WEB 2.0, VIRTUAL WORLDS AND DISASTER INFORMATICS

Victor Cid, NLM/SIS/DIMRC – June 1st, 2009

Biomedical Informatics CourseMBL/WHOI, Woods Hole, MA

THEMES

Web 2.0 concepts Examples of Web 2.0 use in Disaster

Management Virtual Worlds concepts Examples of VWs us in Disaster

Management

WHAT IS THE WEB 2.0?

A stage in the evolution of the Web “characterized by unique movements, technologies, philosophies and events, where promise of Internet democratizing communications take affect” (Mohsen Basirat, 2007)

Circa 2000. Term first coined in 2003 by Eric Knorr, then Tim O’Reilly in 2004.

The development of the Web as a platform for collaboration, content creation/sharing, communication.

WHAT IS THE WEB 2.0?

Read/write Web. Anybody can contribute content.

Programmable Web. Web services enable new, innovative services based on existing ones.

Web 2.0 tools and services are greatly accelerating today’s information (r)evolution, and contributing to an unprecedented explosion in information.

Today, over one billion pages are added to the Web daily (Ref: Google). Google indexes around 1.3 trillion WebPages.

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WEB 2.0 IS ABOUT PEOPLE CONNECTING TO PEOPLE

Web 1.0

Few content providers

Many content consumers

Few sharing enablers

Many content sharers

1996: 45 million users(0.8 % worldwide penetration)

2009: 1.6 billion users(24% worldwide penetration)

Web 2.0

250,000 websites

80 million websites

WEB 2.0 AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Managing disasters is fundamentally managing information.

Application of Web 2.0 tools and methods in all areas of disaster management:

Goal Stage Key Information needs

Sustainable Development

Mitigation - Minimizing the occurrence or effects of disasters. Examples: building codes and zoning; vulnerability analyses updates; public education; preventive health care.

Depends on the availability of information on hazards, emergency risks, and the countermeasures to be taken.

Preparedness - Planning how to respond.Examples: preparedness plans; emergency exercises/training; warning systems. updates; public education; preventive health care.

Same and also on making information available to decision makers, government agencies, and the public.

Humanitarian Aid

Response - Efforts to minimize the hazards created by a disaster. Examples: search and rescue; emergency relief .

Information on countermeasures, additional/opportunistic hazards, status of resources and victims. Communications.

Recovery - Returning the community to normal.Examples: temporary housing; grants; medical care; health safety education; counseling programs; economic impact studies.

Like in preparedness stage, plus info about government and other recovery resources.

WEB 2.0 AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Some areas Web 2.0 tools and methodologies are being successfully used in DM include: Education and awareness Professional collaboration Event Monitoring Public Alerting Emergency communications Simulations and drills Research

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

Disaster preparedness videos in YouTube from Cal-PEN (Cal. Preparedness Education Network) and HRSA.

Instructional videos about different aspects of Disaster Preparedness for professionals and the public.

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

Twitter and Disaster Response

During latest CA fires and AH1N1 outbreak, Twitter provided citizens and professionals an effective way to communicate with family, community, and emergency personnel.Even ERs used it to report events and actions when cell phone systems were overwhelmed.

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

Slide sharing

Agencies (like FEMA) and individuals use slide sharing sites to promote disaster preparedness via presentations and class materials that can be used to train emergency workers and the public.

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

Social media sites

Agencies like the American Red Cross and FEMA use social media sites such as Fecebook and Myspace to promote their mission, provide information to the public, recruit volunteers, and other outreach activities.

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

Mashups for disease monitoring

Web services allow combining data and services from multiple sources to create new resources. For example maps of “Twitts” about H1N1 reports, news media and government agency reports of disease alerts, community health reports, etc.

WEB 2.0 EXAMPLES

The Biggest Shakeout

In November2008, California implemented the biggest earthquake drill in history using websites, social media, and traditional media to involve people, organize participants, simulate news report and all associated response actions, collect information from participants, etc.

VIRTUAL WORLDS

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VIRTUAL WORLDS

• Computer-based simulated environment intended for its users to inhabit and interact via avatars.

• Avatars are usually depicted as textual, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional graphical representations.

• Many VWs available online for free participation.

• VWs combine the benefits of social media with rich visual capabilities and enhanced multimedia communication.

• Some have tens of thousands of people/avatars interacting at any given time.

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WHY ARE VWS RELEVANT?

Many are not actually games, but sophisticated 3D information and collaboration platforms.

Provide realistic human and social interaction capabilities: People socialize, make acquaintances, and can establish

communities. Some relationships can extend to real life. Rich communication is enabled by voice, familiar human and

environmental shapes/sounds/behaviors, gestures, and enhanced with other multimedia.

Social “co-presence” of others in a realistic way makes VW experience very compelling.

Video about one of many VWs: Second Life http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wDl5suE2Uo (~0:04)

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WHY ARE VWS RELEVANT?

“Millenials” are very familiar with 3-D computer games.

Today, millions of people already have avatars. Gartner: by 2010, 80% of active Internet users

will have an avatar. Large companies and organizations like IBM, Intel

and the US Army are investing millions in VWs.

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MANY VIRTUAL WORLDS

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VWS ARE EVOLVING AND GROWING

Better user-human interfaces More realism More ubiquitous Not owned by single entity

VWS AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT

Interesting applications on: Professional and Public Education Simulation and Modeling Collaboration Data Visualization

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PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY TRAINING IN VWS

• Idaho State Univ. Institute of Rural Health and Idaho Bio-Terrorism Awareness and Preparedness Program: Play2Train (2:19).

• University of Illinois at Chicago, Center for Advancement of Distant Education (CADE), School of Public Health: virtual emergency exercise environments.

• Darmouth College’s Institute for Security Technology Studies, Emergency Readiness and Response Research Center: Synthetic Environments for Emergency Responders Simulation.

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DISASTER/PH OUTREACH IN VWS

Government agencies (e.g. CDC), medical libraries (e.g. NLM), and other agencies that play key roles during disasters (e.g. NOAA) are creating 3D interactive exhibits that people around the world can visit and interact with.

Groups organize public meetings and events.

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MORE EXAMPLES

Organizations (e.g. Disabled American Veterans) and interested individuals have created on-line (“in-world”) public health or healthcare support groups for a number of interests, such as: Depression/Anxiety, PTSD, copying with grief, and about a variety of health issues such as Stroke, Cancer, Alcoholism, HIV/AIDS, Asperger Syndrome, Cerebral palsy, etc.

Researchers are testing models of disease spread during epidemics.

Hospitals are testing and demonstrating health emergency responses, equipment, etc.

Researchers experiment with new ways to visualize information like weather data.

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CONCLUSIONS

The Web and emerging social media challenge the traditional ways we communicate, collaborate and deal with information.

Yesterday, disaster and public health professionals connected to the net. Today they connect via the net. Soon they may connect in the net.

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THANK YOU

Victor CidSenior Computer ScientistDisaster Information Management Research Center (DIMRC)Specialized Information Services Division (SIS)National Library of Medicine, NIH, HHSvcid@nlm.nih.gov(301) 496 8471SL: Toxie Cortes