C-DEBI Newsletter – September 15, 2014
C-DEBI Newsletter – September 15, 2014This newsletter is also accessible via our website.
Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) concentration and total alkalinity in marine sediment vary with biological activity, mineral diagenesis and past bottom ocean water composition. Reliable interpretation of this data is often compromised due to precipitation of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) during sediment recovery, processing and sample storage. Here C-DEBI Researcher Sauvage (ExCom Member D’hondt lab) et al present and test a method that corrects for this precipitation and consequently allows quantification of in situ carbonate system chemistry. Our method relies on the over-determination of the dissolved carbonate system by (i) measuring DIC, alkalinity and calcium, and (ii) explicitly assuming CaCO3 saturation in the sediment. We experimentally tested this method using data from Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Site U1368 in the South Pacific Gyre. Our results show that we can accurately reproduce in situ aqueous carbonate system chemistry if DIC, alkalinity and calcium concentration are measured simultaneously. At Site U1368, the correction for sampling associated precipitation is equivalent to 4.5 and 8.9% of the measured DIC and alkalinity, respectively. The method is well suited for any sediment porewater that is saturated with respect to calcium carbonate; consequently, it is applicable for approximately 50% of the global oceanic seafloor.
Outreach
Ocean 180 Video Challenge is entering its second year, offering an opportunity for ocean scientists to practice their communication and presentation skills. Sponsored by the Florida Center for Ocean Science Education Excellence (COSEE Florida) and funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation, Ocean 180 challenges scientists to share the meaning, significance, and relevance of their research with a broader audience. To enter, ocean scientists are asked to produce a 3-minute video abstract summarizing a recent publication. Scientists at any career stage, including graduate and undergraduate students are eligible to participate. A total of $9,000 in cash prizes will be awarded to scientists who best communicate their research through film. To select the winners, top entries will be viewed and evaluated by thousands of middle school students from around the world. In 2014, during Ocean 180’s inaugural year, entries were seen by over 30,000 students participating as judges in 13 countries. Submissions for the 2015 Ocean 180 Video Challenge will be accepted from October 1-December 1, 2014. Information, previous winners, and full contest guidelines can be found at http://ocean180.org.
Ocean Leadership: Share Your Ocean Story with the BBC
Ocean Leadership has built a website to help BBC solicit ideas/content/contacts for their upcoming seven-part series follow-up to Blue Planet entitled Ocean: New Frontiers.
Proposal Calls
Simons Foundation: Simons Early Career Investigator in Marine Microbial Ecology and Evolution Awards
The Simons Foundation is now accepting applications for its Simons Early Career Investigator in Marine Microbial Ecology and Evolution Awards. The deadline for receipt of letters of intent (LOI) is October 15, 2014, 5:00 PM Eastern Time. Microbes inhabit and sustain all habitats on Earth. In the oceans, microbes capture solar energy, catalyze biogeochemical transformations of important elements, produce and consume greenhouse gases, and provide the base of the food web. The purpose of these awards is to help launch the careers of outstanding investigators who use quantitative approaches to advance our understanding of marine microbial ecology and evolution. Investigators will focus directly on marine microbes or on fundamental problems that are highly relevant to understanding marine microbial ecosystems.
NSF: Ocean Sciences Postdoctoral Research Fellowships (OCE-PRF)
The Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE) offers postdoctoral research fellowships to provide opportunities for scientists early in their careers to work within and across traditional disciplinary lines, develop partnerships, and avail themselves of unique resources, sites and facilities. The fellowship program is intended to recognize beginning investigators of significant potential, and provide them with experience that will establish them in positions of leadership in the scientific community. During tenure, fellows will affiliate with an appropriate research institution(s) and conduct research on topics supported by OCE. The OCE fellowship program has two tracks: 1) Track 1 (Broadening Participation) and 2) Track 2 (International). Fellowships are awards to individuals, not organizations, and are administered by the fellows. Full proposal target date: December 8, 2014.
IODP: Apply to Sail for Expeditions 359, 360 and 361
The deadline to apply is 1 October 2014. A webinar for Expedition 359 Maldives Monsoon will be held Wednesday, September 17th at 3 PM EST, and for Expedition 361 Southern African Climates, a webinar will be held Tuesday, September 23rd at 2PM Eastern. To register, please send an email to expeditions@oceanleadership.org with your name and your institution, with Expedition 359 [or 361] Webinar Registration in the subject line. After registering, you will receive an email response with instructions on how to access the webinar.
NSF: Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP)
Deadlines: Engineering, Computer and Information Science and Engineering, Materials Research – October 29, 2014; Mathematical Sciences, Chemistry, Physics and Astronomy – October 30, 2014; Social Sciences, Psychology, STEM Education and Learning – November 03, 2014; Life Sciences, Geosciences – November 04, 2014.
National Academies Research Associateships for Graduate, Postdoctoral and Senior Researchers
There are four annual review cycles and the next closes November 1.
IODP-USSSP: Proposals for Pre-Drilling Activities and Workshops
The U.S. Science Support Program (USSSP) accepts proposals on a rolling basis for pre-drilling activities and semi-annually for workshops, next submission deadline November 15, 2014, related to the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP).
Cruise pre-proposal deadline: Friday, September 19, 2014 (Japan time).
Employment
The Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry (MC&G) at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (www.whoi.edu/main/mcg) invites exceptional candidates to apply for tenure-track and tenured scientific –staff positions (Assistant, Associate and Senior Scientist) to complement and expand existing programs on the chemistry of the ocean and its interactions with the Earth as a whole. Core departmental strengths include: biogeochemistry and organic geochemistry; microbial ecology and molecular biology; carbon, nutrient, and trace element cycling; air-sea exchange; coastal, estuarine and river dynamics; fluid, sediment, and rock interactions; and isotope systematics. MC&G scientific staff conducts research throughout the world’s open-ocean, deep-sea, and coastal environments, develops sensors for in-situ measurements, analyzes samples in the laboratory using state-of-the-art analytical techniques, carries out laboratory-based experimental studies, and applies computer models and remote sensing techniques. Candidates in all the core areas described above are welcome to apply, but we are particularly interested in applicants who conduct research on polar regions or chemical and isotope tracer dynamics. Review of applications will begin November 1, 2014.
University of South Florida, College of Marine Science: Tenure-Track, Biological Oceanography – Assistant, Associate, or Professor Level
The College of Marine Science at the University of South Florida invites applications for a tenure-track, nine-month academic appointment in Biological Oceanography at the Assistant, Associate, or Professor level. Rank is dependent on qualifications and experience. Qualified candidates will employ modern tools of multi-disciplinary science to understand the ocean ecosystem, areas such as, but not limited to, coastal and marine ecology; biodiversity; trophic structure and function; biological-physical interactions; connections between molecular biology, genetics, taxonomy and ecology; conservation biology; fisheries; aquatic animal tracking; the role of biota in biogeochemistry; and ecological and biogeochemical forecasting. A deep understanding of oceanography and the role of biota in Earth processes, and a history and vision of active involvement in field research in a variety of environments are required. Candidates must demonstrate an ability to communicate complex oceanographic concepts and explain an education strategy that contributes to our mission of graduate education in oceanography. Position is open until filled. Review of applications will begin after November 1, 2014.
JAMSTEC: Scientist or Technical Scientist, Borehole Informatics Group
The Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science (ODS) at JAMSTEC has an opening for 1 full-time, fixed-term research position in the integration of seismic, logging, and core sample data to develop a detailed understanding of the dynamic behavior, three-dimensional geometry, and characteristics of sub-seafloor geology. The successful candidate, who should have a strong background in exploration geophysics, especially seismic data processing, will lead research and development by combining seismic and logging data, becoming involved in IODP activity, and contributing to breakthroughs in the integration of core-log-seismic data. Application Deadline: October 20, 2014.
Georgia Tech, Biology Department: Postdoc in Marine Microbial Genomics
This position is available immediately, although there is flexibility in the start date.
University of Oldenburg Institute for Chemistry of the Marine Environment: PhD Graduate Student
Review of applications will begin August 1st, 2014; applications will continue to be accepted until the position is filled. Expected appointment is fall 2014. Questions may be directed to Dr. Bert Engelen at engelen@icbm.de.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: Associate Director for Microbiology
See the flyer for more details.
University of Minnesota, Department of Earth Sciences: Assistant Professor in Geomicrobiology and Bioremediation
Review of applications will begin September 8, 2014; applications will continue to be accepted until the position is filled. Expected appointment is Fall 2015.
LUBEM, University of Brest (UBO), France: 12-month Postdoctoral Position
Interested candidates are encouraged to send a curriculum vitae, a cover letter outlining previous experience and support letters from 2 colleagues with first-hand knowledge of their work experience as soon as possible by e-mail to Gaëtan Burgaud (gaetan.burgaud@univ-brest.fr). See the flyer for more information.
Texas A&M, College of Geosciences: 4 Faculty Positions
The search committee will commence review of applications starting 1 May and will continue until the positions are filled.
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