Ling Bian

A location-centric network approach to analyzing epidemic dynamics

Figure 1. Spatial distribution of locations' degree centrality in a location-centric, transmission network, shown in colored vertical bars. Also shown is the location of the highest bridging centrality (yellow vertical bar) and locations bridged by the high-bridging location (white links).

Figure 1. Spatial distribution of locations' degree centrality in a location-centric, transmission network, shown in colored vertical bars. Also shown is the location of the highest bridging centrality (yellow vertical bar) and locations bridged by the high-bridging location (white links).

Shiran Zhong and Ling Bian

Recent health threats, such as the SARS, H1N1, and Ebola pandemics, have stimulated great interest in network models to study the transmission of communicable diseases through human interaction and mobility. We propose a location-centric, transmission network approach, in which nodes denote locations and edges denote possible disease transmissions between locations. We then identify the dynamics of transmission flows, the dynamics of critical locations, and the spatial-temporal extent of transmission pathways to assess the impact of these spatial dynamics on the evolution of an epidemic.

Zhong, S and Bian, L. A location-centric network approach to analyzing epidemic dynamics. Annals of the Association of American Geographers.