Workshop on Demographic Inference using GADMA

Overview

We invite you to take part in a Workshop on Demographic Inference using GADMA! This workshop is exclusively for colleagues and students at IEE.

Registration is limited to a maximum of 20 places (first come, first served) and is open untill 10 October, please see details below.

REGISTER HERE

Details

• Date & Time: 16-17 October 2025 (9:30 – 16:30) with an additional Q&A session on 20 October
• Format: On-site
• Where: University of Edinburgh (Room details will be announced later)
• Registration Deadline: 10 October
• Fee: Free of charge
• Capacity: Limited to 20 participants

What You Will Learn

• Demographic History Representation: Start with demes to visually and textually represent demographic histories, helping you interpret results and create clear, informative figures
• Data Preparation: Learn how to prepare your sequencing data for effective demographic inference, ensuring accuracy and reliability in your analyses
• Site Frequency Spectrum Construction: Use easySFS to build a site frequency spectrum, an informative summary statistic for demographic inference
• Demographic History Inference: Apply GADMA to infer complex demographic histories

You are welcome to analyse your own data (please see FAQ for details). If you do not have any data, we will provide a toy example dataset for practice.

Session Timings

The two-day workshop will take place on 16–17 October, with two sessions each day:

• First session: 9:30 – 12:30
• Lunch break: 12:30 – 13:30
• Second session: 13:30 – 16:30

There will be an additional Q&A session on Monday, October 20, from 9:30 to 11:30, where you can discuss and ask questions about your results.

Approximate Schedule

Organizer

• Ekaterina Noskova, University of Edinburgh
• Konrad Lohse, University of Edinburgh

Registration

Registration is now open! Please register before 10 October 2025.

REGISTER HERE

FAQ

Can I use my own data?

Yes, you are welcome to analyse your own data. Please bring a VCF file to the workshop.

Important:

• Do not filter the VCF file beforehand; we will learn how to filter it together during the workshop.
• If you have a large VCF file, such as whole-genome data, consider starting with a smaller portion, like one chromosome. Once you have practiced with a smaller dataset, you can run the full analysis on the complete VCF file over the weekend, allowing you to validate results during the additional session on October 20.

Do I need a laptop or a server?

You can use either a laptop or a server for all tasks. Our toy example can be run on a laptop. However, we recommend using both: run small examples on your laptop for practice and quick testing and use the cluster for larger analyses. Ensure the necessary software is installed beforehand.

What software do I need to install?

Detailed instructions on the necessary tools and installation will be sent one to two weeks before the workshop. It is important to have the tools installed beforehand to maximize our time during the sessions.

What skills are required?

Basic command line knowledge is required, as we will use command line tools during the workshop. Need a refresher? Check out our course available at http://fribash.netlify.app/.

What is the purpose of the Q&A session on Monday?

The additional Q&A session on Monday allows participants to discuss any remaining questions, receive clarifications, and review results. You can run demographic inference on a cluster over the weekend, and we will check the results together on Monday.

Will there be materials available after the workshop?

Yes, all workshop materials will be shared with participants afterwards.

Contact

If you have any questions, please email Ekaterina Noskova (ekaterina.e.noskova@gmail.com).