<div dir="ltr"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">From: Juan Antonio Bonachela Fajardo <</span><a href="mailto:jabo@PRINCETON.EDU" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">jabo@PRINCETON.EDU</a><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">></span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Subject: PhD opportunity: Timescale interactions in marine microbes</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">We are seeking candidates for a fully-funded PhD scholarship to work on tim=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">escale interactions in marine ecosystems.=20</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">We aim to use diverse modelling approaches to explore the different layers =</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">of temporal complexity present in the lower trophic levels of the marine fo=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">od web. Thus, this project would suit a theoretical biologist, or mathemati=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">cians and physicist interested in biological questions. Applicants should a=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">lready hold a Masters qualification or a first class or upper-second class =</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">undergraduate degree.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">The preliminary starting date is October 2014, but application review will =</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">continue until the position is filled. Further details below.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">--------------------------</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">DESCRIPTION-------------------</span><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">-------</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">PhD project title: Timescale interactions in marine microbes.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Institution: University of Strathclyde, Glasgow (Scotland)</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Group/Department: MASTS Marine Population Modelling Group, Department of Ma=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">thematics and Statistics=20</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Supervisor: Prof. Michael Heath, Dr. Juan Bonachela</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">This studentship will be of 3 years duration with stipend and fees for a UK=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">/EU student. (Final funding arrangements under negotiation)</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Description: Marine microbes (viruses, bacteria, phytoplankton) are a key c=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">omponent of the marine food web and of the most important biogeochemical cy=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">cles on Earth. Because of their short generation time and vast amount of of=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">fspring, these organisms evolve in timescales that are similar to the indiv=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">idual's lifetime. Therefore, phenotypic plasticity (dynamic responses to en=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">vironmental changes) and evolution interact necessarily during the single-o=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">rganism life span. However, theoretical research typically study ecological=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and evolutionary matters separately.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">This project aims to study how considering these interactions may challenge=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> current predictions about the long-term behaviour of marine microbes. The =</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">project will use existing mathematical models, and develop new ones, able t=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">o account for these interactions and dynamics. Due to the highly nonlinear =</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">ecological relations between organism, stochasticity inherent to mutations,=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> and overlap between ecology and evolution, the study and analysis of these=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> models will require from sophisticated (and probably innovative) mathemati=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">cal and numerical methods. This project will be important to understand how=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"> the lower trophic levels in particular, and the complete marine food web i=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">n general, react to e.g. different climate change scenarios.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">Start date: October 2014.</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">For more information please contact: Dr Juan Bonachela (Juan.Bonachela@stra=</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<a href="http://th.ac.uk/" target="_blank" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">th.ac.uk</a><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">; jabo@Princeton.EDU).</span><br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">
<br style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px"><span style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">To apply: </span><a href="http://www.strath.ac.uk/admissions/postgraduateresearch/" target="_blank" style="font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">http://www.strath.ac.uk/admissions/postgraduateresearch/</a><br>
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