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Announcements
[Last updated: 8/26/01]
Welcome to the virtual syllabus for Biology 497!
The site is growing. Exercises and projects will
appear as they are completed. They will be linked
both to the schedule and Unit pages in Course
Materials.
Access to the general information on this site
is open to all. Access to some sections of this
site is restricted to those registered in the
course, either as a regular SSU student or through
Extended Education. Prime examples of restricted
pages are discussion fora and some pdf files.
Your suggestions, comments, and feedback are
appreciated, especially since this site exists to
support you in your efforts to learn something
about bioinformatics.
Check this announcement space often for general
announcements, changes in the schedule, new link
sites and new things on these pages. Happy
surfing!
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Introduction
This new course focuses on bioinformatics, a rapidly
evolving field integrating computation and biology.
Format: Lecture/discussion will be based on
selected readings and short presentations on selected topics
by students and faculty. There will be presentations by
faculty and others on research problems and applications in
a variety of fields, including but not limited to molecular
parasitology, plant genomics, molecular biology,
environmental genetics, protein modeling, and gene
expression. Many of these presentations will be associated
with computer lab problems and projects. Problem-based
computer lab instruction will focus on web-based
bioinformatics, integrating databases and application
programs. There will also be weekly computer tutorials for
one-on-one drop-in help and small group work relevant to the
current tasks.
The course is divided into six units preceded by a
pre-module. The pre-module is an ungraded exercise designed
to assess necessary background and readiness for the course.
It is linked to several web-based tutorials useful for
preparation and/or review on basic support topics, such as
molecular biology and statistics. Each of the units focuses
on a general topic with discussion and activities related to
the topic.
General topics: Types of databases and search
strategies, genomics molecular genetics, phylogenetics,
protein structure prediction, and metabolic pathways.
Prerequisites: For biology majors:
Completion of the lower-division core in Biology or
equivalent; one course in statistics strongly recommended.
Open to non-majors with consent of instructor. [This
course would particularly be of interest to majors in
chemistry, computer science, and math with an interest in
biological applications.]
Texts
Required: Gibas & Jambeck, Developing
Bioinformatics Computer Skills, 2001
Recommended: Brown, Stuart, Bioinformatics- A
Biologist's Guide to Biocomputing & the Internet, 2000
with CD-ROM [application software]
Required and recommended reading are listed for both
books in the lecture/discussion schedule.
For your convenience, the book list and on-line links to
the bookstore and elsewhere are available on my home
page.
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patience
please!