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Ireland - University College Dublin PhD Studentship in Environmental Microbial Genomics

A PhD studentship is available within the School of Biology and Environmental Science, University College Dublin (http://www.ucd.ie/bioenvsci/index.html). The project will focus on the isolation of novel anti-phytopathogenic agents from soil microbes using functional metagenomics. The student and a postdoctoral scientist will create and screen a soil metagenome library and assess the ability of clones within this library to suppress the growth of several well characterised phytopathogenic fungi. The candidate will preferably have good molecular biology skills and will be joining the UCD Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions group. This group use functional genomics, cell biology, proteomic, and screening techniques to identify antifungal organisms and characterise their antifungal activity.

The Project is part of a collaboration involving the research groups of Dr Fiona Doohan from the School of Biology & Environmental Science at University College Dublin, Prof. Alan Dobson from the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) at University College Cork and Dr Julian Marchesi from the School of Biosciences, at Cardiff University, in Wales. The postdoctoral scientist will be located at the ERI and it is anticipated that the PhD student will also spend a period of time at the ERI; the ERI are currently using metagenomic methods in a variety of environmental settings to explore the potential of microbial communities to provide novel products and products with biotechnological applications.

The Project is funded by the Irish Department of Agriculture & Food through the Research Stimulus Fund Programme. This is a three year PhD studentship, and it provides annual funding of €21,000 - €25,000 (to cover both fees and stipend).

Continue Reading October 6th, 2008

Ireland - University College Dublin PhD Scholarship in Development of Dynamic Yield Models for Conifers, Broadleaves and Mixtures

UCD School of Biology & Environmental Science
Scoil na Bitheolaíochta agus na hEolaíochta Comhshaoil UCD

PhD Opportunity
Development of Dynamic yield models for conifers, broadleaves and mixtures

The University College Dublin, the forest management research company Purser Tarleton Russell Ltd. and the semi state forestry company Coillte Ltd., have together, started a research project called: STANDMODEL – The Development of Dynamic yield models for conifers, broadleaves and mixtures. The project is funded by COFORD, the National Council for Forest Research and Development in Ireland.

The project is directed by the Project Coordinator and is a collaborative effort by University College Dublin, PTR Ltd. and Coillte Teoranta..

The Project Coordinator is looking for a PhD Student for this project for 3 years.

Background to the project
Until recently, forest growth and yield modelling in Ireland was carried out using British Forestry Commission Yield Models for Forest Management. However since 1999, Coillte has led a project to develop Irish Dynamic Yield Models. To date this project called DynamicYield, which is part-funded by COFORD, has delivered and launched a validated and working dynamic Yield Model for Sitka spruce, lodgepole pine, Norway spruce, Douglas fir and Scots pine. The approach taken in stand level dynamic yield modelling in Ireland to date has been to follow the state space modelling methodology, consisting of a multivariate extension of the Bertalanffy-Richards model developed by García. The species of particular interest for the STANDMODEL project are ash and Japanese larch, while models will also be required for other broadleaf species such as oak, sycamore, alder and birch.

Continue Reading September 26th, 2008

Ireland - National University of Ireland Postgraduate Research Opportunities in Earth, Ocean and Environmental Sciences

Funded post-graduate research opportunities at NUI Galway

The Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences (EOS) at NUI Galway supports 10 academic staff, 4 senior researchers, 6 post-doctoral researchers and about 30 post-graduate students who contribute to multi-disciplinary research across a wide range of topics in earth, ocean and environmental sciences. The Griffith Geoscience Research Awards (GGRA), established by the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and managed by the Geological Survey of Ireland, seek to attract early stage researchers from abroad and to encourage Irish researchers to visit international centres of geoscience research. EOS has been awarded > €3m within the GGRA scheme to expand its research in coastal and marine science and is seeking applicants for 2 funded 4-year post-graduate research positions, one each in the following areas:

PhD 1: The ‘Understanding coastal aquifers in karst regions’ project is concerned with integrating aqueous chemistry, geophysics and hydrogeology to establish the chemical variability of groundwater and the pathways connecting coastal aquifers with coastal surface and transitional waters along the west coast of Ireland. We require a PhD student with demonstrable experience in physical hydrogeology to acquire data necessary for the development of conceptual and practical models of recharge, storage and flow in karst regions of the Burren in the west of Ireland. The student will focus on submarine groundwater storage and discharge using physico-chemical parameters, calculations of transit times of water in coastal karstic catchments using natural isotopes, calculations of the flow-time distribution, quantification of event water to the total runoff and identification of ‘hot-spots’ in eastern Galway Bay. Some experience in modelling of groundwater flow regimes would be an advantage. The outcomes of the research project are congruent with the aims of the EU Groundwater Directive.

Continue Reading September 23rd, 2008

Ireland - Helsinki University of Technology Postdoctoral Job in Spintronics

A postdoctoral position is available in the Nanomagnetism and Spin Electronics group at the Helsinki University of Technology. Researchers with the following expertise / background are encouraged to apply:

1. lithography of micro- and nanodevices,
2. magnetic/piezoelectric imaging techniques (MFM/PFM/optical) or
3. sensitive magnetotransport characterization methods.

The project concerns novel experiments on spin transport in ferromagnetic / ferroelectric composites and electric-field controlled magnetic switching in patterned nanostructures. The postdoctoral researcher will deposit multilayer stacks and characterize spin transport and magnetoelectric coupling phenomena at interfaces between intrinsically very different materials. The project is part of a broader effort to integrate new functional materials and switching elements in future spintronic devices.

The Nanomagnetism and Spin Electronics laboratory is located at the new Nanoscience Centre on the campus of the Helsinki University of Technology. The research group actively participates in the National Microscopy Centre of Finland and Micronova, a state-of-the-art clean room facility for the fabrication of micro- and nanodevices. The postdoctoral researcher will have access to a new sub-Ångström transmission electron microscope (TEM), several scanning electron microscopes (SEM), and a variety of scanning probe techniques (AFM/MFM/PFM etc). Also available are a SQUID magnetometer, magnetotransport set-ups for low- and high-frequency characterization, and a magneto-optical Kerr effect microscope.

Continue Reading September 15th, 2008

Ireland - Trinity College Dublin Postdoc Fellowship in Consumption, Environment and Sustainability

Trinity College
University of Dublin

The Department of Geography, Trinity College Dublin (www.tcd.ie/Geography/) is seeking a post-doctoral researcher to work on a 4-year project in the area of consumption, environment and sustainability (ConsEnSus). The project is funded by the Environmental Protection Agency under the STRIVE programme (www.epa.ie). ConsEnSus is a collaborative project between the Department of Geography, Trinity College Dublin, the School of Political Science and Sociology, NUI, Galway, and the Department of Geography, NUI, Galway. The research will focus on four key areas of household (over)consumption that currently impact negatively on the environment and hamper sustainable development: transport, energy, water and food.

The position will start in January 2009 and will attract a salary of approximately EUR 48,000 including a 10% pension contribution.

Continue Reading September 8th, 2008

Ireland - University of Dublin (Trinity College) PhD Studentship in Molecular Biology

A PhD studentship is available to study helminth modulation of allergic responses in the Inflammation and Immunity Research group in Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland. The Inflammation and Immunity Research team is based in well-equipped laboratories in the Institute of Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin. The Institute of Molecular Medicine is a new state-of-the-art facility devoted to basic and translational research.

The project will involve investigation of the immunological mechanism that helminths use to suppress allergic inflammation (Fallon and Mangan, Nature Rev Immunol 2007). The student will focus on characterizing helminth immune modulating molecules and analysis of their function (Smith et al., J Exp Med 2005; Fallon and Alcami, Trends Immunol 2006). Applicants should have experience in basic molecular biology or cell biology.

Continue Reading July 20th, 2008

Ireland - University of Dublin (Trinity College) PhD Scholarship in Polymer Nanocomposites

Project Title: Investigation of the toughness of recycled polymer-clay nanocomposites for plastics recycling

We have a PhD scholarship available to work on Polymer Nanocomposites in the Department of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering.

The project, which is funded by the Environmental Protection Agency in Ireland, aims to enhance the toughness of recycled plastics using nanoclays and study toughening mechanisms of clay in polymers. It will benefit plastics recycling industry by upgrading their products and other plastics industries by providing more choices of low-cost raw materials. The successful candidate will receive training in Polymer Science and Engineering, Composite Materials, Ceramics and Physical Chemistry.

Stipend: EUR 16,002 per annum (plus tuition fees and travel expenses).

Continue Reading July 13th, 2008

Ireland - University of Ireland PhD Studentship in Valuation of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

The Department of Economics offers an opportunity to carry out doctoral research with an interdisciplinary team of researchers focusing in particular on the value of ecosystem services and biodiversity in managed landscapes in Ireland. It is part of an innovative project awarded to NUIG to undertake applied economics research into the economic and social values of agro-biodiversity in the Republic of Ireland. The candidates duties will include research on environmental valuation of biodiversity and ecosystem services and the methodological and theoretical issues related to this.

This is a 36 month full time fully funded studentship, to begin in September 2008. The studentship is being funded through the Department of Agriculture and Foods Stimulus fund and offers tuition fees and a stipend for 3 years (EUR 21,000 per annum). Additional funds are available for traveling to conferences and research visits. Successful candidates will be provided with computing and office facilities and will be joining a dynamic team of young researchers. The candidate will work under the supervision of Dr. Tom van Rensburg (Department of Economics, NUIG) and Dr. Salvatore Di Falco (University of Kent, UK) and in close affiliation with Dr. Chaosheng Zhang from the Department of Geography (NUIG). The candidate will work closely with another PhD student (ecologist) as well as with a team of Research Scientists, and faculty staff from NUIG. You can read more about the Department of Economics and this project as well as the ENRE (environmental and natural resource economics) group at http://economics.nuigalway.ie

Continue Reading June 25th, 2008

Ireland - University College Dublin & Teagasc PhD Studentship in Agricultural Economics

Rural Economy Research Centre, Teagasc & UCD, Ireland (Ireland)

PhD Studentship description
This project evaluates the economic costs and benefits associated with alternative management practises of Genetically Modified (GM) crop technology. Specific research questions relating to the following issues will be examined:

• a comparison of the costs of co-existence accruing to conventional crop producers and the potential benefits accruing to GM adopting producers
• factors affecting farmer’s attitudes to GM technology adoption and
• consumer willingness to pay for GM versus non GM food end products.

This study will provide valuable lessons for policy by deepening our understanding of the economics of co-existence
of conventional and GM crop technology.

Continue Reading May 28th, 2008

Ireland - Tyndall National Institute PhD Position in Physics of Nanostructures

A new group (Epitaxy and Physics of Nanostructures) was established in January 2007 at Tyndall National Institute under an SFI Principal Investigator grant. The group is led by Dr. E. Pelucchi. The research will concentrate on the epitaxy, optical properties and spectroscopy of site controlled Pyramidal quantum dots and wires [1] and on their extension to telecommunication wavelengths.

This novel approach to site controlled quantum wires and dots (QD) growth has been pioneered by Dr Pelucchi in the group of Prof Kapon in EPFL, using MOVPE growth on a pre-patterned substrate to achieve reproducible QD emission spectra with, for example, the lowest inhomogeneous broadening to date for a QD epitaxial field. The high level of growth control makes such nanostructures ideal candidates for studies and devices related to quantum communication/information processing (efficient single photon emission being a good example), enabling the achievement of atom-like energy states whose energy and electronic wavefunction can be engineered at the nanoscale level by acting on a few parameters, so that the dots can, in principle, be individually and unambiguously (optically and electrically) addressed and controlled.

Continue Reading May 12th, 2008