Press Release
October 13, 2003
"Mastering Perl for Bioinformatics": Advanced Perl Programming Techniques for Biological Research
Sebastopol, CA--Historically, programming hasn't been considered a
critical skill for biologists, but now, with access to vast amounts of
biological data contained in public databases, programming skills are
increasingly in strong demand in biology research and development. As
author James Tisdall explains in Mastering Perl for Bioinformatics
(O'Reilly, US $39.95), the history of biological research is filled with
examples of new laboratory techniques, which, at first, are suitable
topics for doctoral theses but eventually become so widely used that they
are learned by most undergraduates. Says Tisdall, "As active sciences
evolve, unifying principles and techniques developed in one field are
often found to be useful in other areas. As a result, the established
boundaries between disciplines are sometimes blurred, and the new
principles and techniques may result in new ways of seeing the science as
a whole."
Tisdall broadly defines "bioinformatics" as the use of computers in
biological research and maintains that it is becoming a foundational
science for a broad range of biological studies. "Just as it's now
commonplace to find a geneticist or a field biologist using the techniques
of molecular biology as a routine part of her research, so you can
frequently find the same researcher applying the techniques of
bioinformatics," he says. "Molecular biology or bioinformatics may not be
the researcher's main area of interest, but the tools from molecular
biology and bioinformatics have become standard in searching for the
answers to the questions of interest. The Perl programming language plays
no small part in that search for answers."
And, in fact, among the many computer languages available to biologists,
Perl--with its highly developed capacities in string handling, text
processing, networking, and rapid prototyping--has emerged as the
programming language of choice for biological data analysis. "Mastering
Perl for Bioinformatics" covers the core Perl language and many of its
module extensions, presenting them in the context of biological data and
problems of pressing interest to the biological community. This book,
along with "Beginning Perl for Bioinformatics," forms a basic course in
Perl programming. This second volume finishes the basic Perl tutorial
material (references, complex data structures, object-oriented
programming, use of modules--all presented in a biological context) and
presents some advanced topics of considerable interest in bioinformatics.
"Mastering Perl for Bioinformatics" covers advanced Perl programming
topics such as:
- Modular and object-oriented programming in Perl
- Complex data structures for biological applications
- Using Perl to present data graphically and online
- The Bioperl library of modules
Biologists and computer scientists who have conquered the basics of Perl
and are ready to move even further in their mastery of this versatile
language will appreciate the author's well-balanced approach to applying
Perl's analytical abilities to the field of bioinformatics. Full of
practical examples and real-world biological problem solving, this book is
a must for any reader wanting to move beyond beginner level Perl in
bioinformatics.
Additional Resources:
Mastering Perl for Bioinformatics
James D. Tisdall
ISBN 0-596-00307-2, 377 pages, $39.95 US, $61.95 CA, 28.50 UK
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938; 1-707-827-7000
About O'Reilly
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