Open Forum

Oftentimes, the Editors are contacted by attentive readers and are drawn into lively and thoughtful discussions of the work published in Genome Research.

In this issue, you are invited to steal a glimpse into one of these conversations. As commissioned Forum articles, these short commentaries are meant to provide insight into the problems that have arisen, and those that lay before us, along the cryptic course of genomic pursuit.

This month, the Forum discussion highlights the difficulties that emerge when two fields approach a similar problem in different ways. Froenicke, Bourque, and colleagues contrast comparative molecular cytogenetics and genome rearrangement-based bioinformatic approaches in the studies of mammalian genome evolution. The occasional divide between bioinformatics and molecular studies is one that begs attention and the publication of these perspectives is intended to open a forum for further discussion within these and other communities where similar discrepancies arise, with the hope of bringing them together.

A sign of the times, seemingly disparate disciplines have converged upon the same questions, and we find ourselves needing each other. We must learn new languages to communicate effectively. We must accept the limitations of our chosen approaches, appreciate the strengths of others', and offer our expertise to one another to gain a new and higher understanding of the biology and evolution of genomes. We must form thoughtful collaborations that hold a problem up to the light and twist it about, viewing it from every angle. Although discussion of these transitions—just as the transitions themselves—are arduous and cannot be expected to progress without frustration, there is a common goal, and seeking ways of working together to make sense of the immense amount of data that continues to be unveiled seems a worthwhile endeavor.

I feel privileged to be part of this ongoing discourse and encourage you, the members of the Genome Research community, to join the forum and offer your feedback on issues of interest and importance to you.