Digital Health & Epidemiology

Abstract

Online, mobile, global – the ongoing digital revolution affects all aspects of life. Massive amounts of data are now shared by billions of people around the globe through mobile phones, social media services, and other outlets, on any issue imaginable, including issues of health. These data sources can be mined for epidemiological purposes, giving rise to digital epidemiology. Of equal importance, but less discussed, is the fact that these large data sets (big data) provide the raw material for new machine learning algorithms to train on (e.g . “deep learning”), resulting in software that in various domains is close to achieving, or already has achieved, human performance. As human expertise, specifically also white collar expertise, can increasingly be replaced by artificial intelligence, huge disruptive potential will be unleashed. The health domain in particular will be affected deeply. In this seminar, I will discuss opportunities and challenges in these turbulent times.