Cicada Journals November 2006
11/08/06 - Interested in a Graduate Fellowship to Study Cicadas?
It looks like Chris Simon, Professor, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at University of Connecticut at Storrs and others there are looking for a new grad. student. You can work with some of the leading people in Molecular Systematics & Taxonomy today. This sounds like a great opportunity for the right candidate. The details are below:
Graduate Fellowship: Molecular Systematics & Taxonomy; PhD or Master's Level
Two years of graduate research fellowship with continuation based on achievement (as either a research or teaching assistantship) are available for a PhD or Master's level project on the molecular systematics and taxonomy of cicadas in the laboratory of Dr. Chris Simon. The student will be co-advised by experienced cicada taxonomists, Dr. Allen Sanborn and Dr. Max Moulds. Dr. Martin Villet and Dr. Hans Duffels are also interested collaborators. The fellowship includes funds for supplies and field trips to various parts of the world. We are particularly interested in students who wish to work on Latin American or Australia biota, but would not discourage students interested in cicadas of any part of the world.
Unsure of whether systematics is for you? Take the systematics career quiz located at: http://systbio.org/?q=node/139
This graduate fellowship is sponsored by a National Science Foundation PEET Award (Partnerships to Enhance Expertise in Taxonomy) co-authored by Jason Cryan, Chris Dietrich, and Chris Simon. The successful applicant will join a large team of researchers working on the taxonomy of Auchenorrhyncha (cicadas, plant hoppers, tree hoppers, spittlebugs and allies) and become a member of the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) Department at the University of Connecticut (UCONN) Storrs http://hydrodictyon.eeb.uconn.edu/department/about.php and http://hydrodictyon.eeb.uconn.edu/department/prospectivegrads/gradapply.php
The UCONN EEB department has a strong emphasis on systematics with eight of twenty six faculty members having a primary interest is in systematics and seven others using systematics as part of their research program. Systematics expertise includes theory, tree building, molecular methods, character evolution, evolution of development, speciation, biodiversity, and biogeography. A weekly Systematics Discussion Group is held each semester.
The Simon lab is a friendly and active mixture of grad students, postdocs and undergrads working in molecular systematics, taxonomy and evolution. Link to our web pages via www.eeb.uconn.edu/faculty/simon/simon.htm
Joint Auchenorrhyncha PEET workshops held at the NY State Museum will focus on automated tools for managing and providing Internet access to taxonomic data, nomenclatural issues, understanding morphological characters, illustration techniques, diversity of Auchenrrhyncha, molecular systematics laboratory methods, and new theoretical and methodological developments in systematics.
UCONN www.uconn.edu is situated in a rural environment with rolling hills, rivers, streams,forests, & farms with several major cites within a 1.5 to 2.5 hour drive. The state of Connecticut provides excellent health benefits for graduate students.
To apply please email: chris.simon@uconn.edu
