CFP: Journal of Web Semantics special issue on life science and e-science

Call for Papers

Special issue of the Journal of Web Semantics
on Life Science and e-Science

TL;DR: The Elsevier Journal of Web Semantics (http://bit.ly/ElsJWS)
seeks submission of papers for a special issue on Life Science and
e-Science (http://bit.ly/JWSlses) edited by Tim Clark and Marco
Roos. Submission are due by 2013-7-31 with acceptances in November,
preprints online in December and hardcopy published in early 2014.


Semantic technologies promoted by the W3C play an increasingly
prominent role in how life sciences are performed. From
ontologies that provide a common controlled vocabulary for
describing data, to publication of data as Linked Open Data and
its subsequent analysis. RDF and OWL are becoming the norm for
interoperability of metadata and to some extent, data, between
systems that can operate on the web. Increasingly large data sets
are beginning to be tackled and made the subject of large data
integration experiments. New models have been proposed that aim
to capture trust and quality of data and experiments.

In the life sciences, semantic web tools and paradigms have found
their way into many aspects of bio- and health informatics, with
exciting applications appearing in areas ranging from plant
genetics to drug discovery. Semantic technologies are becoming
ever more capable of enhancing research practices in the life
sciences, and thus a cornerstone for e-Science in this domain. It
is also in here that many of the issues that result from putting
theory to practice are encountered, making life sciences a prime
driver for testing out, applying, and developing semantic
technologies and e-Science.

To address the role that semantic technologies have come to play
in enhancing the life sciences, and in turn acknowledging the
role that this plays in maturing these technologies, we wish to
publish a special issue of JWS containing novel research articles
in this area. We welcome papers that demonstrate how semantic
technologies enhance research, for instance by enabling
intelligent search for new biological insights, or by enhancing
digital research practices.

Topics of particular interest include
* Web tools based on semantic technologies that change how life
scientists work (Semantic Web, Agents, Databases, High
Performance reasoning, Web standards, etc.)
* Advancements in Life Science enabled by Web Semantics
* New ways of publishing data and methods (scholarly
communication), including mechanisms of dissemination,
organization, understanding and use of workflows, web
services, data, and knowledge.
* Life science information management and interoperability
* Knowledge discovery
* Paradigm shifts in the life sciences that result from the
adoption of new standards and practices.

Important dates
* Paper submission deadline: July 31, 2013
* Initial notification of acceptance (approximate): November 2013
* Publication in early 2014

Guest editors
* Tim Clark, Massachusets General Hospital, Harvard Medical
School, University of Manchester (twclark at partners.org)
* Marco Roos, Leiden University Medical Center, University of
Amsterdam, NBIC (M.Roos1 at uva.nl)