Permafrost Microbiome Postdoctoral Scholar

Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s (LBNL) Ecology Department has an opening for a Permafrost Microbiome Postdoctoral Scholar to join the team.

In this exciting role, you will lead comparative analyses of multi ‘omics datasets to address questions regarding microbial and viral genomic diversity, metabolic activity in Arctic soils and permafrost. The research project focuses on understanding the functional and phylogenetic evolution of microbial and viral communities in Arctic soils and permafrost under seasonal and disturbance mediated thaw events. This work will be conducted in collaboration with NGEE Arctic and will focus especially on the analysis of paired metagenomes and metatranscriptomes from NGEE Arctic field sites in Utqiagvik and Nome, Alaska.

The expected workload will be 100% computational and additional tasks will include activities such as developing, testing, and troubleshooting new comparative omics approaches. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in bioinformatics, computational biology, microbial ecology, genomics, and statistics.  We are looking for a highly motivated, independent and creative scientist with excellent organizational skills and a strong publication record.

The position offers an excellent environment for working with a highly skilled interdisciplinary team and will require excellent oral and written communication skills. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is a renowned center of scientific expertise in the many facets of environmental and climate sciences. Researchers in the Climate and Ecosystem Sciences Division work in a wide range of areas to address the critical energy and environmental issues that require continuing advances in our knowledge of Earth systems.

What You Will Do:

• Extract and annotate microbial and viral genomes from Arctic soil metagenomes.
• Perform comparative taxonomic and functional analysis of microbial and viral MAGs from Arctic metagenomes and metatranscriptomes.
• Generate detailed reports and data packages with extensive documentation.
• Summarize research results and publish in peer-reviewed journals; contribute to scientific research papers and reports.
• Monitor literature for newly developed comparative metagenomics approaches and test these if relevant.

 Additional Responsibilities as needed:

• Participate in group meetings and seminars.
• Maintain an accurate and detailed documentation of all code and pipelines developed.  Ensure that others could duplicate results.

 What is Required:

• Recent Ph.D. in Bioinformatics, Microbial Ecology, Computational Biology, Chemical/Biochemical Engineering, or related field.
• Demonstrated experience in data analysis: environmental metagenomics, microbial genomics, and viral genomics.
• Demonstrated experience in the use of computational methods (experience in Python, R is a must), databases of genomic information, and methods of analysis for biological sequence data especially next-generation sequence data.
• Familiarity with common sequence analysis tools including genome binning, remote homology searches, phylogenetic analysis.
• Familiarity with HPC systems.
• Demonstrated ingenuity in dealing with complex problems.
• Ability to collaborate with a multidisciplinary team of scientists, and demonstrated record of publishing and presenting at scientific conferences.
• Experience with large-scale data analysis (e.g. > 100 datasets).
• Coding with Python & R.

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience with multi-omics data from Arctic ecosystems.
• Experience with machine learning and AI for large scale data analysis and integration.
• Familiarity with the JGI - IMG & IMG/MER & KBase.
• Knowledge of microbial metabolic modeling and metabolic flux analysis.

 Notes:

• This is a full-time 1 years, postdoctoral appointment with the possibility of renewal based upon satisfactory job performance, continuing availability of funds and ongoing operational needs. You must have less than 4 years of paid postdoctoral experience. Salary for Postdoctoral positions depends on years of experience post-degree.
• This position is represented by a union for collective bargaining purposes.
• Salary will be predetermined based on postdoctoral step rates.
• This position may be subject to a background check. Any convictions will be evaluated to determine if they directly relate to the responsibilities and requirements of the position. Having a conviction history will not automatically disqualify an applicant from being considered for employment.
• Diversity, equity, and inclusion are core values at Berkeley Lab. Our excellence can only be fully realized by faculty, students, and staff who share our commitment to these values. Successful candidates for our faculty positions will demonstrate evidence of a commitment to advancing equity and inclusion.
• Work will be primarily performed at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA.

Equal Employment Opportunity: Berkeley Lab is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. Berkeley Lab is in compliance with the Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision under 41 CFR 60-1.4. Click here to view the poster and supplement: "Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law."

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory encourages applications from women, minorities, veterans, and other underrepresented groups presently considering scientific research careers.