Bioinformatics Foundations

Bioinformatics is the science of managing and analyzing large-scale molecular biology data (such as the DNA sequence of the human genome). The goal of this work is to identify interesting patterns and complex behaviors within living systems that would be difficult or impossible to see without computer assistance. This course introduces graduate and upper-level undergraduate students to the core data (molecular sequences, structures, phenotypes, and networks) and problems in bioinformatics, along with the databases and tools that have been developed to study them. Computer labs emphasize the acquisition of practical bioinformatics skills, including programming.