Having access to accurate, real-time data on the movement of people who might be infected could prove life-saving
INSTAGRAM IS KNOWN mainly for stylish selfies and FOMO-inducing travel pictures. Could the photo-sharing service also be used to track the spread of a pandemic? As governments and health-care providers around the world seek out suspected carriers of the new coronavirus, the popular social network—which people use to share pictures and videos of places they visit, and more generally to socialise—could prove valuable for tracing the path of the virus.
The social-media platform may seem an odd tool for studying the coronavirus outbreak. It is older people, after all, who are most vulnerable to the virus; most Instagram users are under 35 years old. But young people can be powerful carriers of the illness. Because they often experience mild symptoms, infected youngsters may not know they are ill. If they are gregarious and eager to travel, as Instagram users often are, they are even more likely to spread the disease.
The resulting database included some 64,000 Instagram posts. But not all of them were relevant to our analysis. Some users tagged Wuhan, the likely source of the outbreak, in solidarity with those quarantined there, even when they were located elsewhere. To reduce the number of inaccurate locations, we discarded users traced to Wuhan, as well as those which mentioned “coronavirus”, “covid19”, “epidemic”, “pandemic” or variations thereof. We also omitted posts marked “latergram” or “tbt” .
We found that the movements of Instagram users identified as potential carriers of the coronavirus tended to track the movement of the virus itself, as revealed by case locations published by official sources. Some users travelled to virus-free places that were subsequently hit with an outbreak, raising the possibility that they brought the virus there themselves.
As public-health officials scramble to try to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, having access to accurate, real-time data on the movement of people who might be infected could prove life-saving. Instagram and other social-media platforms offer a steady source of information that could be useful in mapping the pandemic—and perhaps limiting its transmission.
日本 最新ニュース, 日本 見出し
Similar News:他のニュース ソースから収集した、これに似たニュース記事を読むこともできます。
Tom Hanks posts coronavirus update to InstagramTom Hanks posts coronavirus update: 'Thanks to the Helpers. Let’s take care of ourselves and each other.'
続きを読む »
Khloe Kardashian posts sweet photo telling baby True 'your daddy and I love you'Khloe Kardashian has posted a photo dedicated to her daughter True, reminding her of how much her parents love her amid the coronavirus panic
続きを読む »
Miley Cyrus Posts 'Hannah Montana' Clips During Quarantine.MileyCyrus posted some HannahMontana throwbacks to raise awareness of the importance of social distancing & more
続きを読む »
Sowers posts heartfelt note she received from young fan'When I see a girl football coach it makes me feel like I can play football even when boys say no.'
続きを読む »
Stephen Malkmus Posts Intriguing -- Yet Wrong -- Ranking of Songs on 'Led Zeppelin IV'Stephen Malkmus ranked all the songs on 'Zeppelin IV.' Too bad he was all wrong
続きを読む »
Pink Posts Piano Lesson, Parenting Advice For Coronavirus Quarantine.Pink is using the coronavirus quarantine as an opportunity to learn the piano and offer up some sweet parenting advice
続きを読む »