BF821

* Please select two papers from two different weeks and email your choices to Brandon (yuxia@bu.edu) as soon as possible.  The paper assignments will be made on a first come, first serve basis.

* Each presentation will be roughly 30-40 minutes, followed by discussions.

* Please log in to view course materials. Email Brandon if you forgot the login name or password.

Course Schedule

Course Description

BF821 is a graduate seminar covering current topics in bioinformatics.  This is achieved through the critical reading, presentation, and discussion of recent literature.  Additionally, the course is intended to give students the opportunity to practice and improve their scientific presentation abilities.  As such, peer feedback on presentations is an integral aspect of the course.  Students will present two times during the semester so that they may improve upon their presentation skills based on peer comments.

Final Report (due May 1 by email: yuxia@bu.edu)

You are asked to write a report on a paper that other people presented.  The report should consist of approximately 700-1000 words.  You can choose between one of the two following formats:

• Referee report: Write a referee report of the paper for consideration of publication in a highly selective journal.  You have the choice of rejecting or accepting the paper with or without revisions.  To learn more, check out the online journal Biology Direct which publishes the referee report along with the papers.
  

• News & Views article: Write a commentary aimed at a broad audience of biologists.  To learn more, check out the News & Views articles in the journal Nature.
  

Grading

The course is graded on a pass-fail basis, where attendance, participation, and the final report are required for a passing grade.