Laboratory for the Modeling of Biological and Socio-technical Systems Archives

He predicted the widespread COVID-19 pandemic early on. Now he’s been knighted by the Italian government.

Alessandro Vespignani has been a leader among the experts advising both the American and Italian COVID-19 pandemic responses. For his work forecasting future outbreaks and connecting the two nations, the director of the Network Science Institute at Northeastern has been knighted by the Italian government.

by Eva Botkin-Kowacki September 27, 2021

Alex Vespignani, left, and Marco Ajelli are taking another look at one of the basic assumptions of computer models that forecast the spread of epidemics: that in the early stages of an epidemic, the average number of new cases caused by each infected person is relatively constant. Photo by Adam Glanzman/Northeastern University

Tracking an epidemic requires computer models. But what if those models are wrong?

Researchers at Northeastern have found that one of the basic assumptions used in disease modeling simply isn’t realistic. Now they’re looking at how epidemics travel through various layers of a population to find a better way to track a disease.

by Laura Castañón November 19, 2018

This undated colorized transmission electron micrograph image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows an Ebola virion. A Liberian woman who probably caught Ebola in 2014 may have infected three relatives a year after she first fell sick, doctors reported in a study published in July. (Frederick Murphy/CDC via AP, File)

How long is an Ebola survivor contagious? One case is causing scientists to rethink the answer.

A new report shows that a Liberian woman who survived a case of Ebola in 2014 may have infected her family a year later. The finding could complicate things for scientists such as Northeastern professor Alessandro Vespignani, who study how diseases spread during an outbreak.

by Laura Castañón - contributor August 13, 2018

Laboratory for the Modeling of Biological and Socio-technical Systems

He predicted the widespread COVID-19 pandemic early on. Now he’s been knighted by the Italian government.

Tracking an epidemic requires computer models. But what if those models are wrong?

How long is an Ebola survivor contagious? One case is causing scientists to rethink the answer.

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