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NETTAB 2006 on Distributed applications, Web Services, Tools and GRID Infrastructures for Bioinformatics
Italy - Sardinia - Santa margherita di Pula (CA)

Hosted by: DIEE, University of Cagliari, Italy
Venue: Is Morus Relais
Dates: Jul 10, 2006 through Jul 13, 2006

Call for Proceedings Presentations: 2006-01-01 through 2006-05-05
Call for Posters: 2006-01-01 through 2006-05-31
Early Registration Deadline: 2006-05-31
 
Description
 
It is well known that bioinformatics has to cope with one of the largest amounts of information in all knowledge domains. This information is exponentially increasing in volume and distributed over the network, with heterogeneous data structures, information systems and semantics. The biomedical research domain is one of the fastest evolving research areas. New knowledge and hypotheses are accumulated daily, leading to new data and elaboration needs, which are often peculiar and different from one application domain to another. Hence, the development of general purpose applications is difficult and limited to basic tools.

Two main approaches to the problem of efficiently accessing such huge amount of data have been proposed: gathering all information in a unique data warehouse or carrying out all possible elaborations remotely. Each of these approaches has pros and cons. Main limitations of the data warehouse approach are concerned with managing the overhead needed to set up and maintain data and analysis tools up-to-date, whereas limitations of the network-based approach are mainly related with the need of dealing with heterogeneous formats and network bottlenecks. Remote access to this huge amount of information requires complex search and retrieval software. The activity of data integration is concerned with the semantics of the information; in particular how to link data and how to pipe retrieval and analysis steps. A workflow is "a computerized facilitation or automation of a business process, in whole or part". Its main goal is the implementation of data analysis processes in standardized environments. Its main advantages relate to effectiveness, reproducibility, reusability and traceability. Implementation of workflow management software has already started. Enactment of workflows over the network has been greatly simplified by the development of XML-related standards and by the adoption of more powerful RPC mechanisms, like the ones provided by Web Services. Moreover, high performance network infrastructures, like GRID, now offer an improved environment where remote applications can be effectively carried out.

To summarize, advantages of remote data analysis versus the warehouse approach are clear. Diffusion of automation is quickly improving as to available technologies and tools and their diffusion in the biomedical domain. This workshop will focus on technologies, tools and applications that can now be applied in bioinformatics.

Topics

Technologies and technological platforms:
Standards and protocols for Web Services
Choreography and Orchestration of Web Services
Comparison of available technologies, limitations, pros and cons
Knowledge representation and knowledge modeling tools for biological data
Ontologies, databases and applications of semantics in bioinformatics
Semantic Web technologies

New tools for bioinformatics:

Web Services and related tools
Workflow management systems and enactment portals
Technologies for GRID infrastructures
Semantic Web tools

Applications in bioinformatics:

Case studies, scenarios and use cases
Remote applications for life sciences analysis
Workflows for actual data analysis in life sciences
Data intensive applications on GRID solutions
Remote biological data mining
 
Additional Information
 
Event URL: http://www.nettab.org/2006/
ISCB Member Discount: 10 percent
Contact Person: Paolo Romano ([javascript protected email address])

While ISCB provides for conference and event listings that may be of interest to members and bioinformaticians at large, ISCB is not responsible for the content provided by outside sources. Such listings are not meant as an endorsement by ISCB.



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