%0 Journal Article %J DIMACS Series in Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science %D 2006 %T Structure of social contact networks and their impact on epidemics %A Eubank,S. %A Kumar,V. S.A %A Marathe,M. V %A Srinivasan, Aravind %A Wang,N. %X Traditional epidemiological research has focused on rate-based differential-equation models on completely mixing populations. In this paper, we outline an approach based on a combination of net- work theory and discrete-event simulations to study epidemics in large urban areas. We survey some of our results published in Nature (2004) and the Proc. ACM-SIAM Symposium on Discrete Algorithms (2004), and present some new results on: (i) mathematical properties of large social contact networks, as well as (ii) simulation-based dynamic anal- ysis of disease-spread in such networks. We identify a number of new measures that are significant for understanding epidemics and for devel- oping new strategies in policy planning. We also perform a very detailed structural analysis of the social contact networks produced by TRAN- SIMS, a simulator for detailed transportation/traffic studies, and study two random graph models to generate realistic social networks: Chung- Lu’s model and the configuration model. We also develop combinatorial formulations and approximation algorithms for quarantining, vaccina- tion and sensor placement, as aids to decision-making. %B DIMACS Series in Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science %V 70 %P 181 - 181 %8 2006/// %G eng