Browsing by Subject "Computational biology"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Applying, Evaluating and Refining Bioinformatics Core Competencies (An Update from the Curriculum Task Force of ISCB's Education Committee)
    (Public Library of Science, 2016) Welch, Lonnie; Brooksbank, Cath; Schwartz, Russell; Morgan, Sarah L; Gaeta, Bruno; Kilpatrick, Alastair M; Mietchen, Daniel; Moore, Benjamin L; Mulder, Nicola; Pauley, Mark; Pearson, William; Radivojac, Predrag; Rosenberg, Naomi; Rosenwald, Anne; Rustici, Gabriella; Warnow, Tandy
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    Open Access
    The development of computational biology in South Africa: successes achieved and lessons learnt
    (Public Library of Science, 2016) Mulder, Nicola J; Christoffels, Alan; De Oliveira, Tulio; Gamieldien, Junaid; Hazelhurst, Scott; Joubert, Fourie; Kumuthini, Judit; Pillay, Ché S; Snoep, Jacky L; Bishop, Özlem Tastan; Tiffin, Nicki
    Bioinformatics is now a critical skill in many research and commercial environments as biological data are increasing in both size and complexity. South African researchers recognized this need in the mid-1990s and responded by working with the government as well as international bodies to develop initiatives to build bioinformatics capacity in the country. Significant injections of support from these bodies provided a springboard for the establishment of computational biology units at multiple universities throughout the country, which took on teaching, basic research and support roles. Several challenges were encountered, for example with unreliability of funding, lack of skills, and lack of infrastructure. However, the bioinformatics community worked together to overcome these, and South Africa is now arguably the leading country in bioinformatics on the African continent. Here we discuss how the discipline developed in the country, highlighting the challenges, successes, and lessons learnt.
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    A quick guide for building a successful bioinformatics community
    (Public Library of Science, 2015) Budd, Aidan; Corpas, Manuel; Brazas, Michelle D; Fuller, Jonathan C; Goecks, Jeremy; Mulder, Nicola J; Michaut, Magali; Ouellette, B F Francis; Pawlik, Aleksandra; Blomberg, Niklas
    "Scientific community" refers to a group of people collaborating together on scientific-research-related activities who also share common goals, interests, and values. Such communities play a key role in many bioinformatics activities. Communities may be linked to a specific location or institute, or involve people working at many different institutions and locations. Education and training is typically an important component of these communities, providing a valuable context in which to develop skills and expertise, while also strengthening links and relationships within the community. Scientific communities facilitate: (i) the exchange and development of ideas and expertise; (ii) career development; (iii) coordinated funding activities; (iv) interactions and engagement with professionals from other fields; and (v) other activities beneficial to individual participants, communities, and the scientific field as a whole. It is thus beneficial at many different levels to understand the general features of successful, high-impact bioinformatics communities; how individual participants can contribute to the success of these communities; and the role of education and training within these communities. We present here a quick guide to building and maintaining a successful, high-impact bioinformatics community, along with an overview of the general benefits of participating in such communities. This article grew out of contributions made by organizers, presenters, panelists, and other participants of the ISMB/ECCB 2013 workshop "The 'How To Guide' for Establishing a Successful Bioinformatics Network" at the 21st Annual International Conference on Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology (ISMB) and the 12th European Conference on Computational Biology (ECCB).
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    Ten simple rules for organizing a virtual conference - anywhere
    (Public Library of Science, 2010) Gichora, Nelson N; Fatumo, Segun A; Ngara, Mtakai V; Chelbat, Noura; Ramdayal, Kavisha; Opap, Kenneth B; Siwo, Geoffrey H; Adebiyi, Marion O; Gonnouni, Amina El; Zofou, Denis