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Updates to the BLAST tutorial 2016, a book on BLASTing through the Kingdom of Life, CRISPR / Cas9 webinar, On-ine course in teaching bioinformatics
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In this issue:
  • Updates to the BLAST tutorial
  • BLASTING Through the Kingdom of Life
  • Webinar on CRISPR / Cas9 and molecular models
  • On-line course in teaching bioinformatics
  • Upcoming events
Quick product links:
BLASTing Through the Kingdom of Life:  Interactive iBook or PDF version

Updates to the BLAST tutorial


And updates to the BLAST data set!


This summer, we realized it was time to make some major updates to our popular BLAST for beginners tutorial, the sequence data set, and our BLASTing through the kingdom of life activity.  Not only has the NCBI made several changes to the BLAST home page, they've also changed some of the features in the BLAST results table and links to other databases.  And of the course, the contents of the database are always changing.

For the BLAST tutorial, we added new images to the tutorial pages and made them larger for easier reading.  

We also exchanged some of the sequences in the data set for longer versions.  For now, this makes the BLAST results less ambiguous because the correct sequences have the highest blast scores in the Max score column.  

For the BLASTing through the kingdom of life activity, we updated the handout and example and, updated the spread sheet with answers.  Log in to your Educator account at Digital World Biology to download the updated spreadsheet.  You can find the Educator login link at the bottom of any page in the About menu.
DNA in Molecule World

BLASTing Through the Kingdom of Life


A teachers' guide to interpreting BLAST results


When we constructed the BLAST data set, we looked for sequences from a variety of organisms that were linked to a variety of data types (gene expression data, abstracts, sequence maps). 

But, we understand, even though different types of information might be available for a sequence, it's not always easy to read through the nucleotide record and figure what's available, how to get to it, and how to use it.  To help with interpreting the BLAST results and knowing what kinds of information are available for each sequence, we wrote a short guide to interpreting the results, understanding the BLAST statistics, and using information in the nucleotide record.  

There are two versions of the book, an interactive version with videos, animations, scrolling images, and a glossary, and a PDF version.  

The eBook will work on Mac OS X, iPads, and iPhones.  Download today!

The PDF version will work on Windows and any PDF reader.  Download today!

A sample page is shown below.
The MspA nanopore

Webinar on CRISPR / Cas9 

We are collaborating with Bio-Link this month to produce a free webinar on genome engineering with CRISPR and Cas9.  The webinar will be held on Friday, Sept. 30th, at 1 pm Eastern time.  Dr. Thomas Tubon from Madison College, WI, will talk about genome engineering.  Dr. Sandra Porter, Digital World Biology, will talk about the molecular models.  

Register today!
 
DNA Binding Lab in GEN

On-line course in teaching bioinformatics

Sign up now for more information


We are considering adding a section, specifically for instructors, to our on-line Bioinformatics course offered through Austin Community College.  The course is designed for biology students and covers beginning methods and topics in bioinformatics as applied to biology.  The four sections are:  Databases, Molecular Structures, Molecular Sequences, and Genetic Variation.  In the course, students learn how to search for information at the NCBI and other databases, how to work with and compare molecular sequences and structures, to work with mutant sequences to identify different types of mutations and construct molecular models to predict their effect on a protein.

The course begins in late January and ends the first week in May.

Instructors will participate in evaluating student work and will be required to attend weekly video chat discussion sections via Google Hangouts.  

Sign up today!
 
Upcoming Talks & Workshops

Sept. 30th, 1pm EDT, Bio-Link webinar:  Genome editing with CRISPR / Cas9  

Oct. 15th, Genetics, Chemistry, and Art with Molecule World at HiveBio, Seattle, WA

Nov. 11-12th, Learn how to use molecular structures in teaching, Portland NSTA conference, Portland, OR
Copyright © 2016 Digital World Biology, All rights reserved.


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