Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in BIological Informatics for FY 2006

Damschen Ellen I, Raleigh NC

Investigators

Abstract

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biological Informatics for FY 2006. The fellowship supports research and training at the postdoctoral level at the intersection of biology and the informational, computational, mathematical, and statistical sciences. The goal of the fellowship is to provide training to a young scientist in preparation for a career in biological informatics in which research and education will be integrated. There is an increasing need for training in biological informatics at all occupational levels, and it is expected that Fellows trained through these fellowships will play important roles in training the future workforce. The research and training plan for this fellowship is entitled "Impacts of kelp forest patchiness on species diversity and implications for reserve design." Understanding the impact of spatial habitat structure on species distributions and diversity is a central question for understanding mechanisms of diversity and proposing conservation strategies in both terrestrial and marine systems. This research uses tools from terrestrial landscape ecology to determine how habitat shape and connectivity affect species diversity and composition in kelp forests, if life history traits can predict organism response, and if there are generalities between marine and terrestrial community responses. This postdoctoral fellowship experience will allow the Fellow to learn the latest bioinformatics tools and further her training in spatial statistics and computational biology. In addition, the fellowship will provide experience for communicating the findings with policy makers and the general public.