The use of computation in biology is growing and will become more central without any explicit central effort. However, that is not enough. Despite the increased use of bioinformatics tools at UCD, what is lacking in comparison to universities with recognized strength in bioinformatics, is a core of people who actually analyze, develop and implement rather than just use bioinformatics tools and methodologies. What is needed is a core of people who do bioinformatics research, publish in bioinformatics venues, and are recognized by the bioinformatics communities. Having such people on campus will not only make bioinformatics at UCD more visible, but will facilitate and expand the effective use of bioinformatics by other biologists and students on campus.
UCD cannot move to the next level of sophistication in bioinformatics, or even in the use of bioinformatics tools, without people whose research and teaching explicitly focuses on bioinformatics as a subdiscipline in itself, in conjunction with research in traditional biological areas.