PhD in palynology, Brunel University, UK

Brunel University

PhD in palynology

Caspian climatic cycles for improved petroleum exploration

Applications are invited for a fully-funded PhD position within the Institute for the Environment, Brunel University on the use of palynology to reconstruct climatic cycles in the Pliocene Productive Series of Azerbaijan.

The principal objective is to provide new and more detailed information on Caspian Sea cyclicities, including sequence stratigraphy, Milankovitch periodicities and the origin of laminites. This will enable a better understanding of the distribution and origins of hydrocarbon reservoir and seal sediments, and therefore improved petroleum exploration.

The main objective of this study will be to investigate the patterns of cyclicity at various scales, and to identify their likely frequency, duration and detailed causes. The main method will be palynology (pollen, dinocysts and non-pollen palynomorphs), which will be mostly applied to the fine-grained sediment layers present throughout the Pliocene Productive Series. This method is known to work in the Caspian Sea and is able to characterise the changes taking place both on land and in the lake. Subsidiary methods may include: oxygen isotope analysis of ostracod (or other) shells to establish a link with climate; whole rock geochemistry using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectroscopy techniques (ICP-MS) to identify changes in the rock fabric; and heavy minerals analysis (HMA), to identify sediment provenance. The palynological and other results will be fully integrated with geological data, such as seismic profiles and lithostratigraphic logs.

This is a 3.5 year BP funded studentship with full funding to UK Nationals and EU Nationals. Please see http://www.brunel.ac.uk/courses/pg/postgraduate-fees to check your eligibility. The stipend for 2013/14 will be £ 18,980 per annum. Funding supports PhD and bench fees, in addition to an allowance for conferences, travel, training and all direct project-related costs.

Applicants should have at least an upper second class honours degree, MSc or equivalent in geology or a relevant discipline. The successful candidate will be based at Brunel University in Uxbridge, London, where the research will be conducted. Regular visits to BP offices in the UK and Azerbaijan, to discuss progress, will be necessary. Up to two field work seasons in Azerbaijan are also envisaged.

Brunel University is committed to providing a high quality graduate training programme, to ensure that research students have opportunities to develop their career skills and experience. The start date is not fixed, and will be agreed in discussion with the successful candidate, but ideally will be in October 2013. Hence, students graduating this year are encouraged to apply.

Applications, comprising CV, cover letter, the names and contact details of 2 referees, completed application form, that can be downloaded from http://www.brunel.ac.uk/ife/research-degrees, and relevant information, should be sent to Prof. Suzanne Leroy at the Institute for the Environment, Brunel University, Uxbridge, London, UB8 3PH, UK, or emailed to suzanne.leroy@brunel.ac.uk.

Closing date 20 May 2013.

AASP CHAIR IN PALEOPALYNOLOGY:

We seek an individual that will develop a program in stratigraphic paleopalynology, particularly chronostratigraphy and/or paleoecology. The successful candidate will serve as Director of the A  merican Association of Stratigraphic Palynologists (AASP) Center for Excellence in Palynology within the Department of Geology & Geophysics.

Candidates with significant academic and/or petroleum industry experience, along with administrative leadership skills commensurate with building and directing a research center are encouraged to apply.

Required Qualifications: Ph.D. in geological sciences or other relevant disciplines; a strong record of published research; demonstrated ability to attract funding. Responsibilities: supervises graduate student research; publishes in highly ranked journals; teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in his or her area of specialization. Chair appointments would normally be made at the rank of Full Professor. However, exceptional candidates at the Associate Professor level will be considered.

The Department of Geology and Geophysics consists of 15 tenured and tenure-track faculty members having a wide range of expertise and offers B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in geology. The Department has a strong record in research and graduate training, ongoing federal and industry funded research and teaching programs, and a large and active alumni base. Two interrelated focus areas: ³Evolution of Sedimentary Systems² and ³Earth Materials and Solid Earth Processes² have been developed within the LSU Department of Geology and Geophysics to enhance existing strengths of the Department and allow the Department to interface synergistically with other academic units at LSU. See www.geol.lsu.edu for more information regarding these focus areas, faculty, facilities, and research programs.

An offer of employment is contingent on a satisfactory pre-employment background check. Application is open until candidates are selected. Nominations or inquiries should be directed to Endowed Chair Search Committee, at 225-578-3353 or geology@lsu.edu. Applicants should send a copy of their curriculum vitae (including e-mail address), a statement of their research and teaching interests, and the names, addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses of at least three references to:

Endowed Chair Search Committee Department of Geology and Geophysics Louisiana State University Ref: Log #2013 Baton Rouge, LA 70803

COMMON CONTAMINANTS IN PALYNOLOGICAL PREPARATIONS: A COLLABORATIVE WIKI OPPORTUNITY

Paul K. Strother (strother@bc.edu) has initiated an online data-sharing site for palynologists. If this trial is successful, AASP could host its own dedicated wiki, but for now, please try it and use it if you want it to succeed.

http://commoncontaminants.wikispaces.com

You don't have to join to view the contents, but to comment and contribute you need to fill out a 3-line membership form (very easy).

Using this wiki includes picture and comment sharing (easy to upload and comment). Online sharing is done on various listserves, but a Wiki requires more resources and is potentially much more valuable. We (Paul Strother and you) could use the pictures and comments posted on the Wiki to build databases and keys for all kinds of microfossils. Many of us are still relying on the line drawings compiled by Gerhard O. W. Kremp, but our wiki would have color-image examples, and a group consensus on terms like "shagrinate."

The value of this product is proportional to the amount of work you put into it. "THEY" aren't making a catalogue for "YOU" to use. "Common Contaminants" would be just the start. IF the site is used, AASP could host a WIKI for all sorts of microfossils. Paul's initial image is "fungal (?)," but "The Sky's the Limit."

DINOFLAJ2

http://dinoflaj.smu.ca/wiki

DINOFLAJ2 is an online hyperlinked database, based on Fensome, R.A., Taylor, F.J.R., Norris, G., Sarjeant, W.A.S., Wharton, D.I. and Williams, G.L., 1993b: A classification of fossil and living dinoflagellates. Micropaleontology Press Special Paper, no.7, 351 p.

DINOFLAJ2 supersedes, and is a successor of, DINOFLAJ (Geological Survey of Canada Open File 3653), which was distributed as a website and CD from 1998 to 2004. Information will be updated periodically in the form of a new version of DINOFLAJ2. In order to avoid confusion, it is recommended that, in citations of this database, the version of DINOFLAJ2 always be indicated.

It is available as a pdf, formatted in the style of the Fensome and Williams (2004) Dinoflagellate Index (AASP Foundation Contrib. 42). [more] Fensome, R.A., MacRae, R.A. and Williams, G.L., 2008. DINOFLAJ2, Version 1. American Association of Stratigraphic Palynologists, Data Series no. 1

PALYNODATA

One of the classic 20th century palynological databases, PALYNODATA, is now available for free download from the Geolgical Survey of Canada as Open File 5793 at http://geopub.nrcan.gc.ca/moreinfo_e.php?id=225704 This bibliographic database, based on Gerhard O. W. Kremp's initial research, and compiled since 1974 by Palynodata Inc., under the direction of Ken Piel, indexes 122,422 species from 22,152 documents. The last entry was made in 2006 and copyright was transferred to Canada in 2007. [more]

Palynodata Inc. and J.M. White, 2008. Palynodata Datafile: 2006 version, with Introduction by J. M. White. Geological Survey of Canada Open File 5793, 1 CD-ROM.