This course provides an introduction to two important aspects of modern biochemistry, molecular biology, and biophysics: computer simulation and data analysis. The availability of very capable but inexpensive personal computers and software makes it possible to do such work at a much higher level, but in a much easier way, than ever before. The Executive Summary of the influential 2003 report from the National Academy of Sciences, "BIO2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future Research Biologists", begins

The interplay of the recombinant DNA, instrumentation, and digital revolutions has profoundly transformed biological research. The confluence of these three innovations has led to important discoveries, such as the mapping of the human genome. How biologists design, perform, and analyze experiments is changing swiftly. Biological concepts and models are becoming more quantitative, and biological research has become critically dependent on concepts and methods drawn from other scientific disciplines. The connections between the biological sciences and the physical sciences, mathematics, and computer science are rapidly becoming deeper and more extensive.

In this course I will show how to use readily available computer tools to formulate quantitative models and analyze experiments in a way that measures up to the standards of biology in the 21st century. In particular, I will show how to use the free, open source software program R in a variety of biological applications. The characteristics of R that make it a good choice on which to build quantitative expertise in the biochemical sciences are described in the syllabus. Examples of how to use R for a variety of purposes will be presented as in the schedule of course topics.