Link Operations for Slowing the Spread of Disease in Complex Networks

Abstract

A variety of social, biological and communication networks can be modelled using graph theoretical tools. Similar graphical tools can be used to model the topology by which disease, errors, and/or other undesired phenomenon etc. is spread and propagated through such networks. Certain network operations are proposed in this work that can be used to slow the spread of diseases in complex network topologies. The approach considered in this work differs from existing techniques in that it is based on optimally removing (or immunizing) individual links in the network as opposed to individual nodes. A systematic algorithm is outlined to achieve this edgewise immunization via a relaxed convex optimization protocol.