<div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: "Thomas Larsen" <<a href="mailto:tl@leibniz.uni-kiel.de">tl@leibniz.uni-kiel.de</a>><br>Date: Jan 8, 2014 3:46 AM<br>Subject: [ISOGEOCHEM] Ph.D. opportunity in plant-soil nitrogen cycling at Aarhus University<br>
To: <<a href="mailto:ISOGEOCHEM@list.uvm.edu">ISOGEOCHEM@list.uvm.edu</a>><br>Cc: <br><br type="attribution">
<div lang="EN-US" link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div><p class="MsoNormal">Hello everyone,<u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal">I would like to announce the following Ph.D position “Is dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) the key to plant-soil N cycling?” on behalf of my colleague, Jim Rasmussen from Aarhus University, Denmark. The deadline is Feb. 1, 2014. See <a href="http://talent.au.dk/phd/scienceandtechnology/opencalls/specific-projects/is-dissolved-organic-nitrogen-don-the-key-to-plant-soil-n-cycling/" target="_blank">http://talent.au.dk/phd/scienceandtechnology/opencalls/specific-projects/is-dissolved-organic-nitrogen-don-the-key-to-plant-soil-n-cycling/</a> for further details.<u></u><u></u></p>
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<strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Research area and project description:</span></strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Efficient use of nutrients in agricultural systems is essential to meet a sustainable intensification of the food production. Legumes add nitrogen (N) to soils via biological N2-fixation which can substitute energy demanding mineral N fertilizers. Increasing the dependence on N from legumes requires better knowledge of plant-soil N cycling to sustain crop production and reduce environmentally harmful losses. A key issue is turnover of complex organic N forms to simpler organic N forms, where the flow through the higher molecular weight (Mw) dissolved organic N (DON) pools have been identified as the key process in the supply of N to plants from organic N sources. There is however at lack of knowledge of the mechanisms controlling the fate of DON pools in soil.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">The aim the project is to qualify and quantify the role of higher Mw DON in plant-soil N cycling in cultivated ecosystems. In special focus is to elucidate the quantitative importance of plant organic N uptake, the role of different organic N sources on the flow through the DON pools, and biotic and abiotic factors affecting the availability of N for plant uptake. This is achieved by experimentation with double-labeling (</span><sup><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">15</span></sup><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">N and</span><span><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"> </span></span><sup><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">13</span></sup><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">C) of white clover followed by investigations of the fate and chemical nature of enriched DON in plant-soil systems by among other compound-specific isotope analysis. The PhD-study within the project will have a special focus the specific fate of DON fractions and the biotic drivers for DON cycling.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Specifically the PhD-fellow is to investigate:<br>
(i) the flow through the DON pools in soil, and<br>(ii) microbial actors and activity in the treated soils.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px">
<span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Experimentally this is expected to include methods such as DON fractionation, compound-specific isotope analysis, and investigations of biomarkers representing active microbial groups. Thus, the PhD-fellow will be involved in experimental semi-field work, use of stable isotopes, and analytical chemistry to characterize biomarkers and DON molecules.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p><p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white"><strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Qualifications and specific competences:</span></strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Applicants to the PhD position must have a relevant Master’s degree (or graduate in the very near future – documentation for final thesis and date of examination must be enclosed in the application) or equivalent. The applicants shall preferably have a background in one or more of the following topic areas:<u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">- analytical chemistry applied in biological systems,<br>
- environmental chemistry, or<br>- agronomy/biology with a focus on plant-soil-microbial interactions.<u></u><u></u></span></p><p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px">
<strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Place of Employment and Place of Work:</span></strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">The place of employment is Aarhus University (AU) and the place of work is the Department of Agroecology at Research Centre Foulum, Blichers Allé 20, DK-8830 Tjele, Denmark. <u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Contacts:</span></strong><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
<p style="margin-right:0cm;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0cm;line-height:12.4pt;background:white;word-spacing:0px"><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121">Applicants seeking further information are invited to contact: Jim Rasmussen:</span><span><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"> </span></span><span style="font-size:8.5pt;font-family:"Verdana","sans-serif";color:#212121"><a href="mailto:jim.rasmussen@agrsci.dk" target="_blank"><span style="color:#073d78">jim.rasmussen@agrsci.dk</span></a>.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<span style="font-size:10.0pt">Thomas Larsen, PhD</span><u></u><u></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-autospace:none"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Leibniz-Labor, CAU, Max-Eyth-Str. 11-13, 24118 Kiel, Germany. Office: <a href="tel:%2B49-431-880-3896" value="+494318803896" target="_blank">+49-431-880-3896</a>, Mobile: <a href="tel:%2B49-177-829-3691" value="+491778293691" target="_blank">+49-177-829-3691</a></span><span lang="DA"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
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