Dr. Chris Bauch
Contact:
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
University of Guelph
MacNaughton, Rm. 536
ph: 519-824-4120 x53079
email: cbauch
Link to Departmental Website
Link to Laboratory Website
Research Interests:
Applications of game theory to vaccination policy: Game theory analyzes situations in which members of a group interact strategically with one another. Voluntary vaccination policies describe such a game theoretical scenario. Individuals base their vaccination decisions partly upon the probability of becoming infected. This probability is in turn influenced by the vaccination decisions of other individuals in the population, since these decisions collectively determine vaccine coverage and hence the course of epidemics in the population. My research in this area is devoted to developing a game theoretical framework for understanding the vaccination behaviour of populations.
Epidemic modelling: Mathematical models can be used to generate quantitative predictions and qualitative insights into epidemiological systems. Alternative epidemiological mechanisms can be explored through modelling in order to understand real-world epidemics, and strategies of disease control can be assessed without resorting to costly or potentially unethical experiments. I'm interested in a wide variety of diseases, including childhood diseases (measles, whooping cough, mumps, chicken pox, rubella, etc.), sexually transmitted diseases, West Nile virus, Hepatitis A and smallpox.
Spatial population dynamics: Spatial structure can significantly alter population dynamics, however explicit spatial models tend to be analytically intractable. Some of my research focuses on spatial dynamics of ecological and epidemiological systems, and in particular the development of analytical approximations (e.g. pair approximations) to explicit spatial models. I am also interested in network models of sexually transmitted disease spread.
Offspring size distributions: Classical theory predicts that organisms should produce a single optimal offspring size, however some organisms, such as Scirpus Maritimus (a clonally reproducing aquatic plant) instead produce a wide range of offspring sizes. My work here is devoted to using mathematical models to understand the reasons for the observed variation in such organisms.
Recent Publications:\
