Applications are invited for a PhD fellowship/scholarship at Graduate School of Natural Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark, within the Geoscience programme. The position is available from May 2025 or later.
Title:
The timing and paleoenvironment of early human migrations into the southern Caucasus
Research area and project description:
Candidates are invited to apply for a PhD fellowship focused on geochronology and reconstruction of environmental change in the southern Caucasus during key periods of early human evolution and dispersal.
The southern Caucasus, located north of the Levantine corridor, hosts a suite of extraordinary Paleolithic sites with numerous stone tools and skeletal remains. This has fueled the hypothesis that early humans used the southern Caucasus as a refuge and launching pad for expansions into Europe and Asia over the last two million years. However, this hypothesis remains untested due to lack of data, and it is therefore unknown i) who occupied the southern Caucasus (which species), ii) when the area was occupied, and iii) if/how dispersals were driven by environmental change. This PhD project will use the latest developments in Quaternary geochronometry and biomarker paleoclimatology to address some of these questions, and hereby help constrain the history of human occupation and environmental change in the southern Caucasus.
More specifically, this PhD project aims to establish a robust chronology for some of the key sites in the southern Caucasus based on a variety of dating techniques, although with a central focus on cosmogenic nuclides (10Be and 26Al). It also aims to apply a range of biomarker proxies to the sediment records available at the archeological sites in order to reconstruct regional changes in climate and the environment through time.
The successful candidate will be part of an interdisciplinary research environment within the Department of Geoscience, which hosts a large collection of instruments and state-of-the-art geochemistry labs. The overall aim of this research group is to improve our understanding of the link between climate change and the evolution and dispersal of early humans.
The project includes several international collaborators (University of Oslo, Norway; Uppsala University, Sweden; Copenhagen University, Denmark; The Technical University of Denmark, Denmark; Moesgaard Museum, Denmark; National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan), and the PhD project will preferably include a research visit to one of the collaborating institutions. The position is funded by the Danish Research Council.
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Qualifications and specific competences:
Applicants must have a relevant Master’s degree, or at least one year of a Master’s degree, in geology, geochemistry, geophysics, or similar, by May 1st 2024. In addition, the candidate will have demonstrated a good command of English, an open attitude to interdisciplinary research, and the ability to work in international environment. Previous experience with geochemistry and lab work is highly desired.
The successful candidate must be available for fieldwork in the southern Caucasus in late May and early June 2025.
Place of employment and place of work:
The place of employment is Aarhus University, and the place of work is Department of Geoscience, Høegh-Guldbergs Gade 2, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark.
Contacts:
Applicants seeking further information for this project are invited to contact:
Professor, Mads Faurschou Knudsen, mfk@geo.au.dk
Assistant professor, Rachel Lupien, rachel.lupien@geo.au.dk
How to apply:
For information about application requirements and mandatory attachments, please see the Application guide. Please read the Application guide thoroughly before applying.
When ready to apply, go to https://phd.nat.au.dk/for-applicants/apply-here/ (Note, the online application system opens 1 December 2024)
Please note:
At the Faculty of Natural Science at Aarhus University, we strive to support our scientific staff in their career development. We focus on competency development and career clarification and want to make your opportunities transparent. On our website, you can find information on all types of scientific positions, as well as the entry criteria we use when assessing candidates. You can also read more about how we can assist you in your career planning and development.
Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants. All interested candidates are encouraged to apply, regardless of their personal background
