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Abstract:
What is computational biology and what does it mean when scientists say
"the human genome has been sequenced?" What role do mathematicians and
computer scientists have to play in the genome projects that have
revolutionized biology over the past decade? What remains to be done and
what are the medical implications of this research?
I will present an overview of the field of computational biology,
scratching the surface in answering the above questions. This talk will
emphasize why recent advances in biology provide a rich source of
interesting and important problems for mathematicians and computer
scientists. I will discuss in depth one particular research problem:
analysis of DNA microarrays. A DNA microarray is a new technology which
enables scientists to measure how often segments of DNA, called genes, are
ultimately translated into protein molecules - the building blocks of a
cell. DNA microarrays provide a wealth of data which require new
statistical methods and computational algorithms for interpretation.
No prior knowledge of computer science, mathematics, or molecular biology
will be assumed.
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