Resoundingly Human: A look inside the rapid spread of the coronavirus, what are we missing?

02/26/20 • 21 min

In December 2019, the first cases of the coronavirus were identified in Wuhan, China. As the number of infections and subsequent patient deaths has continued to rise, the struggle to treat and contain the spread of the virus has become a worldwide concern for both medical professionals and world leaders.

For this episode I am joined by Richard Larson, post-tenure professor in the Institute for Data, Systems, and Society at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology, whose recently published article with the INFORMS magazine OR/MS Today, “The 2019-nCoV Coronavirus: Are there two routes to infection?” looks at the possible reasons this virus is spreading so rapidly.

Previous Episode

Resoundingly Human: Is your bias affecting my meal?

When we travel to a new place, whether for long overdue vacation, a work trip, or simply a day trip someplace we’ve been meaning to check out, many of us rely on review platforms such as TripAdvisor and Yelp to help us plan our visit. In particular, we look for guidance and advice in selecting restaurants, making choices based on how previous visitors have rated their own experience.

But how accurate are these reviews really? And adding more ‘food’ for thought, how much of a role does personal bias play when it comes to these reviews, and exactly what factors contribute to that bias?

To learn about some surprising ways in which bias impacts online reviews, in this episode I am joined by Marios Kokkodis, professor with the Carroll School of Management at Boston College, whose study, “Your Hometown Matters: Popularity-Difference Bias in Online Reputation Platforms,” is slated for publication in the INFORMS journal Information Systems Research.

Next Episode

Resoundingly Human: Craigslist's role in the illegal drug trade

In a single year, abuse of illegal and prescription drugs costs the U.S. an estimated $271.5 billion, due to increased healthcare costs, crime and lost productivity. Not to mention the growing risk of overdose and death as increasingly potent substances, like fentanyl, are introduced to the market.

This is compounded by the increasing ease with which these illegal substances have become available, enabled in no small part by the internet. And these aren’t necessarily from outlets typically viewed as nefarious, like the dark web, but from sites many of us use regularly.

In this episode I am joined by Anandhi Bharadwaj, vice dean and professor with the Goizueta Business School at Emory University to discuss her research which will be published in the INFORMS journal Management Science. Her study, “Drug Abuse and the Internet: Evidence from Craigslist,” looks at the role Craigslist and similar online platforms have played in the increasing abuse of illegal and prescription drugs in the U.S.