CALL FOR PAPERS
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BMC Bioinformatics
Special Issue on Biodiversity Informatics

Organizer: Neil Sarkar, University of Vermont, Burlington VT, USA

Intent to Submit Due: March 11, 2009 
Manuscript Submissions Due: April 15, 2009

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Send queries to: bmc_special_issue@eol.org

In recent years, major initiatives have incorporated computational techniques to aid in the organization and management of relevant information across the spectrum of biology. The successes of these endeavors have the potential to impact multiple facets of society – from the discovery of new species, to the development of conservation strategies for endangered life, to insights into infectious disease hosts and vectors, to the discovery of life-saving medicinal plants, to the piquing of general interest about life on Earth and our role in the complex web of life. Such goals are only achievable thanks to a number of significant advancements in knowledge discovery, integration, and management techniques. Collectively termed ‘biodiversity informatics,’ this new suite of methodologies and tools extends contemporary computer science and informatics principles within the context of biodiversity data.

Contributions are requested for consideration as part of an edited topical journal issue in BioMedCentral (BMC) Bioinformatics, one of the leading journals in bioinformatics (ISI Impact Factor: 3.49). Sponsorship from the Encyclopedia of Life and Consortium for the Barcode of Life projects will completely defray publication costs for accepted manuscripts in this open access journal.

This topical issue will consider manuscripts along the full spectrum of biodiversity informatics topics, such as:
  • Data Analysis Techniques for DNA Barcode Data
  • Scanning, Digitizing, and Markup of Biodiversity Literature
  • Linking Molecular and Phenotypic Information Across Biological Resources
  • Ontology Development for Biodiversity Knowledge
  • Development of Species Information Schemas
  • Semantic Annotation and Indexing of Biodiversity Data
  • Taxonomically Intelligent Applications to Manage and Navigate Biological Data
  • Determination of Biodiversity Information Needs
  • Secondary Uses of Biodiversity Data (e.g., Biomedical or climate studies)
  • Linking Biodiversity Information Across Resources, Including EOL and BOL
Review articles, with significant technical details, will also be considered on any of the topics listed.