A synthetic computational environment: To control the spread of respiratory infections in a virtual university

Authored by Xiaogang Qiu, Yuanzheng Ge, Bin Chen, Hongbin Song, Yong Wang, Liang Liu

Date Published: 2018

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2017.09.048

Sponsors: Chinese National Natural Science Foundation

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative Flow charts

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

Individual-based computational environment provides an effective solution to study complex social events by reconstructing scenarios. Challenges remain in reconstructing the virtual scenarios and reproducing the complex evolution. In this paper, we propose a framework to reconstruct a synthetic computational environment, reproduce the epidemic outbreak, and evaluate management interventions in a virtual university. The reconstructed computational environment includes 4 fundamental components: the synthetic population, behavior algorithms, multiple social networks, and geographic campus environment. In the virtual university, influenza H1N1 transmission experiments are conducted, and gradually enhanced interventions are evaluated and compared quantitatively. The experiment results indicate that the reconstructed virtual environment provides a solution to reproduce complex emergencies and evaluate policies to be executed in the real world. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tags

Simulation Complex networks behavior Individual-based modeling Model Epidemic influenza transmission Pandemic influenza Virus School closure Synthetic computational environment Disease transmission Intervention evaluation Contact network