Joshua Weitz, Georgia Tech

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Event Details
  • Date/Time:
    • Tuesday November 25, 2014 - Wednesday November 26, 2014
      2:00 pm - 1:59 pm
  • Location: Georgia Tech, Klaus Advanced Computing Building, 1116E
  • Phone: (404) 894-3700
  • URL:
  • Email:
  • Fee(s):
    N/A
  • Extras:
Contact

If you have questions about logistics or would like to set up an appointment with the speaker, please contact the School of Biology's administrative office at bio-admin@biology.gatech.edu.

Summaries

Summary Sentence: Mathematical Models of the Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak in West Africa: Principles, Predictions, and Control

Full Summary: Mathematical Models of the Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak in West Africa: Principles, Predictions, and ControlThe Ebola epidemic in West Africa has spurred an international response. This response has been strongly influenced by epidemiological models that predicted a devastating rise in cases without large-scale changes in behavior and intervention. In this talk, I introduce the mathematical principles underlying predictions of the rate and scope of a disease epidemic.  I then explain how such principles have been applied to forecasting Ebola virus disease (EVD) dynamics and identifying the type and scale of necessary control. One control mechanism involves influencing behavior and social norms to limit post-death transmission, e.g., during burial ceremonies of individuals who died from EVD. Post-death transmission for EVD has been recognized for over 10 years, yet its relative importance in the current epidemic remains uncertain.  I conclude my talk with an analysis of ongoing challenges in estimating the relative importance of post-death transmission from early-stage epidemic data.  I show why such estimation is hard and yet, nonetheless, why controlling post-death transmission is likely to have a substantial effect on short- and long-term epidemic outcomes.

Mathematical Models of the Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak in West Africa: Principles, Predictions, and Control

Additional Information

In Campus Calendar
No
Groups

School of Biological Sciences

Invited Audience
Undergraduate students, Faculty/Staff, Public, Graduate students
Categories
Seminar/Lecture/Colloquium
Keywords
Joshua Weitz, School of Biology Seminar
Status
  • Created By: Jasmine Martin
  • Workflow Status: Published
  • Created On: Nov 17, 2014 - 8:01am
  • Last Updated: Apr 13, 2017 - 5:21pm