DESCRIPTION: We seek a person with strong technical and problem-solving skills and experience in ecology to oversee day-to-day technical work on climate chambers located at Duke Forest, near Durham, North Carolina. The chambers are part of a many collaborator, two site (Duke Forest, Harvard Forest), project to understand the effects of climate, and in particular increasing temperatures, on ant communities and the species and ecological processes that depend on them. The ideal candidate is someone who likes to tinker with equipment and solve problems in the field, works well with others and is well organized. This position will be 70% technician/manager and 30% ecology research assistant. Scope exists for the technician to develop his or her own research projects within the context of the chamber array.
Key duties and responsibilities include: (1) Maintain climate chambers (fix broken equipment, monitor equipment, deal with problems). This work will entail knowledge and comfort with electronics, plumbing, and dataloggers. (2) Be in charge of day-to-day activities related to the climate chambers and research therein. (3) Construct and lead the construction of new equipment, where appropriate. (4) Hire and oversee undergraduate workers and assist students and other researchers using the climate chambers in their research. (5) Assist with ecological fieldwork. Fieldwork will include a diversity of projects, from work with leaf-litter to the collection of millipedes or even fallen bird feathers. Salary Range: Starting at $30,000 (plus benefits), depending on experience. This position has an initial appointment of one year, with the possibility of additional two years of additional support available, contingent on performance. Funding is available for attendance at national meetings as well as well as for training, where necessary. RESEARCH GROUP: The candidate would work in the lab of Rob Dunn at North Carolina State University. The lab is part of a larger lab group (the Dunn, Gross and Haddad labs) researching diverse topics from climate change to the impact of corridors on animal migration and theoretical approaches to understanding the cascading consequences of extinction. The candidate would also work with the other PIs on the project (Nathan Sanders at the University of Tennessee, Aaron Ellison at Harvard Forest and Nick Gotelli at the University of Vermont). LOCATION: North Carolina State University, though possibilities exist for living in Durham or Chapel Hill. The position is based in the Department of Biology, a large interdisciplinary department with strong links to the research in the Genetics, Entomology and Forestry departments and also to researchers at neighboring Duke and UNC. QUALIFICATIONS: Qualifications: MS in biology, ecology, engineering (or related disciplines) + field experience. Hire should be able to communicate well and interact with other biologists, but also students, the public, and the climate chambers, which are also known to have a mind of their own. Applicant should have demonstrated organizational abilities. Familiarity with basic tools and carpentry and plumbing experience are very useful as are a knowledge of basic electronics and competence with low-and high-voltage wiring, soldering, and use of multimeters. Skills with Campbell Scientific dataloggers would also be particularly useful. Contact: [email protected]. Please send a CV along with your email.
