CALL FOR PAPERS AND REFEREES
Minitrack on Software Support for Genome Mapping and Sequencing
26th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
Kauai, Hawaii -- January 5-8, 1993
Genetic mapping data is currently being acquired and stored at a
tremendous rate, as a result of initiatives to develop comprehensive
genetic maps of a number of genomes, including the human, mouse,
yeast, nematode, fruit fly, E.coli, maize, a variety of other crop
plants, and Arabidopsis. The maps that are under construction are
having, and will continue to have, important medical, agricultural and
biological applications. The importance of computational tools for
this effort is widely recognized: many mapping projects are planning
to use computers in the construction of their comprehensive genetic
maps, and to assemble databases of mapping information. The
computational aspects of these projects are in varying stages of
advancement -- some have not yet begun to computerize their data,
others have well developed mapping software. Despite the obvious
opportunity that exists for sharing techniques and technologies of
genetic information processing and management across species, such
sharing is often inhibited because most communication is organized
around species-specific fora.
Likewise, several pilot large-scale DNA sequencing projects are
underway to test the current state of DNA sequencing technology. A
number of key computational components are required to support
large-scale sequencing including primary data acquisition and
analysis, sequence reconstruction (assembly) from primary data,
interpretation of finished data, and software environments to
integrate and automate the process of large-scale DNA sequencing.
The 1993 conference will be the third year that HICSS will host a
track devoted to computational issues in the biological sciences. The
"Software Support for Genome Mapping and Sequencing" minitrack will be
one component of that biology track. It is intended to provide a
cross-species, interdisciplinary, international forum for focussing on
computational issues in Genome Mapping and DNA Sequencing. The
minitrack will be a one to two day workshop consisting of paper
presentations and discussion sessions that will bring together
computational specialists and biologists interested in computational
aspects of mapping and DNA sequencing. The workshop will include a
panel discussion section in which genome researchers will evaluate the
usefulness and significance of the presented research in light of
their current computation tools and projected needs. The purpose of
this section is to add some practical input and perspective from the
standpoint of experts on specific organisms or mapping techniques, and
to evaluate the generality and urgency of the problems addressed and
solutions proposed. We are also soliciting applications from persons
interested in serving on such a panel. Areas of interest will
include:
* MAP CONSTRUCTION: Software and/or mathematical methods for
constructing genetic maps from experimental data.
* MAP INTEGRATION: Software and/or mathematical techniques for
integrating positional information from different sources into
composite maps.
* MAPPING DATABASES: Database environments for supporting mapping.
* MAP DISTRIBUTION: Solutions for the dissemination of genome
map information.
* SEQUENCE RECONSTRUCTION: Algorithmic solutions to the automatic
reconstruction of finished sequences from sequence fragments.
* EXPERIMENT PLANNING: The application of mathematical analysis
to estimate expected progress using different mapping and sequencing
strategies.
* INTEGRATED SOFTWARE ENVIRONMENTS: Laboratory database management
systems and software environments that integrate and support the
process of large-scale mapping and sequencing.
Instructions for authors :
Manuscripts should be 22-26 typewritten, double-spaced pages in 10 or
12 point type; do not send submissions significantly longer or
shorter. Papers must not have been previously presented or published,
nor currently submitted for journal publication. Each manuscript will
be refereed by at least five reviewers. Manuscripts should include a
title page that identifies the title of the paper, the full name(s) of
the author(s), affiliation(s), complete mailing and electronic
address(es), telephone number(s) and a 300 word abstract of the paper.
Members of the community willing to serve as referees should send
their name, electronic and physical address, phone number, and areas
of interest to the program chair. Authors of submissions to this
minitrack may not serve as referees.
Reimbursement for travel expenses for speakers may be available pending
the funding of a proposal to support this meeting; otherwise all
particpants must pay their own expenses.
Deadlines:
* 8 Copies of the manuscript must be submitted by 5 June 1992.
* Notification of paper acceptances by 31 August 1992.
* Camera Ready copy due to minitrack chairs: 1 October 1992.
* Conference registrations must be received no later than Nov. 15, 1992.
Send submissions to: James Fickett, listed below.
For additional information, contact any of the
minitrack chairs listed below:
Mary Berlyn
Department of Biology and School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
117D Greeley Lab, 370 Prospect St., New Haven CT 06511.
berlyn at biomed.med.yale.edu
(203) 432-5145, -9997
James W. Fickett
T-10, MS K710
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos, NM 87545
jwf at mrna.lanl.gov
Charles B. Lawrence
Department of Cell Biology
Baylor College of Medicine
One Baylor Plaza
Houston, TX 77030
(713) 798-6226
chas at cmb.bcm.tmc.edu
Stanley Letovsky
Letovsky Associates
286 West Rock Ave., New Haven CT 06515
letovsky at cs.yale.edu
(203) 432-5145 / 387-8535
