US-Africa Advanced Studies Institute on Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Disease in Africa; Cape Town, South Africa, June 2007

该奖项资助将于2007年6月在南非开普敦举行的非洲传染病数学建模高级研究所。近年来，传染病的数学建模对疾病管理的理论和实践产生了越来越大的影响，例如艾滋病毒/艾滋病、口蹄疫和SARS，非洲的疾病也是如此。为了进一步了解和预防传染病的传播，至关重要的是要培养既懂建模又懂疾病背景和数据收集的年轻数学家和科学家。最近美非联合建模研究的成功表明了这种合作的优势，并表明双方需要更多训练有素的研究人员和学生。为了解决培训问题，离散数学和理论计算机科学中心(DIMACS)与南非DST/NRF流行病学建模与分析卓越中心(SACEMA)和非洲数学科学研究所(AIMS)合作，将在开普敦举办为期两周的高级研究所，最终将举办为期3天的“顶峰”研讨会，来自美国和非洲的研究所学生和研究人员将在研讨会上互动并建立合作关系。该研究所将强调流行病学建模中使用的数学技术，包括诸如元人口建模、连续和离散时间随机模型、垂直传播模型、空间和基于个人的模型、年龄结构以及疫苗和抗病毒剂量等疾病控制资源的优化分配等高级主题。研讨会将讨论如何设计具有成本效益的、可持续的战略，以抗击疾病在非洲的传播，包括用于监测的现代统计工具、网络方法以及人类和动物疾病的进化方面。演讲者将讨论应对资源短缺、结核病的抗药性、艾滋病毒和疟疾的挑战以及大流行流感的潜在替代干预措施的数学建模工具。来自该研究所的材料将被广泛传播，以便其他人可以使用。该项目将帮助DIMACS项目将当前的国际研究带入美国的本科生课堂。与四所历史悠久的黑人学院和大学(克拉克亚特兰大大学、霍华德大学、摩根州立大学和北卡罗来纳A&A；T大学)合作将使不同的学生群体能够进入该学院。该研究所将在国际背景下为美国学生提供先进的疾病建模知识，开辟美国学生和研究人员与非洲同行之间的新沟通渠道，并为能够持续到未来的合作伙伴关系提供坚实的基础。最后，在课程中加入如此广泛的因素将增加学生和研究人员产生新方法来模拟非洲和世界其他地区艾滋病毒/艾滋病等疾病流行的可能性。该奖项由数学科学部和信息与智能系统部共同资助。

This award funds an Advanced Studies Institute on Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Disease in Africa, to be held in Cape Town, South Africa in June, 2007. In recent years, mathematical modeling of infectious diseases has had an increasing influence on the theory and practice of disease management with such diseases as HIV/AIDS, foot-and-mouth disease, and SARS, and this is increasingly the case with diseases of Africa. In order to further understand and prevent the spread of infectious diseases, it is vitally important to train young mathematicians and scientists who are both knowledgeable about modeling as well as about disease contexts and data gathering. The success of recent joint US-African modeling studies points to the advantages of such collaborations and to the need for more trained researchers and students from both sides. To address the issue of training, the Center for Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science (DIMACS), in collaboration with the South African DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Epidemiological Modeling and Analysis (SACEMA) and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), will hold a two-week advanced studies institute in Cape Town, culminating in a 3-day "capstone" workshop at which institute students and researchers from both the US and Africa will interact and establish collaborations. The institute will emphasize mathematical techniques used in epidemiological modeling including advanced topics such as meta-population modeling, continuous vs. discrete-time stochastic models; models with vertical transmission; spatial and individual-based models; age structure; and optimal allocation of disease control resources such as vaccine and antiviral doses. The workshop will discuss the design of cost-effective, sustainable strategies for combating disease spread in Africa, including modern statistical tools for surveillance, network methods, and evolutionary aspects of diseases of humans and animals. Speakers will address mathematical modeling tools for dealing with shortages of resources, drug resistance to tuberculosis, challenges from HIV and malaria, and potential alternative interventions for pandemic flu. Materials arising from the institute will be widely disseminated so that others can use them. The project will help the DIMACS program bring current international research into the undergraduate classroom in the US. Partnering with four historically Black colleges and universities (Clark Atlanta, Howard, Morgan State, and North Carolina A&T) will enable a diverse group of students to participate in the institute. The institute will provide US students with advanced disease-modeling knowledge within an international context, open new lines of communication between US students and researchers and their African counterparts, and provide a solid basis for collaborative partnerships that can last well into the future. Finally, including such a wide range of factors in the course increases the likelihood that the students and researchers will generate new approaches to modeling disease epidemics such as HIV/AIDS in Africa and the rest of the world.This award is co-funded by the Division of Mathematical Sciences and the Division of Information and Intelligent Systems.