New positions
A PhD position on the Genomics of Southern Ocean carbon pump at the University of Tasmania (UTAS), in collaboration with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
The carbon fixed from atmospheric CO2 by phytoplankton in the sunlit parts of the ocean is exported to depth, sequestering it for decades to millennia via a process called the biological carbon pump. However, most of this organic matter is remineralized by bacteria colonizing the sinking particles. By the time particles reach a depth of 1000m ≤5% of the organic carbon remains. The Southern Ocean is an important component of the ocean's biological pump and the subantarctic zone (SAZ) is of particular interest due to its deep winter mixing and Subantarctic Mode Water formation, which supply oxygen and nutrients to the subsurface Southern Hemisphere (Rintoul and Trull 2001, Helm et al. 2011). In this region sediment traps that collect sinking particles have been deployed since 1997 (Wynn-Edwards et al. 2020), providing a direct way to determine what makes up the biological pump. This project will use genetic analysis of sediment trap material to shed light on the microbial taxa – zooplankton, phytoplankton, and bacteria –that contribute to particle flux and remineralization (Liu et al. 2020, Cardozo-Mino et al. 2023). Determining who contributes most to these carbon pathways is fundamental to predicting change. Microbes identified genetically from sediment trap samples will be compared to those identified microscopically from surface samples, to determine whether numerically dominant but small species or rare but large species contribute most to carbon export. The sediment trap sampling resolution is on average two weeks, which means that timeseries analyses may reveal what changes have occurred over the past 20 years due to changing ocean properties. Comparing sediment trap samples from the same timeframe across the three depths (1000m, 2000m and 3800m) will inform the vertical patterns of microbial community progression and may even indicate influences of alternative particle sources.
Supervisors: Dr. Robert Strzepek (IMAS-UTAS), Dr. Linda Armbrecht (IMAS-UTAS), Dr. Pauline Latour (IMAS-UTAS), Dr. Cathryn Wynn-Edwards (CSIRO), Dr. Levente Bodrossy (CSIRO).
Application deadline is the 1st of June 2025. If you'd like more information, please contact Dr. Robert.Strzepek or Dr. Levente Bodrossy .
A Postdoc position in ancient environmental genomics at the University of Copenhagen. This project will explore the relationship between environmental changes and human demographics, disease load, and site histories by analysing ancient environmental DNA (eDNA). By extracting DNA from various archaeological contexts, including soil monoliths and discrete samples from around Europe, the study aims to reconstruct past environments and assess their impact on human populations. The project seek to pioneer the use of ancient metagenomes to address standing archaeological questions in collaboration with researchers across most of Europe. Through advanced techniques like deep shotgun metagenomics, this work seeks to enhance our understanding of anthropogenic environments in Western Eurasia. Funding is for two years, start date as soon as possible, at the Centre for Ancient Environmental Genomics, Globe Institute, UCPH, in Copenhagen.
Qualifications & Skills:
- A background in genetics, bioinformatics or like.
- Experience with ancient DNA analysis.
- Strong analytical skills and an interest in interdisciplinary research.
- Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in an international research environment.
If you are interested, send your questions or your CV directly to Asst Prof. Mikkel Winther Pedersen.
A Postdoc position at the Krabbenhoft Aquatic Ecology lab in the Department of Biological Sciences (University at Buffalo). The prospective postdoc will work on an NSF-funded interdisciplinary project to explore rapid climate and ecosystem change in Southeast Alaska, by combining paleoclimate proxies and models. The position will be based in the Biological Sciences Department at the University at Buffalo and will collaborate closely with grant partners, including multiple graduate students, another postdoctoral researcher, and the four PIs (Charlotte Lindqvist, Jason Briner, Elizabeth Thomas, and Corey Krabbenhoft). Start date in summer 2025. Please note this is not specifically a sedaDNA position, it is addressed to paleoclimatologists and paleoecologists at large. The prospective postdoc will get to work with a fun-loving and exciting research team! Those interested check out the postdoc offer and directly contact Dr. Corey Krabbenhoft.