INFO-B 627

Advanced Seminar I – Bioinformatics

Description

Introduce students to major historical, contemporary, and emerging theories, methods, techniques, technologies and applications in the field of Bioinformatics. Students will explore relevant and influential research, results and applications. Students will develop an understanding of leading research approaches and paradigms, and will design an independent research program in relation to their individual research fields and personal interests. The course will focus on research approaches in bioinformatics, emerging technologies in biology and chemistry, and basic computational techniques.

Research in bioinformatics and computational biology is attempting to solve biological and biomedical problems in academia and the commercial sector. Progress in information technology and a rather wide computer science knowledge base are helping to advance this research in conjunction with biologists and biomedical researchers bringing such problems to the forefront.

This course is the first of two courses intended as vehicles for students to understand and assimilate the theoretical nature and purpose of research in bioinformatic-related topics. Seminal articles (historically relevant and more recent ones) in various bioinformatic topics will be assigned for students to read and lead a discussion in class. Additionally, leading researchers from academia and industry will participate in the student’s learning process with lectures. Discussion of the articles and the researchers’ lectures will demonstrate, at different levels, the common theme of bioinformatics, namely, that computer hardware and software are only tools in solving problems and not the solutions.

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