UMII will build a critical mass of experts across the biological, environmental, physical, mathematical, engineering, health, and agricultural sciences who focus on the development and application of computational methods and the use of informatics in research.
UMII will nurture the development of innovative methodologies and research collaboration, and will expand the use of sophisticated informatics methods in the University.
In July 2008, the University of Minnesota Board of Regents will consider a proposal for a novel graduate program in interdisciplinary informatics with initial specializations available in systems biology, bioinformatics and computational biology, and health informatics. If approved, UMII will be home to a novel, integrative graduate program with multiple specializations:
Read our white paper to learn more about UMII.
Encompasses the coordinated study of biological systems by investigating the components of cellular networks and their interactions, by applying experimental high-throughput, whole proteome, whole metablome, and whole-genome techniques, and integrating computational methods with experimental efforts.
Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
Bioinformatics includes research, development, or applications of computational tools and approaches for expanding the use of biological, medical, behavioral, or health data; includes those to acquire, store, organize, archive, analyze, or visualize such data. Computational biology encompasses the development and application of data-analytical and theoretical methods, mathematical modeling and computational simulation techniques to the study of biological, behavioral, and social systems.
This integrative scientific field draws upon information sciences, systems, and related technologies to enhance the use of the knowledge base of health sciences, and the medical and health data generated therein, to improve health care, biomedical and clinical research, education, management and policy.
Physical and Computational Sciences
Researchers in fields ranging from chemistry and computer science to engineering, physics, and mathematics apply informatics methodology to research in a broad range of topics, including fluid dynamics, structural analysis, chemistry, high-density physics and nuclear engineering, multiscale and multiphysics modeling, numerical analysis, and parallel computing.
In addition to the areas listed above, UMII will welcome emerging areas that wish to join an interdisciplinary informatics setting.