Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.

In this paper, we present algorithms to find near-optimal sets of epidemic spreaders in complex networks. We extend the notion of local-centrality, a centrality measure previously shown to correspond with a node's ability to spread an epidemic, to sets of nodes by introducing combinatorial loca...

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Main Authors: Geoffrey Moores, Paulo Shakarian, Brian Macdonald, Nicholas Howard
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2014-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090303&type=printable
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author Geoffrey Moores
Paulo Shakarian
Brian Macdonald
Nicholas Howard
author_facet Geoffrey Moores
Paulo Shakarian
Brian Macdonald
Nicholas Howard
author_sort Geoffrey Moores
collection DOAJ
description In this paper, we present algorithms to find near-optimal sets of epidemic spreaders in complex networks. We extend the notion of local-centrality, a centrality measure previously shown to correspond with a node's ability to spread an epidemic, to sets of nodes by introducing combinatorial local centrality. Though we prove that finding a set of nodes that maximizes this new measure is NP-hard, good approximations are available. We show that a strictly greedy approach obtains the best approximation ratio unless P = NP and then formulate a modified version of this approach that leverages qualities of the network to achieve a faster runtime while maintaining this theoretical guarantee. We perform an experimental evaluation on samples from several different network structures which demonstrate that our algorithm maximizes combinatorial local centrality and consistently chooses the most effective set of nodes to spread infection under the SIR model, relative to selecting the top nodes using many common centrality measures. We also demonstrate that the optimized algorithm we develop scales effectively.
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spelling doaj-art-d7bc59eefe2b4aef8fed18350093e44c2025-08-20T02:14:56ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032014-01-0194e9030310.1371/journal.pone.0090303Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.Geoffrey MooresPaulo ShakarianBrian MacdonaldNicholas HowardIn this paper, we present algorithms to find near-optimal sets of epidemic spreaders in complex networks. We extend the notion of local-centrality, a centrality measure previously shown to correspond with a node's ability to spread an epidemic, to sets of nodes by introducing combinatorial local centrality. Though we prove that finding a set of nodes that maximizes this new measure is NP-hard, good approximations are available. We show that a strictly greedy approach obtains the best approximation ratio unless P = NP and then formulate a modified version of this approach that leverages qualities of the network to achieve a faster runtime while maintaining this theoretical guarantee. We perform an experimental evaluation on samples from several different network structures which demonstrate that our algorithm maximizes combinatorial local centrality and consistently chooses the most effective set of nodes to spread infection under the SIR model, relative to selecting the top nodes using many common centrality measures. We also demonstrate that the optimized algorithm we develop scales effectively.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090303&type=printable
spellingShingle Geoffrey Moores
Paulo Shakarian
Brian Macdonald
Nicholas Howard
Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
PLoS ONE
title Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
title_full Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
title_fullStr Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
title_full_unstemmed Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
title_short Finding near-optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network.
title_sort finding near optimal groups of epidemic spreaders in a complex network
url https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090303&type=printable
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