Using Social Media Data to Identify Outbreaks and Control Disease

Government Technology: The recent Ebola outbreak unearthed an interesting phenomenon. A “mystery hemorrhagic fever” was identified by HealthMap — software that mines government websites, social networks and local news reports to map potential disease outbreaks — a full nine days before the World Health Organization declared the Ebola epidemic. This raised the question: What potential do the vast amounts of data shared through social media hold in identifying outbreaks and controlling disease?

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