Ph.D.-students will benefit from an already existing experimental set up and the interaction with other PhDs and researchers in an international research team. The ability to speak and write German will be appreciated but is not indispensable for candidates fluent in English. A full description of the project and more details about the positions can be found under: www.the-jena-experiment.de

Selection of applicants starts 10. April 2013 and continues until positions are filled. Starting dates depend on the position on offer. Applications – in a single pdf-file only – should be sent to the addresses given below.

Ph.D.-positions in Soil/Plant Ecology

We offer a PhD position in Wageningen at the department of Terrestrial Ecology at The Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW, Prof. Wim van der Putten), in close collaboration with the Soil Quality department at Wageningen University (Dr. Gerlinde De Deyn) and the department of Ecology and Biodiversity at Utrecht University (Prof. George Kowalchuk).

The research focuses on the role of plant-soil feedbacks in the relation between plant (trait) diversity and ecosystem functioning. Plant species influence the composition of soil biota and these influences have feedback effects to the role of plant species in plant communities and the ecosystem processes that emerge from these communities. Previous research has shown that plant species differ in the strength and direction of plant-soil feedback. However, the roles of different soil microorganisms (bacteria, fungi) have yet to be elucidated.  In the present project, you will relate the composition of soil microorganisms to plant traits in plant communities and consequent ecosystem functioning. We intend to investigate to what extent plant species create specific rhizosphere communities and how these communities differentially impact on plant growth. Candidates should have a MSc degree in soil biology/ecology, microbiology or plant ecology. We are looking for candidates with:

• good ability to think conceptually and quantitatively
• good knowledge of plant-soil (biotic) interactions
• experience with working with soil organisms
• affinity with state-of-the art soil molecular biological techniques
• excellent ability to communicate in English, both orally and in writing
• experience with writing scientific papers is highly appreciated
• good organisational skills and ability to work independently
• ability to work in multidisciplinary research teams

Contact: Dr. Gerlinde De Deyn, Dept. of Soil Quality, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 4, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands. Email: gerlinde.dedeyn@wur.nl

Applications: Please send your application with vacancy number (PhD-TE-013060), including a cover letter detailing your motivation for and expectations from this position, your CV including a summary of your past research, and contact information for three references to vacature@nioo.knaw.nl. The closing date is 10^th of April 2013.

Grad Student Positions Available: Lee Taylor’s lab in New Mexico

The Taylor lab has relocated from the University of Alaska to the University of New Mexico and would welcome applications to graduate school from talented students. UNM guarantees 5 years of support to accepted PhD students.

The Department will support one or more positions. Application procedures can be found here (the fast approaching deadline is flexible): http://biology.unm.edu/graduate/graduate-procedures.shtml

General information about the department can be found here: http://biology.unm.edu/index.shtml

Information about the Taylor Lab research program can be found on these sites:
http://mercury2.iab.uaf.edu/lee_taylor/ & http://www.borealfungi.uaf.edu/

Research areas include:
– assembly and function of soil fungal communities across arctic, boreal and desert ecosystems
– metagenomics of fungal extracellular enzymes
– ecological genomics of mycoheterotrophic orchids (Corallorhiza and Hexalectris)
– molecular ecology of mycorrhizal interactions of tropical epiphytic orchids

NIMBioS Graduate Summer Workshop

The 2013 Summer Graduate Workshop on Connecting Biological Data with Mathematical Models will be held June 17-28, 2013, at NIMBioS on the campus of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The workshop is co-sponsored by NIMBioS, MBI and the Centre for Applied Mathematics in Bioscience and Medicine (CAMBAM). The workshop features instructors from across North America whose research expertise is mathematical modeling in biological systems using real data. Some of the techniques to be covered include Maximum likelihood and Bayesian approaches to inference, parameter estimation, model identifiability, uncertainty and sensitivity analysis, and data assimilation. Applications of connecting data to models will come from epidemiology, ecology (including global change biology), evolution, microbiology, physiology, pharmacokinetics, and systems biology.

Graduate students from the mathematical, physical and life sciences are encouraged to apply. There are no fees associated with this workshop and most meals are included. If needed, the math institutes can provide some support (transportation, lodging) for Workshop attendees.

Dates: June 17-28, 2013
Location: NIMBioS at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Co-sponsors: NIMBioS, MBI, and Centre for Applied Mathematics in Bioscience and Medicine (CAMBAM).
Application Deadline: January 15, 2013

For more information about the workshop and a link to the online application, go to http://www.nimbios.org/education/WS_grad2013

New content posted

Links to upcoming meetings featuring Schadt Lab researchers are now posted to the ‘Meetings Calander’ page. I am particularly looking forward to attending the Fungal Genetics Meeting in Asilomar this year for the first time, where I am lucky enough to be organizing a session on Ecological Metagenomics with Betsy Arnold of the University of Arizona. I’ve heard from many people I respect greatly that this is a fabulous meeting, and it is surely in a fabulous location!

Also I have included a page titled ‘Projects, Sponsors and Links’. This includes links to some of the major projects we are involved in daily in the Schadt Lab, as well as links to the always important agency sponsors and collaborators. I have only done the easy ones so far (those that large projects that have their own web pages), but hopefully I can add some of the smaller (but no less important!) ones soon.

The ‘Job Postings’ page includes postings for various positions received from collaborators and others I have run across via mailing lists and other sources.

The ‘about’ page also has a new name and a small amount of new content.  It is now the ‘People’ page and I anticipate adding more information about current and past lab members as I gain permission, ambition and time to do so.