The NSF-funded iDigBio project1 is pleased to announce a graduate assistantship in vertebrate paleoinformatics in the Division of Vertebrate Paleontology (VP) at the Florida Museum of Natural History (FLMNH), University of Florida (UF). The incumbent will be expected to: (1) Work 20 hours per week (0.5 FTE assistantship) in the VP collection at the FLMNH to enhance the digitization of the VP collections database, which now includes almost 450,000 digitized fossil specimens; (2) Conduct original research involving the VP digitized database that would form the basis of a graduate degree project (either Masters or Ph.D.), and lead to talks presented at professional meetings, and published papers in refereed journals; (3) Satisfactorily pursue graduate coursework, including a major (e.g., biology, geology) and minor fields (e.g., geography, computer science); and (4) Conduct broader impact outreach, possibly leading to a deliverable component for the non-traditional M.S. thesis or Ph. D. dissertation track (see MacFadden and Mathis, 2010)2. In addition to vertebrate paleontology, students with interests and/or background in 3-dimensionsal specimen imaging, geospatial (e.g., GIS) applications, and/or other emerging digitizing technologies are examples of likely candidates, although this assistantship has the flexibility for the student to pursue other digitization enhancements, as appropriate. We are particularly interested in students who would add diversity to the iDigBio project team. This assistantship is open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. This assistantship is available for multiple years starting during the Fall semester 2012, contingent upon satisfactory progress towards degree requirements. The assistantship includes stipend (commensurate with recipient's department), tuition, and student health insurance (Gator Grad Care). This assistantship will be held under the supervision of Dr. Bruce J. MacFadden, Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology, FLMNH, and Director of Education and Outreach, iDigBio. Inquiries should be directed to bmacfadd@flmnh.ufl.edu. Graduate applications will be made to the respective UF department. For further information please see the appropriate resources listed below: iDigBio: http://www.idigbio.org Vertebrate Paleontology at FLMNH (including on-line database): http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/vertpaleo/ UF Graduate School: http://gradschool.ufl.edu/ (1) NSF Award #11-15210 : Digitization HUB: A Collections Digitization Framework for the 21st Century (2) MacFadden, B. J. and J. Mathis. 2010. Broadening the impact of graduate education with a nontraditional Master's in geoscience. Earth 55(11)30-35.
