MCDM 2009 - Workshop on Multi-Criteria Programming in Bioinformatics-the 20th International Conference on Multiple Criteria Decision making

Workshop on Multi-Criteria Programming in Bioinformatics
In ¡°The 20th International Conference on Multiple Criteria Decision Making¡±
Chengdu/Jiuzhaigou, China June 21-26th, 2009

Workshop Background and Goals
Bioinformatics utilizes the advances in computer science such as data mining, machine learning to extract useful information and discover knowledge from Biological data sets. The extensive growing databases of biological information create both challenges and opportunities for developing novel Knowledge Discovering methods. In this area, the concepts and techniques of optimization are widely adopted and function as the foundation of state-of-art methods like the Smith-Waterman alignment algorithm--one of the most prominent success story and flagship of bioinformatics. Multi-Criteria Programming seems ideally suitable for exploring complicated Biology data sets, since it naturally extends the traditional optimization concepts with simultaneously taking important factors into consideration.
To highlight these avenues, this workshop is proposed to serve a dual purpose of (i) facilitating collaboration between Multi-Criteria Programming and Bioinformatics Researchers by presenting cutting edge research topics and state-of-art methodologies in the area of Multi-Criteria Programming for Bioinformatics, and (ii) promoting the research interests in the connection of Bioinformatics, optimization, data mining and machine learning as well as real-life applications. While such research has an interdisciplinary character, this workshop emphasizes on the area of Multi-Criteria Programming with particular application to Bioinformatics.

Topics
The workshop welcomes both high-quality academic (theoretical or empirical) and practical papers for Bioinformatics in the broad ranges of Optimization, Data Mining and machine learning related (but not limited) to the following themes:
* Conceptual Models for Biological and Medical Data
* Microarray Data Analysis
* RNAi and microRNA Analysis
* Protein/RNA Structure Prediction
* Sequence and structural motif finding
* Biomedical Ontologies
* Protein interaction networks
* Phylogenetics and comparative Genomics
* Modeling of biological networks and pathways
* Statistical learning methods in bioinformatics
* Drug Design
* Biomedical Data Engineering using Ontologies
* Biomedical text mining and Semantic webs
* Biological data Visualization
* Biological Database Management
* Biomedical Query Processing, Query Optimization, and Information Retrieval

Format of the Workshop
The workshop will consist of presentations of the accepted papers and additional key-notes speakers (tentative). Papers should be submitted in advance and will be reviewed by at least three members of the program committee. All accepted and registered workshop papers will be published in a separate workshop proceedings by Lecture Notes in Economics and Mathematical Systems and delivered to the workshop attendees before the conference. At least one author for each accepted paper should register for the workshop and plan to present the paper.

Publication
Workshop papers will be published in a separate workshop proceeding in Lecture Notes in Economics and Mathematical Systems. Selected papers will be fast-track reviewed for special issues in:
* Journal of Multi Criteria Decision Analysis
* International Journal of Computational Science
* International Journal of Intelligent Engineering Informatics
* Decision Support Systems (SCI-indexed),
* Annals of Operations Research (SCI-indexed)
* International Journal of Information Technology and Decision Making (SCI-indexed).

Paper Submission
Only papers in English will be accepted, and the length of the paper should not exceed EIGHT pages. Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. Refereeing and the selection of papers will be carried out according to the standards of Lecture Notes in Economics and Mathematical Systems (Instructions to Authors/Paper Format). Authors should submit their paper via email: rliu.pro-AT-gmail.com or mpauley-AT-mail.unomaha.edu. All manuscripts for this special issue should be submitted electronically before December 15, 2008.

Important dates
* Full papers submission: December 15, 2008;
* Notification of workshop acceptance: January 1, 2009;
* Camera-ready of accepted workshop papers: January 31, 2009;
* Final advanced registration of workshop opens: January 31, 2009;
* Paper Status must be OK: March 10, 2009;
* Final advanced registration of workshop closes: March 10, 2009.

Co-Chairs
Rong Liu
Center of Biotechnology,
University of Nebraska¨CLincoln, USA
rliu.pro-AT-gmail.com

Mark A. Pauley
College of Information Science & Technology,
University of Nebraska at Omaha, USA
mpauley-AT-mail.unomaha.edu