[ES_JOBS_NET] 3 PhD Assistantships, Forest Landscape Modeling

Tue Oct 14 09:22:33 MDT 2014

Date:    Mon, 13 Oct 2014 14:02:14 -0400
From:    =?windows-1252?Q?Brice_Hanberry?= <hanberryb at MISSOURI.EDU>
Subject: 3 PhD Assistantships, Forest Landscape Modeling

PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Climate Change, Drought, =
and
Insects
PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Fire Ecology
PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Forest Planning

1) PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Climate Change, Drough=
t,
and Insects

We are looking for a PhD graduate research assistant in the Department of=

Forestry at the University of Missouri to model effects of Climate Change=
,
Drought, and Insects on Oak Pine Forests in the Ozarks.  This position wi=
ll
be part of a team consisting of Drs. Martin Spetich (US Forest Service
Southern Research Station), Hong He, Brice Hanberry, and Wen Wang for a
project funded by the US Forest Service Southern Research Station.  The
objective of the project is to quantify and model oak decline in the Ozar=
ks,
forecast oak decline under climate change scenarios, and develop the inse=
ct
module of LANDIS PRO.=20=20
Qualified applicants will have knowledge and skills in modeling programs
such as LANDIS or FVS and computer programming skills (i.e. R, SAS, Pytho=
n),
as well as knowledge of forest ecology.  Applicants should have a M.S. in=

forestry, ecology, biology, or a closely related discipline, a GPA > 3.2,=

and combined verbal and quantitative GRE scores > 1100.  Position start d=
ate
is January 2014.  Salary is competitive and includes health insurance and=

tuition waiver.  Review of applications begins immediately and continues
until the positions are filled.=20=20
Please submit an application including 1) a cover letter describing your
interest and experience in these areas, 2) a resume, and 3) names and
contact information of three references, 4) copies of transcripts and GRE=

scores (unofficial at this time are acceptable).=20=20
Hong S. He (advisor)
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:Heh at missouri.edu

Or

Brice Hanberry
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:hanberryb at missouri.edu

2) PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Fire Ecology

We are looking for a PhD graduate research assistant in the Department of=

Forestry at the University of Missouri to model effects of fuels treatmen=
ts
on reduction of fire risk and restoration of oak-pine forests in Central
Hardwood Forest landscapes.  This position will be part of a team consist=
ing
of Drs. Hong He, Ben Knapp, and Brice Hanberry (Forestry), and Dr. John
Kabrick (US Forest Service Northern Research Station) for a project funde=
d
by the Joint Fire Science Program.
The objective of the project is to determine how strategic landscape
placement of fuels treatments can limit the severity of large wildfires t=
o
minimize fire risk and maximize ecological restoration of oak and pine
forests and woodlands. We will use field-based studies from multiple
prescribed burn plots to quantify the effects of fuels treatments on fore=
st
composition and structure and to parameterize and validate FVS-FFE and
LANDIS PRO. We then will answer four questions through simulation of the
following scenarios: 1) How does the amount and configuration of fuels
treatments across landscapes influence intensity, rate of spread, or
patterns of severity for subsequent large wildfires?, 2) How does fire ri=
sk
vary with characteristics of fuels treatments, climatic variables, and
environmental conditions?, 3) What landscape fuels treatment strategies a=
re
most effective at reaching restoration objectives for forest structure an=
d
composition?, and 4) How can landscape fuels treatment strategies maintai=
n
effectiveness over the short-term (<20 years), mid-term (20-50 years), an=
d
long-term (50-150 years)?
Qualified applicants will have knowledge and skills in modeling programs
such as LANDIS or FVS and computer programming skills (i.e. R, SAS, Pytho=
n),
as well as knowledge of forest ecology.  Applicants should have a M.S. in=

forestry, ecology, biology, or a closely related discipline, a GPA > 3.2,=

and combined verbal and quantitative GRE scores > 1100.  Position start d=
ate
is January 2014.  Salary is competitive and includes health insurance and=

tuition waiver.  Review of applications begins immediately and continues
until the positions are filled.=20=20
Please submit an application including 1) a cover letter describing your
interest and experience in these areas, 2) a resume, and 3) names and
contact information of three references, 4) copies of transcripts and GRE=

scores (unofficial at this time are acceptable).=20=20
Hong S. He (advisor)
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:Heh at missouri.edu

Or

Brice Hanberry
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:hanberryb at missouri.edu

3) PhD Assistantship, Forest Landscape Modeling of Forest Planning

We are looking for a PhD graduate research assistant in the School of
Natural Resources at the University of Missouri to work on a project
Forecasting Landscape Change under Savannah and Woodland Restoration in
Mixed Forest Ownerships. The candidate will test the applicability of
LANDIS-PRO forest landscape model for analysis of forest planning
alternatives, using the new forest-level data sets that were developed to=

support carbon assessments.  In particular, these data sets capture the
history of landscape-scale disturbances (harvesting, fire, insects, etc.)=

for each forest, as well as many other attributes both spatial and
non-spatial, establishing a basis for modeling the possible future
trajectories of outcomes of forest plans given the initial stand conditio=
ns
and probabilities of future disturbances.  The results of the LANDIS-PRO
simulations will be compared with the results of other models (both
empirical and process-based) on vegetation structure and carbon stocks.=20=

This modeling study will be done on a national forest to be selected as t=
he
study planning progresses.
This position will be part of a team consisting of Drs. Hong He, Drs.
Stephen Shifley and Richard Birdsey (US Forest Service Northern Research
Station).=20
Qualified applicants will have knowledge and skills in modeling programs
such as LANDIS and computer programming skills (i.e. R, SAS, Python), as
well as knowledge of forest ecology.  Position start date is January 2014=
.=20
Salary is competitive and includes health insurance and tuition waiver.=20=

Review of applications begins immediately and continues until the positio=
ns
are filled.  Applicants should have a M.S. in forestry, ecology, biology,=

geography or a closely related discipline, a GPA > 3.2, and combined verb=
al
and quantitative GRE scores > 1100.=20=20
Please submit an application including 1) a cover letter describing your
interest and experience in these areas, 2) a resume, and 3) names and
contact information of three references, 4) copies of transcripts and GRE=

scores (unofficial at this time are acceptable).=20=20
Hong S. He (advisor)
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:Heh at missouri.edu

Or

Brice Hanberry
Department of Forestry
University of Missouri
203 Natural Resources Building
Columbia, MO 65211
E-mail:hanberryb at missouri.edu
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