SIMULATOR TO OPTIMIZE STRATEGIES FOR ENDING LOCKDOWN
At a certain stage in the global COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that locking down was easier than starting up again. Risk calculation, strategy and ongoing flexibility in tracking the crisis is still a challenge to decision makers around the world.
Technion Math Prof. Nir Gavish, and Rappaport Medical Faculty Prof. Omri Barak and the Civic Cabinet joined forces to develop an economy-focused simulator aimed at helping decision-makers implement a successful exit strategy.
“Various plans for releasing the lockdown were recently presented to the public,” Gavish said in a statement. “Sharing information about these tools and the data on which they are based will make it possible to conduct a pragmatic discussion on the exit strategies and will help the scientific community contribute to the decision-making process.”
“One of our principal values is transparency,” Barak explained. “Transparency means genuinely involving the public – the simulator will be available to everyone who wants to use it, and this way the public will be able to understand why certain decisions are made rather than others. This will enhance public trust, which we believe is almost as important a resource as hospital beds. Trust based on transparency will boost compliance with guidelines and will thereby be beneficial to all of us.”
The creation of the simulator was born out of Gavish’s Introduction to Applied Mathematics course at Technion.
