NEON construction to begin

Funds have been released for the construction of the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) as of Aug. 2011. See this press release. From the release: "NEON plans to build 62 sites across the U.S., utilizing cutting-edge technology that will gather and synthesize continental-scale data over 30 years on the impacts of climate change, land use change and invasive species on natural resources and biodiversity. Such information will support the ability to understand and predict environmental change on regional and continental scales."

There are two NEON sites near UTK: a core site at Walker Branch site at Oak Ridge, and a relocatable site in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There are several other sites within a day's drive of campus.

ORNL summer research includes EEB alumni

Two UTK EEB alumni are involved in work at Oak Ridge National Labs this summer on the effect of rising carbon dioxide levels on plant growth. Colleen Iversen was a graduate student in EEB and is now an ecoysystem ecologist at ORNL, while Lauren Breza was an EEB undergrad. Both worked in Aimee Classen's lab while at UT.

See WBIR's story about this work here.

PhD student Melissa Cregger receives DOE award

Melissa Cregger, a PhD student in the Aimee Classen lab, was just awarded the 2011 Marvin L. Wesely Award from the Department of Energy. The award was established in honor of the late Dr. Marvin L. Wesely, Argonne National Laboratory senior meteorologist and chief scientist of the DOE Atmospheric Chemistry Program, who died Jan. 20, 2003 from heart cancer (see pdf). The Marvin L. Wesely Fellowship is awarded to the Graduate Research Environmental Fellow (GREF) who has made the best use of their DOE mentor and facilities in improving the quality of his/her research efforts. The award is given for a one-year period to a current GREF fellow who has been supported to do global change research as part of the Global Change Education Program.

Remembering Hal DeSelm

Our esteemed colleague Hal DeSelm died July 12 at 7pm. Hal’s wife of 63 years, Bee, and their daughter Diane were with him.

The obituary and guestbook are here.

A memorial service is being held this Sunday, July 17 at 3pm at Tennessee Valley Unitarian and Universalist Church on Kingston Pike.

Condolences to Bee and their family.

Bat grant to Jennifer Krauel

Jennifer Krauel, a PhD student of Gary McCracken, recently got an award from Bat Conservation International for studying "Fall migration of Tadarida brasiliensis and their agricultural insect prey".

Postdoc in biodiversity conservation with Armsworth

A postdoctoral position is available in Paul Armsworth’s research group at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (web.utk.edu/~parmswor).

The post-doc will participate in an ongoing, interdisciplinary research project that aims to determine the relative effectiveness of different conservation investment strategies in contrasting ecological and socioeconomic contexts. The post-doc will help collate and analyze spatial data on conservation investment patterns in the US. This work involves extensive interactions with conservation practitioners and will provide the individual with experience of a range of interdisciplinary techniques and approaches relevant to conservation science.

Our research group is part of the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at UT-Knoxville that is a highly interactive and integrative group of faculty, post-docs and fellows and students (http://eeb.bio.utk.edu). UT-Knoxville is a vibrant campus located in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains and has recently become the home to the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (http://www.nimbios.org) with which our research group has a close association.

Applicants for the position should have a PhD in a relevant discipline, strong quantitative skills, and proficiency in English. In addition, experience with GIS and analysis of spatial ecological data would be advantageous. Funds are available to support this position for one year. The position is immediately available and the search will continue until the position is filled. To apply, please submit by email a CV, a brief covering letter, one or two exemplars of your research (e.g. papers, manuscripts or thesis chapters), and the names and contact information for two references to Paul Armsworth (p.armsworth@utk.edu).