Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar welcomes Russell Schwartz, CMU Professor and Head,  Computational Biology Department, to speak at the A. Nico Habermann Distinguished Lecture Series.  The A. Nico Habermann Distinguished Lecture Series enables students to engage with prominent faculty and well-known leaders in the field of computer science. The lecture series is named after Professor A. Nico Habermann, head of the computer science department between 1980 and 1988 and Founding Dean of the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon.

Lecture title: The evolving role of computation in biomedical discovery

Abstract: This talk will provide a perspective on how the role of computer science and computational thinking in biomedical research has changed in recent years and where it may be going in the future from the perspective of a scientist and educator working at the intersection of these two disciplines.  To provide context, I will first summarize some of my experience as a computational biology researcher, as well as in education and community building at the interface of biology and computer science.  I will use these experiences to discuss how the need for computation, and perceptions of that need, have changed since the rise of computational biology as a discipline.  I will describe some current directions in biomedical research and education and what they tell us about the role of and need for computation in biomedical research today and in the near future.  I will conclude with some speculation about how that role is likely to continue to evolve and what those working in biomedicine can do to prepare themselves and help advance future biomedical knowledge.