Dr. Norm Neff, Professor of Computer Science, has been granted a sabbatical during the Fall ’08 semester. While away from the classroom, Dr. Neff will be striving to achieve two primary research goals:
- Prepare improved introductory interdisciplinary course in biocomputing. A natural starting point is the College’s course BIO 470 Genomics and Bioinformatics, which has recently been introduced by Professor Sudhir Nayak of the Biology Department. To speed the learning curve with respect to computer programming, a computer language will be selected with a view toward simplified ease of use combined with adequate control of detail. Professors Nayak and Neff will collaborate to produce laboratory and grant projects to add depth to the computing part of the course.
- Prepare a module on biocomputing for inclusion in the computer science course CSC 410. A unit on the motivating biology problems will be prepared in consultation with Professor Nayak. Where applicable, existing topics in the algorithms course will be illustrated in biological contexts. Such topics include (at least) complexity growth, string searching, data compression, and dynamic programming