A PhD assistantship is available at the University of Texas at Arlington in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex to study the effects of micro- and macronutrient limitation on benthic algae in streams, starting as early as spring of 2011. The position is funded by the Norman Hackerman Advanced Research Program and provides a competitive stipend and tuition waiver. The prospective student will conduct research in state-of-the art facilities housing artificial streams, a water chemistry autoanalyzer, and light and confocal microscopes with digital imaging. He/she will interact with a post-doc and a PhD student, involved in this and other projects, as well as with a diverse and international group of graduate students in the Biology Department.
This research will test experimentally two theories developed recently in the lab, e.g. PNAS 2008, 105: 9663-9667 and Ecology 2010, 91: 36-41. The first theory proposes that biodiversity in the three-dimensional algal biofilm scales positively with the number of resources at high supply, which opposes nearly 80 years of ecological theory and numerous observations in spatially simpler systems, such as grasslands and phytoplankton. The second theory builds on over 20 years of extensive oceanographic research, showing that iron limits phytoplankton growth in 40% of the world's ocean. This theory suggests that iron limitation is not restricted to oceans but reduces algal biodiversity in streams as well. In testing these ideas, manipulations of nutrient and light resources will take place in a controlled environment and the results will be analyzed statistically. A Master's degree in phycology, stream ecology or biogeochemistry is required. Knowledge in statistics is highly desirable. To apply, please e-mail a cover letter, a CV, copies of transcripts and GRE scores, and contact information for three professional references to: Dr. Sophia Passy Department of Biology University of Texas at Arlington, Box 19498 Arlington, Texas 76019-0498, USA phone: (817)-272-2415 e-mail: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> web: http://www.uta.edu/biology/passy/
