FYI, information on a new course, Problem-Oriented Programming in Medical Informatics, is available at: http://jhh.cbmi.upmc.edu/pop/ This course targets graduate/post-graduate students who have limited or no programming experience and who are moving into medical informatics. These students typically have backgrounds in the medical/dental sciences, medical library science, or biology/chemistry. In previous years they have taken a one-semester course in C as a prerequisite to other information science courses; few of them program after completing these courses--and some choose to avoid programming. The new course is being offered for the first time this fall in an attempt to give the students a tool set that can be learned quickly, supports the study of information systems, will be useful after coursework is completed, and has the depth to stimulate students to continue to develop their skills. Though this set of requirements is similar to what's needed in secondary and introductory higher education, I think that graduate/post-graduate students--particularly those returning to academics from the workplace--have some unique characteristics and that Python is particularly suited to them. Jim Harrison ________________________________________________________________________ James H. Harrison, Jr., MD, PhD <mailto:jhrsn@pitt.edu> Associate Director of Pathology Informatics, Department of Pathology CLSI 5807-MT, 200 Lothrop Street Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2582 voice: 412-647-5529 | fax: 412-647-5934 Faculty Member in Residence, Center for Biomedical Informatics University of Pittsburgh Suite 8084 Forbes Tower Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2582 voice: 412-647-7113 | fax: 412-647-7190 "If you want sense, you'll have to make it yourself!!"-Norton Juster ________________________________________________________________________