Epidemiology is the study of the distribution of diseases. The purpose of the study referenced below is the launch of the EpiMap project, where cell phones and/or sensors record proximity to other devices. This specific project gathers important information on interactions in the rural communities of countries that are still in the development process. These include Asia, Africa, and South America. This project was a spin-off of a project where they collected data concerning human contact, flu-like symptoms, and the virtual disease spread using phones. EpiMap develops a hybrid method for data collection including the use of mobile phones and various sensors that depend on the environment in developing countries. This method helps model the spread of infectious disease mathematically. This method would also help quantify the social network structures through which close-contact diseases are spread, which would help build understanding of epidemiology.
The dynamic network of connections between participants will be used to investigate the topology of the social network. This includes (1) duration-weighted pairs: time spent in close-proximity is a powerful determinant of infection risk; (2) number of encounters per person; (3) social distances; and (4) community structure. These networks and measures will change overtime, thus creating a well-defined dynamic network of real human interactions, pertinent to respiratory infectious diseases.
This study uses the concept of networks to figure out how and where diseases spread. The uses of mobile phones and/or sensors for measurement of the societal mixing patterns has a great advantage over other data collection methods (such as interviews) because these devices can be programmed to gather information automatically with no disruptions, or problems with memory, which leads to an unparalleled opportunity for data collecting on social contact, which in essence is the study of networks. This article (and epidemiology) takes it one step further by analyzing patterns in disease spread.
Source: http://ac.els-cdn.com/S1570870512001114/1-s2.0-S1570870512001114-main.pdf?_tid=b49ae81e-3dfe-11e4-a16c-00000aab0f26&acdnat=1410912668_87c07bea7b1a198997adadef7c10935e