[Coral-List] Graduate student opportunities
Iliana Baums
ibb3 at psu.edu
Wed Nov 28 10:13:01 EST 2007
Graduate Assistantships (M.Sc. or Ph.D.) are available in the labs of
Iliana Baums and
Todd LaJeunesse at the Pennsylvania State University in the areas of
marine ecology and
evolution. Prospective candidates should have strong academic records
and some
research experience is preferred. In addition to laboratory bench work,
periodic field
expeditions are an important part of our research and involve collecting
and experimental
work using SCUBA often in remote locations. Motivation, self-discipline,
creativity, and
good interpersonal skills are essential.
Baums and her students work on dispersal, connectivity and reproductive
biology of
marine organisms, with a focus on tropical corals. Molecular tools are
used to address
ecological and evolutionary questions with conservation applications.
Currently, we
are studying the effects of climate change on dispersal in corals and
other reef taxa.
Research on conservation genetics of elkhorn corals in the Caribbean
includes
quantification of heritable genetic variation and the role of asexual
reproduction.
(http://www.bio.psu.edu/people/faculty/baums/Index.htm.)
LaJeunesse and his students work primarily on the ecology and evolution of
endosymbiotic microbes. Research is currently focused on a diverse
group of
photosynthetic dinoflagellates that live in the tissues of corals and
related taxa.
Molecular approaches are utilized to investigate the biodiversity,
host-symbiont
specificity, and geographic distributions in order to address questions
related to co-
evolutionary processes and to learn how these systems respond to severe
environmental
change.
Penn State (http://www.psu.edu/) offers a stimulating environment and
excellent
resources for ecological and evolutionary biologists through the Huck
Institute for the
Life Sciences (www.huck.psu.edu). PSU is a world-renown research
institution with a
strong reputation in the field of evolutionary genetics through both the
Institute of
Molecular Evolutionary Genetics and the Intercollege Graduate Program in
Genetics
(http://www.genetics.psu.edu/) many members of which belong to the
Department of
Biology (http://www.bio.psu.edu/home). The interdepartmental program in
Ecology
brings together 49 faculty from across the campus and has a very active
graduate student
organization (http://www.ecology.psu.edu/). Students may apply through
the Department
of Biology or through Interdepartmental Programs by Dec 31, 2007 for
admission in Fall of 2008.
For more information contact
Iliana B. Baums, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology
The Pennsylvania State University
208 Mueller Laboratory
University Park, PA, 16802
baums at psu.edu
http://www.bio.psu.edu/people/faculty/baums/
Todd LaJeunesse, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Biology
The Pennsylvania State University
208 Mueller Laboratory
University Park, PA, 16802
tcl3 at psu.edu
More information about the Coral-List
mailing list