[MARMAM] In Memoriam, Thomas F. Norris, 1965-2020

[Thomas Jefferson]

[MARMAM] Job opportunity: marine mammal density modeler

[Jason Roberts]

Dear all,

The Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab (MGEL) at Duke University seeks a 
Postdoctoral Associate for immediate hire to model spatiotemporal distributions 
of marine species, particularly marine mammals. Directed by Dr. Patrick Halpin, 
MGEL is a leader in applying geospatial technologies to problems in marine 
ecology, resource management and ocean conservation. We are seeking a highly 
motivated individual who is interested in modeling marine species distributions 
for immediate use in U.S. management actions. This is a two-year position, with 
extension beyond that contingent upon evaluation and funding.  The position is 
located at Duke University in Durham, NC, with the option to re-locate to the 
Duke University Marine Lab in Beaufort, NC. Salary commensurate with 
degree/experience.

Job title: Postdoctoral Associate or Research Scientist
Posting duration: Through October 31, 2020 or until filled
Begin date: November 1, 2020 or as soon as filled

Occupational Summary:

The successful candidate will join a small team that models spatiotemporal 
distributions of marine species and applies the results to management problems 
throughout the world.  The researcher will be expected to travel to scientific 
conferences and meetings to present and discuss results of the research, to 
keep abreast of developments in the field, and to author and submit 
publications to peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Responsibilities:

The researcher will leverage knowledge and skills from a number of fields, 
including marine mammal ecology and biology, statistical modeling, 
oceanography, and scientific programming to model the density of marine mammals 
in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and/or Arctic. This 
will be done using distance sampling and density surface modeling methods with 
visual line transect surveys and environmental covariates. The primary focus 
will be on analyzing data collected by external collaborators, with specific 
tasks including: data cleaning and processing, integration of diverse datasets, 
fitting detections functions, creating models, and predicting density surfaces 
from those models. Additional responsibilities and projects may be added to the 
researcher's portfolio as time and mutual interests allow. These may include, 
for example, development of models for other study areas or taxa, development 
and/or application of innovative modeling approaches (e.g. mo!
 deling multiple species jointly; extrapolating models to ocean basin scale), 
and development of models that incorporate multiple types of data (e.g. visual 
surveys, passive acoustic monitoring, telemetry).

The ideal candidate will be able to carefully reason about what inference can 
be gained through the joining and modeling of diverse datasets. This will 
include investigating how well models may be transferred to unsurveyed areas, 
seasons, or conditions and designing models to maximize transferability. The 
researcher will collaborate with team members and external partners to 
accomplish the diverse tasks required to complete the analysis. This will 
require alternating periods of steady collaboration with intense independent 
analysis. This position is best suited to those who enjoy statistics, coding, 
manipulating and visualizing data, and other quantitative analysis tasks. 

Required Qualifications

Academic credentials: PhD in ecology, biology, statistics, computer science or 
engineering, or oceanography with a strong quantitative analysis background, 
particularly in species distribution modeling. Specific coursework and research 
experience with marine mammals strongly preferred. Undergraduate coursework or 
equivalent experience in physical and biological oceanography is required; 
graduate-level coursework or research experience preferred.

Skills:

We are seeking candidates with both a mix of polished skills and a strong 
aptitude to learn new skills.

Communication
- Fluent in English (reading, writing, and speaking)
- Proficient in giving scientific presentations, with demonstrated experience
- Strong scientific writing skills, in English; record of peer-reviewed 
publications preferred
- Fluency in one or more European languages a plus

Teamwork
- Comfortable and competent working in a team on joint projects, both 
face-to-face and remotely
- Also able to work independently for long periods of time, with only 
occasional oversight
- Comfortable working on multiple projects simultaneously

Analysis and modeling
- Strong background and competency in mathematics (undergraduate calculus, at 
minimum).
- Strong proficiency in statistical modeling, including regression and 
classification modeling. Experience with GLMs and GAMs strongly preferred.
- Demonstrated experience with species distribution modeling and/or abundance 
estimation, including habitat suitability modeling, distance sampling, 
occupancy modeling, capture-recapture methods, etc. Specific experience with 
distance 

[MARMAM] New Publication: Image Rendering Techniques in Postmortem Computed Tomography: Evaluation of Biological Health and Profile in Stranded Cetaceans

[Dr. KOT Brian Chin Wing]

Dear MARMAM Readers,

On behalf of the Aquatic Animal Virtopsy Lab 
(https://www.facebook.com/aquanimallab) in City University of Hong Kong, my 
colleagues and I are pleased to share our new paper "Image Rendering Techniques 
in Postmortem Computed Tomography: Evaluation of Biological Health and Profile 
in Stranded Cetaceans", recently published in Journal of Visualized 
Experiments. The captioned paper is available here: https://bit.ly/2G8vAL9

Cite this paper:
Kot, B. C. W., Chan, D. K. P., Chung, T. Y. T., Tsui, H. C. L. Image Rendering 
Techniques in Postmortem Computed Tomography: Evaluation of Biological Health 
and Profile in Stranded Cetaceans. J. Vis. Exp. (163), e61701, 
doi:10.3791/61701 (2020).

Highlight:
>From time to time, we presented different reconstructed CT images in our 
>publication and facebook posts for illustrations. They are in fact generated 
>by various unique image rendering techniques. These images are not only meant 
>to draw the audiences' attention, but also provide solid ground for aquatic 
>animal virtopsy and clinical radiology reporting. Recently, one of our papers 
>regarding this important topic is published on the Journal of Visualized 
>Experiments. The related video is also published along as an audio and visual 
>navigation. We sincerely hope this key paper could help clinicians, 
>veterinarians and stranding response personnel worldwide to fully utilize 
>virtopsy for the biological health and profile evaluation of aquatic animals.

I am happy to provide a PDF of the article upon request. Please email me at 
brian...@cityu.edu.hk if you are interested, or 
if you have any questions about our paper.

I would like to extend my gratitude to readers of our work, as well as editors 
and reviewers for their contributions to this finished version.

Warm regards,
Brian Kot

Ph.D. in Diagnostic Imaging, B.Sc. (Hons) in Radiography, Cert. (RPC), Cert. 
(Virtopsy)

Visiting Assistant Professor
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences
Jockey Club College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences
City University of Hong Kong
cum
Research Fellow
State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution
City University of Hong Kong

E: brian...@cityu.edu.hk, 
brian...@yahoo.co.uk
W: https://www.cityu.edu.hk/jcc/staff/dr-brian-kot-chin-wing

Aquatic Animal Virtopsy Lab
Follow us at
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aquanimallab
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aquanimallab




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