Senior Research Associate (The Molecular Biology of Archaeology and Forensics)
A 3-year Australian Research Council (ARC)-funded postdoc position is available at the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA in Adelaide from early 2008, to research and develop revolutionary new methods to extract and characterise DNA from a range of unusual ancient samples including sunken ship timbers, stone tools, hominid bones and teeth, and sediments. The project is an ARC LINKAGE collaboration with the National Geographic Society, Australian Federal Police, and Forensics South Australia. The main aim of the project is to re-design current ancient/damaged DNA approaches from the ground up, and to develop and extend recent new approaches to PCR such as SPEX (Brotherton et al. NAR 2007), and genomic library construction.
The candidate will need first-rate molecular biology knowledge and experience with an ability to work from a first principles basis, with minimal reliance on kits and pre-designed systems. The work will be experimentally challenging due to the difficult nature of the genetic templates, but this is a rewarding opportunity to undertake a complete re-design of current ancient DNA and molecular archaeological practice. An interest in ancient DNA, archaeology or natural history would be very useful, but the key requirement is expertise at the fundamental level in molecular biology and to a lesser extent, biochemistry.
The position will be supported by a 0.5 FTE technician, and will make use of the international quality ACAD facilities (www.adelaide.edu.au/ACAD ), and an extensive collection of >4,000 ancient samples from locations around the world covering the past 200,000 years.
ACAD is housed within the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, in the centrally located University of Adelaide (currently ranked 62nd in the world by the THES-QS). Research activities concentrate on molecular evolution, natural history, ancient DNA methods and practice, human evolution and forensics. ACAD is the ancient DNA node for the National Geographic Society's Genographic Project, using multiplexed SBE typing to analyse ancient human samples collected from around the world. Adelaide itself offers a very high standard of living (top 6 in the world, The Economist), with attractive weather, food, wine and beach environments, in an inexpensive setting with strong investment in Green Environments and Alternative Energy policies.
Further information about the position can be obtained from Prof. Alan Cooper, Dr Wolfgang Haak, Dr Kefei Chen or Dr Jeremy Austin and contact details are available at www.adelaide.edu.au/acad
Salary: (Level B) $66,700 - $79,207 per annum. Plus an employer superannuation contribution of 9-17% applies.
Deadline: 31 January 2008.
Please note the selection process is expected to take several months due to the timing of ARC funding and we expect to announce by late February/mid March. We anticipate a start date around April 2008.
You should have:
* PhD or equivalent in Molecular Biology, with an interest/experience in biochemistry, archaeology/evolution, or forensics.
* a strong commitment to excellence in research
* a strong publication record commensurate with career stage Your application must:
* include your Resume/Curriculum Vitae
* address the selection criteria
* include residency status
* include the names, addresses and/or email details of three referees
Director, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA
School of Earth & Environmental Sciences
The University of Adelaide
Darling Building
South Australia 5005
Australia
Prof. Alan Cooper
ARC Federation Fellow
Director, Australian Centre for Ancient DNA
Ph: 61-8 -8303-5950/3952
Fax: 61-8-8303 4364
