Unit information: Genome Biology and Genomics in 2021/22

Unit name	Genome Biology and Genomics
Unit code	BIOLM0030
Credit points	10
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director	Dr. Williams
Open unit status	Not open
Pre-requisites	Scientific programming, Statistics and R
Co-requisites	None
School/department	School of Biological Sciences
Faculty	Faculty of Life Sciences

Description including Unit Aims

This unit will introduce students to the theoretical and practical aspects of genomic approaches to analysing biological data. These include the design of analyses and use of genomic analysis software. The students will have the opportunity to plan, develop and implement their own genomic analyses to answer a wide variety of biological questions.

The aim of this unit will be to:

1. Provide students with a detailed understanding of genome organisation and function, and of the evolutionary processes that shape variation in genome structure and content across the tree of life.
2. Provide students with a detailed understanding of the concepts behind designing and performing genomic analyses.
3. Provide students with the skills required to use and interact with the pieces of software require to perform such analyses

Intended Learning Outcomes

The Learning Outcomes (LOs) for this unit are:

A: Knowledge and Understanding:

1. to understand how genomes are organised and function.
2. to understand the evolutionary processes which underlie variation in genome size, structure and content across the tree of life
3. to understand the theoretical aspects and rationale behind methods for genome sequencing, assembly and annotation
4. To understand the theoretical basis of methods for phylogenetic and comparative genomic inference from genome data
5. to develop knowledge on the different data types from different genomics experiments, how these data can be manipulated, and the software that can be used to do so

B: Intellectual Skills/Attributes:

1. to devise the best experimental design to analyse genomics data.
2. to design pipelines and critically assess their suitability to different analysis types.
3. to plan the best use of different computational methods to attack different genomics analyses.

C: Other Skills /Attributes (Practical/Professional/Transferable):

1. to acquire proficiency performing analyses of genomics data.
2. to demonstrate competence with different software to perform genomics analyses.
3. To gain strengths in integrating different pieces of software to produce holistic analyses of genomics data.

Teaching Information

The unit will be delivered through a mixture of short lectures followed by individual exercises with computers. Blackboard will be used engage students with the unit content.

Assessment Information

A summative computer assessment will consist of a final computer task and a presentation integrating all the learning objectives.

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. BIOLM0030).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.