ABSTRACT
Genomics studies the structure, function, and diversity of genomes (genome being the collective term for all the genetic information contained in a particular organism). As a discipline, genomics began with the rst attempts to obtain large-scale sequence data for individual organism by sequencing the genomic DNA. Genome sequencing has ushered in a new era of investigation in the biological sciences, allowing us to embark for the rst time on a truly comprehensive study of vertebrate evolution, the results of which will touch nearly every aspect of vertebrate biological enquiry (Cock et al., 2010).
