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Embracing the Information Age: The Science Informatics Major at Montclair State University
Author(s) -
Deremer Dorothy
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.24.1_supplement.191.3
Subject(s) - informatics , business informatics , engineering informatics , computer science , information science , informatics engineering , state (computer science) , interface (matter) , health informatics , engineering ethics , library science , engineering , political science , computer engineering , electrical engineering , health care , bubble , algorithm , maximum bubble pressure method , parallel computing , law
Innovative computing tools and computational thinking support the information needs for theoretical and applied life sciences. Advances in computer hardware/software, biochemistry, molecular biology, geosciences and mathematical modeling have added computing to the laboratory and field‐based sciences creating interdisciplinary collaborations of science, computer science, and mathematics, that is, science informatics. Bioinformatics in The Human Genome project is perhaps the best known science informatics. Montclair State's B.S. in Science Informatics began in 2002. With biweekly meetings for 1.5 years, 10 faculty members from Computer Science, Biology/Molecular Biology, Chemistry/Biochemistry, and Mathematical Sciences developed the degree. It includes courses in supporting disciplines, a concentration for depth in one of the disciplines, and 16 credits in interdisciplinary Science Informatics courses. The interdisciplinary courses permeate the program from freshman to the senior years. They include internal and external internships, ethics, and research. A faculty Coordinating Council and the Dean of the College oversee the program. The presentation includes a history of Science Informatics development, the content of the concentrations, the details of the interdisciplinary Science Informatics courses, experiences of the Coordinating Council and other faculty, lesson learned, concerns, and future directions for Science Informatics at Montclair State University.