title: Topological data analysis of contagion maps for examining spreading processes on networks.
abstract: Social and biological contagions are influenced by the spatial embeddedness of networks. Historically, many epidemics spread as a wave across part of the Earth's surface; however, in modern contagions long-range edges-for example, due to airline transportation or communication media-allow clusters of a contagion to appear in distant locations. Here we study the spread of contagions on networks through a methodology grounded in topological data analysis and nonlinear dimension reduction. We construct 'contagion maps' that use multiple contagions on a network to map the nodes as a point cloud. By analysing the topology, geometry and dimensionality of manifold structure in such point clouds, we reveal insights to aid in the modelling, forecast and control of spreading processes. Our approach highlights contagion maps also as a viable tool for inferring low-dimensional structure in networks.
authors.affiliation: Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709, USA.|Carolina Center for Interdisciplinary Applied Mathematics, Department of Mathematics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA.
authors.forename: Dane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.affiliation: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, 14473 Potsdam, Germany.|Department of Physics, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 12489 Berlin, Germany.|Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Klimm
authors.affiliation: Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
authors.forename: Heather A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Harrington
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA.
authors.forename: Miroslav
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kramár
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA.|BioMaPS Institute, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA.
authors.forename: Konstantin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mischaikow
authors.affiliation: Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.|CABDyN Complexity Centre, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 1HP, UK.
authors.forename: Mason A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Porter
authors.affiliation: Carolina Center for Interdisciplinary Applied Mathematics, Department of Mathematics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA.
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Mucha
mesh_terms: D018562:Disease Transmission, Infectious; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D014186:Transportation