A delegation from IFB attended the Journées Ouvertes en Biologie, Informatique et Mathématiques (JOBIM) from June 25-28, 2024, in Toulouse. This event featured a mini symposium highlighting Wasm technology.

"Wasm Technology: A Revolution for Bioinformatics Learning?"

A symposium dedicated to Wasm provided an opportunity to present the characteristics and advantages of solutions based on this technology in the field of bioinformatics. Highlighting the resources available in France and abroad provides an opportunity to reflect on the opportunities offered by these new technological approaches, particularly for the development of educational resources. Training is a theme that is still rarely represented in events of this scale on a national scale, and the cross-disciplinary approach it brings has been a resounding success.

WebAssembly (Wasm) technology is a compiled and portable format for executing code in a web browser, offering cross-platform compatibility and access to native hardware performance. For example, it enables Unix, R and Python environments to run in the user's browser, independently of their operating system and without any external computing power. Applications such as JupyterLite, webR and sandbox.bio are already available. The challenge for the IFB's e-learning group is to integrate these technical solutions into teaching programmes tailored to the needs of the life sciences community.

Production by the e-learning Group, written productions and services made available to the community : 

- Unix skills Matrix

- Poster presenting this matric and related tutorials

- Sandbox.bio.ifb Unix educational platform

- Wasm4learn R et Python Learning platform (version Beta)