Collaborating research teams at University College Dublin (Ireland) and Wageningen University & Research Centre (the Netherlands) invite applications from outstanding graduates with a background in ecology, soil science, environmental science or a related discipline to undertake research towards a doctoral degree (PhD) in a project titled:
“Soil fauna functions in soil structure, water regulation and nutrient cycling”.
This project will focus on the biophysical and biochemical functions of earthworms in soil in different land use and tillage systems. Experimental work will involve a range of approaches, including mesocosms and stable isotope tracers to quantify the fate of nutrients; mini-lysimeters for hydrological measurements, and earthworm population and macropore assessments in tilled and non-tilled agroecosystems. Field work will entail research periods at a partner field site in France.
This is a unique opportunity for a highly-qualified candidate to study for a double-award PhD degree in an international setting. The student will be registered at University College Dublin for the first two years and at Wageningen University for the final two years of the project. The minimum qualification for applicants is a MSc degree (or equivalent 5-year degree) in a relevant discipline and certified English language competence (the project will be conducted through English).
The student will be supervised jointly by Prof. Tom Bolger and Dr. Olaf Schmidt (University College Dublin) and Prof. Lijbert Brussaard and Dr. Jack Faber (Wageningen UR). The gross value of this studentship is €24,000 per year for up to 4 years, commencing on 1st June 2011 or as soon as possible thereafter.
Application Procedure
Candidates who wish to apply for this position are requested to download, complete and submit the dedicated application form for this project, available at:
http://www.ucd.ie/
Further details are contained in this form.
Closing date for receipt of applications: Monday, 18th April 2011.
Recruitment will continue after this date until the position is filled.
This studentship is part of the EcoFINDERS Project: “Ecological Function and Biodiversity Indicators in European Soils” funded under the EU’s 7th Framework Programme.
Thursday, 31 March 2011
Ph.D. in Soil Ecology
Monday, 28 March 2011
Sunday, 27 March 2011
Donate your organs after your death
Miriam, D. and her mother in Uni Klinikum, Goettingen. We have a great respect for the child, her mother and father. They were so caring and selfless persons, they didnot want the lost of other happiness to gain smiles on their faces. Waited almost six months for the transplantation. (I am sorry, I didnot ask for their permission to put this photo here: source http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=6686944551882859122)
Photo: people who were transplanted different organs in their lifetime. Baby Miriam is quite grown up now! We wish all the best in their life. (Persons with transplanted heart, lung, kidney, lever are living with very healthy and respectful life). Lots of thanks to University medical Hospital Goettingen, Germany.
करीब तीन बर्ष अगाडि जर्मनीको एउटा सानो शहर गोट्टिङेन को अस्पतालमा एक्जना आफ्नो मुटु हटाएर कृतिम मुटु ले बचिरहेकी सानी नानी भेट भयी । उस्का बुवा आमा सित पनि भेट भ्यो ! आपसी दु:ख र पीडा साटासाट गरियो । उनीहरु छोरीको जीवन को लागि मानव मुटु कुरी रहेको तर तेस्को लागि अर्को तेही उमेर को दानी बच्चाको मृत्यु भएको हुने पर्ने हुन्थ्यो जुन हामी चाहदनौ भन्थे ! आफ्नो ह्रिद्य को टुक्डा जोगाउन अर्काको ह्रिद्यको टुक्डा टुटेको हेर्न सक्दिन भन्थे । कारीब दुई महिना जती को अस्प्ताल बसाइमा एक् दिन उनिहरु निकै खुशी ले उफ्री रहेक थिए, के भयोर भनी सोधेको बेलायतमा एक्जना बच्चाको मुटु पाइयो। २-३ दिनमा छोरी को शरीरमा यस्को प्र्त्यारोपण हुन्छ भन्थे । हामी पनि उन्को खुशीमा खुसी मनायौ ! २-३ दिन पछी दिन भरिको अपरेसन पछी उन्को छोरीको शरीरमा नयाँ मुटु रखियो । केहीदिन पछी उनीहरु तन्दरुस्त भएर घर फर्के । हामी पनि केही दिन पछी आफ्नो समस्या समाधान गरेर घर फर्कियौ ! हाम्रो कारीब २ महिन को उपचार र उनिको छ महिना को उपचार विश्वप्रसिध यस् अस्प्तालमा करीब करीब निसुल्क जस्ताइ गरी सम्पन्न भयो ! आज उनी ५-६ बर्ष को तन्दरूस्त भएकी छन ! अरु बच्चा जस्ताइ सामान्य देखिन्छिन !
मनिस प्रया सबै अङ हरु आफ्नो मृत्यु पछी अरुको लागि काम लाग्न सक्छ ! तेसैले आफ्नो मृत्यु पछी आफ्ना काम लाग्ने अङहरु जस्ताइ आँखा, मुटु, कलेजो, फोक्सो, म्रिगौला आदी आदी दान गरौ ! मेरो आज जन्मा दिनको उपलक्ष्य मा मेरो मृत्यु पछाडि मेरा काम लाग्ने कुनै पनि अङ स्वास्थ्य सस्था लाई दान दिने घोषणा गर्दछु ! शायद यो उधारो दान वास्तवीक्तामा परणीत भएको मैले देख्न पौने छैन तर पनि मेर आफन्तजनहरु लाई यस्को जानकारी गरयी सकेको छु ! र तपाईं हरु जस्ता शाहीर्द्य मीत्र हरुलाई पनि यस्को लागि अनुरोध गर्दछु ! On this 39th birthday of my life, today I declare about the donation of my internal organs to the needy people after my death, timely or untimely, with natural cause or with any accident! Let's join our hands to make this a very successful camapaign.
Read more...
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
12 PhD graduate research assistantships and post-doctoral research associate (Bonn, Germany)
Patterns in Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere System monitoring, modelling
and data assimilation
The TR32 is an interdisciplinary collaborative research center including the universities of Aachen, Bonn, Cologne and the Research Centre Jülich(Germany). The TR32 comprises a broad range of natural scientific disciplines and deals with patterns in state variables, and mass and energy fluxes in the coupled soil-vegetation-atmosphere systems due to complex exchange processes and interactions. We are currently announcing a number of PhD graduate research assistantships and post-doctoral research associate.
PhD students will be part of the newly established TR32 Graduate School.
-Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Soil Water Processes
1 PhD's position
-Characterizing spatio-temporal patterns of water and C-fluxes at field-scale
1 PhD's position
-The role of soil heterogeneity on field scale evapotranspiration:
3D integrative modelling and upscaling of root water uptake.
2 PhD's positions
-Soil moisture content estimation by inverting surface and borehole ground penetrating radar data
1 PhD's position
-Spatio-temporal variability of catchment properties and their effect on water, solute, and CO2 fluxes from the micro- to the mesoscale
2 PhD's positions
-Scale consistent two-way coupling of land-surface and atmospheric models
1 PhD's position
-CO2 and water flux estimation by four-dimensional variational assimilation of in situ and remote sensing data
2 PhD's positions
-Development and maintenance of two-way coupled Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere System
2 Postdoctoral research positions
Every PhD's graduate research assistantship is for a 3,5 years period and is remunerated with a 75%-TV-L E13 Position.
The postdoctoral positions are also for a duration of 3,5 years and we offer an experience commensurate salary.
Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the positions have been filled.
For more information, you are kindly invited to visit this website
www.tr32.de.
Sunday, 20 March 2011
Thursday, 10 March 2011
PhD position available in Soil Science
The Silviculture Institute at Freiburg University is offering a PhD position to carry out a research project on Development of methods to characterise plant available phosphorus in large scale forest soil inventories.
The position is anticipated to start in June 2011 and can be filled for three years. Payment is subjected to the German standard tariff (up to 65% TVL13). The PhD position will be integrated in the research group of Prof. Jürgen Bauhus at the Institute of Silviculture
(www.waldbau.uni-freiburg.de). The project is funded by the federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection through the von Thünen-Institute and will carried out in collaboration with the forest experimental stations in Freiburg and Göttingen.
Previous nation-wide forest soil inventories have indicated that a significant proportion of forest stands may be P limited. However, this assessment is based almost solely on leave and needle tissue concentrations. So far, only total soil P has been determined in these large scale inventories. Determinations of P fractions of different availability for plant uptake are commonly very onerous and expensive and have therefore not been included in a standard analytical protocol. This limits the interpretation of trends in P availability in forests and the analysis of possible causes for changes. Therefore, this project aims to develop alternative methods to quantify soil P fractions based on their spectral properties. Specifically, this project will assess the Hedley fractionation method to quantify soil P pools of different availability in German forest soils. It will further attempt to predict these P fractions on the basis of their spectral properties.
Your tasks:
· Selection and acquisition of soil samples from existing inventories for analysis of P fractions.
· Determination of soil P fractions using the Hedley fractionation method.
· Development of models to predict P pools in forest soil samples based on spectral properties.
· Interpretation of P pools and their temporal changes in the context of additional information from inventories (other soil properties, nutrient cycling, weather, etc.).
· Conduct of greenhouse study to examine the change in P pools under the influence of plant P uptake.
· Writing of publications and project reports.
The laboratory work that is part of this project will be supported by technical staff.
Your profile:
· Excellent Master or Diploma degree (or equivalent) in Soil Science, Biology/Ecology,Forestry or Environmental Sciences with a background
in soil chemistry, nutrient cycling, and forest ecology.
· Competencies in wet chemistry laboratory methods and near-infrared spectroscopy desirable.
· Willingness and ability to work in a team.
· Flexibility and ability to work under pressure.
· Working knowledge of statistics and fluency in English.
· Preparedness to travel for field work, project meetings, conferences etc.
· Current driver’s license for motor-vehicle.
The University of Freiburg aims to increase the proportion of women in academic positions and therefore welcomes in particular applications by females. Disabled persons with equal qualifications will be preferably employed. Applications must include a motivation letter, CV, copies of certificates, copies of publications or theses, and names and contact details of two academic referees. Please submit applications until the 30. April 2011 as a single PDF file to
waldbau@waldbau.uni-freiburg.
Further information will be provided by Prof. Dr. Juergen Bauhus (Tel. 0761-2033678, Email:juergen.bauhus@waldbau.
Sunday, 27 February 2011
British National Anthem
While watching cricket Worldcup, I am attracted towards the British national anthem. It seems somewhat similar to our earlier national anthem.
The National Anthem is God Save the Queen.The British National Anthem originated in a patriotic song first performed in 1745. It became known as the National Anthem from the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Sounds nice and pleasant. Let's know it which is as follows:
The Full version of the British National Anthem
http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Symbols/NationalAnthem.aspx1. God save our gracious Queen,
Long live our noble Queen,
God save the Queen!
Send her victorious,
Happy and glorious,
Long to reign over us;
God save the Queen!2. O Lord our God arise,
Scatter her enemies
And make them fall;
Confound their politics,
Frustrate their knavish tricks,
On Thee our hopes we fix,
God save us all!3. Thy choicest gifts in store
On her be pleased to pour;
Long may she reign;
May she defend our laws,
And ever give us cause
To sing with heart and voice,
God save the Queen!4. Not in this land alone,
But be God's mercies known,
From shore to shore!
Lord make the nations see,
That men should brothers be,
And form one family,
The wide world over.5. From every latent foe,
From the assassins blow,
God save the Queen!
O'er her thine arm extend,
For Britain's sake defend,
Our mother, prince, and friend,
God save the Queen!
Friday, 18 February 2011
NEPALESE renowned fashion designer PRABAL GURUNG: hit in NEWYORK fashion show
Prabal Gurung launched his first collection under his own name during New York Fashion Week in February 2009 at the FLAG Art Foundation in Chelsea. For Fall 2010, he staged his first runway show in the Tents at Bryant Park. Gurung's designs have been worn by Michelle Obama, Demi Moore, Zoe Saldana and Oprah Winfrey. Gurung resides in New York City.
Gurung was born in Singapore and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal and began his design career in New Delhi, India. While studying at New Delhi’s National Institute of Fashion Technology, he apprenticed at several local production and fashion houses and designed with Manish Arora. In Melbourne and London Gurung assisted stylists for fashion shows and international publications. In 1999 Gurung moved to New York City where he interned for Donna Karan while attending Parsons School of Design. In his first year he was awarded the “Best Designer” title at the annual Parsons/FIT design competition.
After Parsons, Gurung spent two years with Cynthia Rowley’s design team. Soon after, he became the design director at Bill Blass. Following five successful years at Blass, Gurung launched his own collection PRABAL GURUNG. In 2010 he was the recipient of the Ecco Domani Fashion Fund Award and received a nomination for the 2010 CFDA Swarovski Womenswear Award. He was also chosen by prominent fashion editors, retailers, designers and business people for the {CFDA Fashion Incubator} for 2010-2012. Recently, this November Prabal was awarded runner up for the 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.
Friday, 14 January 2011
4 Ph.D. position (3 years) available in forest ecology/functional biodiversity research (Göttingen)
You can apply for the following Ph.D. position at the world renowned university of Goettingne, Germany! Already 44 Noble Laureate had been shaped their career here. Then, why not you?
1) Interactions between trees in mixed forests (supervisor: Ch. Leuschner)
Competition in the canopy space and in the soil of mixed stands will be investigated with dendrochronological and dendrochemical methods and competition experiments.
Key words: Interspecific tree competition, dendrochronology, competition experiments
2) Tree species differences in respiration (supervisor: D. Gansert)
The respiration of roots and stems of different tree species in mixed forests will be quantified in its dependence on the environment using oxygen optodes and CO2-accumulation cuvettes.
Key words: tree respiration, tree species differences, carbon balance
3) Belowground productivity of mixed forests (supervisor: Ch. Leuschner)
Optical observation techniques and C- and N isotopic analyses will be used to quantify the growth and turnover of tree fine roots and the related C-flux to the soil.
Key words: Root turnover, belowground carbon fluxes, stable isotope analyses
4) Complementarity of tree water use in mixed stands (supervisor: Ch. Leuschner)
Water consumption and leaf water status of 5 tree species will be investigated in an experiment to identify species differences and water use complementarity effects in mixed stands.
Key words: transpiration, tree species, complementarity of resource use
Salary: 1100 € per month (tax free, Graduiertenstipendium)
Grants available from April 1, 2011 – March 30, 2014
Applications with CV and statement of priority for the 4 positions requested by January 30th, 2011 to
Prof. Ch. Leuschner, Albrecht-von-Haller-Institut für Pflanzenwissenschaften, Abteilung Ökologie und Ökosystemforschung, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Untere Karspüle 2, 37073 Göttingen. E-Mail: arodrig1@gwdg.de
Monday, 3 January 2011
14 doctoral researchers in the field of Forest biodiversity
"The Role of Biodiversity for Biogeochemical Cycles and Biotic
Interactions in Temperate Deciduous Forests"
(DFG-Graduiertenkolleg 1086)
the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen offers fellowships for
14 doctoral researchers in the field of Forest biodiversity
Subjects: Plant Ecology, Soil Zoology, Ecohydrology, Insect Ecology,
Mycorrhiza Research, Soil Science, Ecological Modelling,
Environmental Economics
starting from April 1, 2011
The group carries out research on mechanisms influencing the role of
tree species identity and diversity in broad-leaved deciduous forests
for productivity, carbon sequestration, nutrient and water turnover,
biotic interactions, and ecosystem services. Fieldwork will take
place in forest stands with up to 15 tree species in the Hainich
National Park, Germany. Individual fellowships will amount to 1,103 €
net per month (+ family allowances) for 3 years.
Successful candidates must have a degree (master or equivalent) in
ecology, biology, agronomy, ecological modelling, applied mathematics,
chemistry, economics or related disciplines. Computer skills, command
of the English language and experience with data collection, handling,
and statistical analyses are most welcome.
Please visit the website of our research training group
(http://www.uni-goettingen.de/
Applications should be submitted online via
https://lotus1.gwdg.de/uni/
The Geog-August-Universität Göttingen strives to increase its
proportion of female staff and specifically encourages qualified women
to apply. Disabled persons with corresponding aptitude for the
position will be favored.
Screening of applications will begin on January 30th, 2011, and will
end when the positions are filled.
Von:
Michael Köhler
mkoehle1(at)gwdg.de
Georg-August-Universität
Göttingen
Ansprechpartner: mkoehle1(at)gwdg.de
Thursday, 30 December 2010
Graduate Research Studies in Sustaining Hardwood Ecosystems
Department of Forestry and Natural Resources at Purdue University
Overview: The Sustaining Hardwood Ecosystems research group within the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources (http://www.ag.purdue.edu/fnr/Pages/resshe.aspx) is anticipating funding for 1-2 graduate assistantships (M.S. and Ph.D.) for either fall semester 2011 or spring semester 2012. Specific areas of study include woody biomass allometrics and production, plant invasive species ecology, restoration ecology of oak and chestnut with fire and silvicultural practices, and the ecology of vertebrate taxa in response to forest disturbance.Inquiries on admission for either semester should be directed to Drs. John B. Dunning (jdunning@purdue.edu) or Michael Saunders (msaunder@purdue.edu).
The Sustaining Hardwood Ecosystems is an interdisciplinary research team focused on forest ecology and management, and is identified at one of three Areas of Excellence within the department. This research focus includes long-term field, laboratory and social science studies on Midwestern forests and woodlands. Other members of this research groupinclude:Drs. Dan Cassens (dcassens@purdue.edu), Eva Haviarova (ehaviar@purdue.edu), Douglass Jacobs (djacobs@purdue.edu), Michael Jenkins(jenkinma@purdue.edu), Richard Meilan (rmeilan@purdue.edu), Charles Michler (michler@purdue.edu), Robert Swihart (rswihart@purdue.edu), Rod Williams (rodw@purdue.edu), and Patrick Zollner (pzollner@purdue.edu). Assistantships are awarded at $17,260 (M.S.) and $19,810 (Ph.D.). Purdue University also provides a tuition waiver and health care benefits. Applications for fall semester 2011 and spring semester 2012 must be received by January 15 and September 15 2011, respectively. Applications should include a letter of interest, resume, cumulative GPA, GRE scores, TOEFL scores (international students only), and letters from three references. Complete instructions can be found at www.ag.purdue.edu/fnr/Pages/gradeadminguide.aspx. Applications should reference the Sustaining Hardwood Ecosystems in order to be considered.
Purdue University is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action employer fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce.
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Elephant beauty pageant highlights 3-day Nepal festival
By Manesh Shrestha, For CNN
Sauraha, Nepal (CNN) -- The beauty pageant was like any other, with decked-out contestants parading on a catwalk and undergoing intelligence tests.
Hygiene and good health were important, along with physical stature.
But the pageant held Monday and Tuesday in a Nepal wildlife resort town was not for young women -- it was for elephants.
In the competition, the first such in the nation, a svelte 28-year-old walked away with the prize after defeating two other finalists.
The mahouts -- the elephants' keepers -- worked hard o
n their charges' looks. The pachyderms were bathed, their hard skins scrubbed and their foreheads oiled. The mahouts also drew patterns on the elephants' faces and ears.
Of the three finalists, the youngest won. Chanchalkali, which translates as "playful beautiful," looked resplendent in a light red gown that covered her hulk of a body. Her nails were painted different colors and her forehead was covered with red cloth.
"I think she won because I worked hard on her," said her mahout, 46-year-old Prabhu Chaudhary, after the result was announced. "The fact that she was younger than her competitors also helped."
She behaved well, too, he added. The elephants are among about 100 domesticated by the government and private owners at the edge of the Chitwan National Park in southern Nepal bordering India. The Elephant Beauty Pageant was part of the three-day Chitwan Elephant Festival, which ended Tuesday.
Tourists visiting the national park sit on the elephants' backs. Safaris also take place in the 932-square kilometer (359-square mile) park, home to sloth bears, royal Bengal tigers, one-horned rhinoceros, leopards, crocodiles and migrating birds, among other species.
Only six elephants participated in the competition, according to its organizers, because they were the healthiest, but also because the organizers were not sure how the inaugural Elephant Beauty Pageant would turn out.
The elephants were judged on their intelligence and appearance, the same criteria that women contestants are judged in beauty pageants, according to Lal Bahadur Bhandari, one of the brains behind the beauty contest.
The five judges were given 10 different criteria to judge the elephants, including whether they were able to obey simple commands of their mahouts, their posture and appearance in walking about 25 meters (82 feet), their cleanliness, their nails, their ears, the smoothness of their skin and their make-up.
The two other finalists -- Dhirendrakali, draped in green, and Basantakali, draped in pink -- were 35 and 40 years old, respectively. The three finalists were chosen among six that participated in the preliminary round held on Monday. The youngest among the six was 5, the oldest 65.
"We looked behind the ears to see how much sores they had," said Radha Krishna Shrestha, one of the judges. "A lot of sores would mean that their mahout had hit them a lot to tame them."
He said the judges were happy with the elephants' general appearance and their ability to obey instructions, such as picking up a flag stuck on the ground, sitting down or standing up. "But their nails could have been better," he added. Chanchalkali was the only one whose nails were painted.
Local hotel owners began organizing the elephant festival in 2004, starting with an elephant race, when the 10-year insurgency launched by Nepal's Maoist rebels, who were aiming to end the nation's monarchy, was at its peak and tourism had taken a tumble.
"We wanted to attract domestic tourists and came up with this idea," said Ghanshyam Shrestha, a Sauraha hotelier who organized the festival. "Our second objective was to raise awareness among the local people about the importance of wild animals, as poaching was heightened during the insurgency."
A few years later, organizers added a four-a-side elephant football tournament as well.
The festival has been a great hit and attracts more than 100,000 people over three days, most of them Nepalis. Besides the elephant events, bull cart, horse cart and canoe races take place.
A total of 20 elephants participated in this year's elephant 300-meter (984 feet) race with various organizations sponsoring the participating elephants. The first heat brought down the number to 12, and six finalists were chosen Monday after two semi-final rounds.
Champakali, who won the race on Tuesday, covered the distance in 1 minute 13 seconds, the organizers said. But the festival's biggest draw was the football tournament, where thousands cheered the clumsy elephants driven by mahouts as they attempted to score goals on a 70-meter by 30-meter (229 feet by 98 feet) pitch.
The elephants trained for the football tournament for three months, organizers said. "We wanted to add something new this year, and that was the beauty pageant," said hotelier Shrestha.
