The "Bird Nest Plan" Research Center aiming at recruiting and nurturing young future leaders in emerging interdisciplinary science and technology has recently been launched at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST).

There are a couple of funded PhD positions available at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

The topics are, roughly, 

1) Advanced material models and variability

2) Biomimetic sensing and adhesion.

The deadline for applications is Friday, October 29, 2010.  Please send a current CV, a statement of purpose, and transcripts/grades from your undergraduate work (and master's work if you have a master's degree in a related field).

Ph.D. StudyPOSITION: Ph.D. StudentLOCATION: University of Michigan, Dearborn, Michigan A full-time Ph.D. student position is now open in the area of computational material damage. The applicant should have a strong background in solid mechanics and finite element simulation. Some experience in material science, material testing, and multiscale analysis is a plus. Interested applicants should email their curriculum vitae (if applicable, a list of publications) and electronic copies of main publications to Dr.

Computer Aided Modeling, Simulation, and AnalysisJune. 20-23, 2011 Santander, Spain
(www.iccsa.org/sessions)
This session will provide a forum for engineers and scientists alike to present their latest findings on the subject of computer aided modeling, simulation and analysis. Specific topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

Using the method of anharmonic lattice statics, we calculate the equilibrium structure of steps on 180^o ferroelectric domain

What is stress? Is stress a physical quantity?(second section)What is stress? Who has ever seen stress? Is stress a physical quantity?(second section)

A post-doctoral position is available in the lab of Sachin Velankar at the University of Pittsburgh to conduct experimental research on buckling of soft tissues in cephalopods (octopus or cuttlefish).

The project is based on the well-known size effect exhibited by metals, i.e
the fact that their strengths are greatly enhanced when at least one
microstructural lengthscale is scaled down to the nanometer range or
when the size of the object is restricted to the micron or sub-micron
range. At these scales the interfaces and their associated properties
play a significant role. This project will focus on the effect of
spatial confinement on the three most common deformation mechanisms:
dislocation glide, mechanical twinning and mechanically-induced
martensitic phase transformations; and will be based on the synergies
between physically-based phenomenological modelling using
strain-gradient plasticity at the highest scale, and thorough