This text, aimed at upper level undergraduates and graduate students, introduces readers to the twin themes of Bioinformatics and Molecular Evolution. 
	Bioinformatics chapters explain the need for computational methods in the current era of complete genome sequences and high-throughput experiments, introduce the principal biological databases, and discuss methods used to create them and search them. Algorithms for sequence alignment, identification of conserved motifs in protein families, and pattern recognition methods using Hidden Markov Models and neural networks are discussed in detail. A full chapter on data analysis for Microarrays and Proteomics is included.
	Evolutionary chapters begin with a brief introduction to population genetics and the study of sequence variation within and between populations, and move on to the description of evolution of DNA and protein sequences. Phylogenetic methods are covered in detail, and examples are given of application of these methods to biological questions. Factors influencing the evolution at the level of whole genomes are also discussed, and methods for the comparison of gene content and gene order between species are presented. 
	This book explains the theories behind the methods of bioinformatics rather than the technical details of how to use any particular software package. Important mathematical derivations and statistical tests are explained at a level that should be accessible to biological students with perseverance. Muliple-choice ‘self-tests’ are provided, with answers available on an accompanying web site. A section of longer problems is also included. This text will help the next generation of biologists and biochemists gain the confidence with quantitative methods and the specific vocabulary they need to interact with the statisticians, database analysts and software engineers they will encounter in their future careers.

1.	Rattray, M. & Higgs, P.G. (2005) RNA-based Phylogenetic Methods. In Probabilistic Modeling in Bioinformatics and Medical Informatics. Husmeier, D., Dybowski, R., Roberts, S. (Eds). Springer Verlag. pp191-210.

1.	Urbina, D., Tang, B. & Higgs, P.G. (2005) The response of amino acid frequencies to directional mutational pressure in mitochondrial genome sequences is related to the physical properties of the amino acids and to the structure of the genetic code. J. Mol. Evol. (in press).
2.	Sengupta, S. & Higgs, P.G. (2005) A Unified Theory of Codon Reassignment in Alternative Genetic Codes.  Genetics 170, 831-840.
3.	Quince, C., Higgs, P.G. & McKane, A.J. (2005) Topological structure and interaction strengths in model food webs. Ecological Modelling 187, 389-412.
4.	Quince, C., Higgs, P.G. & McKane, A.J. (2005) Deleting species from model food webs. Oikos 110, 283-296.
5.	Gibson, A. Gowri-Shankar, V., Higgs, P.G. & Rattray, M. (2005) A comprehensive analysis of mammalian mitochondrial genome base composition and improved phylogenetic methods. Mol. Biol. Evol. 22, 251-264. 


The Origins Institute - I am a member of the steering committee of the newly-established Origins Institute at McMaster. The OI links faculty members from physics, biology, biochemistry, and mathematics. It aims to study fundamental scientific questions stretching from the origin of galaxies, stars and planets, to the origin of life, early evolution, and the origin of species. The activities of the OI include an undergraduate teaching programme, a series of lectures for the general public, and a forthcoming conference on Astrobiology and the Origin of Life in May 2005, of which I am one of the organisers (see http://origins.mcmaster.ca/).
	We intend to use the conference and associated workshop as a springboard to start new research work and collaborations in the area of astrobiology and the origin of life. My own interest in this is through my work on bacterial evolution (described above). A fundamental issue is to determine what source of energy was used by the earliest life forms. Many types of chemosynthetic bacteria now exist that harness the energy released from ‘downhill’ chemical reactions of inorganic compounds, and it is possible that the first organisms on earth may have survived in this way. I hope to be involved in the analysis of genome sequences of bacteria with unusual types of metabolism. Our aim will be to study the origin and distribution of genes that are responsible for chemosynthetic lifestyles.