Google Trends Takes on the Flu
Do you head the web at the first sign of the flu, curiously plugging your symptoms into Google to search for a cure for what ails you? Congratulations, you’re helping Google predict flu outbreaks.
The search giant found that, by combing through searches looking for flu-related terms, it was able to predict flu cycles with almost the same accuracy as the Center for Disease Control (CDC).
To put that data to use, Google has gathered up its anonymously aggregated searches and compiled the new Google Flu Trends. The idea behind the trends site is to provide an up-to-date prediction of flu outbreaks.
While, as you would expect, the CDC has considerably more data at its disposal, it can take weeks to process that data. Google’s data may lack depth, but it’s real-time and, according to flu experts, speed is the key to preventing large scale outbreaks.
According to the new Flu Trends site:
During the 2007-2008 flu season, an early version of Google Flu Trends was used to share results each week with the Epidemiology and Prevention Branch of the Influenza Division at CDC. Across each of the nine surveillance regions of the United States, we were able to accurately estimate current flu levels one to two weeks faster than published CDC reports.
So how about right now? Although based on past years we’re nearly due for a spike in flu-related searches, so far Google Flu Trends reports that your risks of getting sick are low.
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