Better Bioinformatics is an independent, community-run seminar for computational biology, bioinformatics, and AI/ML in the life sciences. Every session digs into the reasoning behind an analytical choice: why it holds up, and where it can quietly fall apart.
Each session features one guest speaker from industry or academia, talking about a method or challenge they know inside out.
Speakers come from across academia and industry: people actually building and using the tools you rely on.
We ask speakers to explain the thinking behind an analytical choice, the common pitfalls, and how to avoid them. It's rarely just about which command to run.
Every talk ends with open Q&A, because the best insights usually come out in the discussion afterwards.
We ask every speaker to follow roughly the same structure, so the series stays focused on why an approach makes sense rather than a tour of a toolkit.
Talks run for around 50 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of open questions.
A quick primer on the topic, so everyone starts from the same place.
A common pitfall: what people usually get wrong.
Why the mistake matters, and how it can quietly change your results.
Practical guidance for doing it right, and the principles to follow instead.
Ten minutes of open questions. Bring the thing you've always wondered about.
The content is pitched at an intermediate audience: mostly PhD students and postdocs who already have some familiarity with bioinformatics or computational biology concepts, and basic coding skills. Come with questions.
Every other Tuesday, 1:00–2:00pm UK time (some sessions run at a different time, always confirmed on the schedule).
Fully online via Zoom. Join from anywhere, no travel required.
Know your topic best? We'd love to hear from you. Head to the contact page.
Past sessions are added to the recordings page after each talk.
No membership, no fees. Just add the next session to your calendar.
