CASUS Distinguished Lecture Series, Dr. Marc Wiedermann, Deputy Group Lead Project Group Computational Epidemiology, Robert-Koch Institute, Berlin & postdoc Research on Complex Systems group, Humboldt University of Berlin
Marc received a PhD in Theoretical Physics in 2018 from Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany. He joined the Corona Data Donation App project led by Prof. Dirk Brockmann in mid-2020 as a postdoc and data scientist. Marc has widespread interest and experience in the development of novel methods for time series analysis, data visualization and the reduction of large-scale system properties to core principles. He is involved in predictive modeling tasks for the Corona Data Donation App project as well as exploratory analyses of anomalous patterns in another project, the COVID-19 Mobility Project.
Abstract of the talk// The Corona Data Donation App project is one of the largest citizen science initiatives worldwide. From 2020 to 2022, over 120,000 German adults donated continuous daily measurements of resting heart rate, physical activity and sleep timing for the advancement of public health research. These valuable data streams were collected passively through a dedicated smartphone app, seamlessly connecting with participants’ fitness trackers and smartwatches. Additionally, users actively engaged in regular surveys, sharing insights into their health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The resulting unique combination of survey and vital data enabled the exploration of a wide range of public health-related questions. In particular, Marc will present (i) the design of a real-time monitoring system for population-wide COVID-19 disease burden based on wearable data, (ii) estimations of prolonged physical distress after a SARS-CoV-2 infection in terms of anomalous heart rate, activity and sleep, (iii) regional patterns in human sleep where urban residents increasingly deviate from natural rhythms, and (iv) the positive interrelation between regular activity, healthy sleep, and self-assessed mental well-being.
Ultimately, he will showcase the team’s outreach activities for keeping participants engaged and discuss the potential of digital tools like the Corona Data Donation Project for mobilizing significant shares of the public to address the contemporary challenges of our time.
Marc Wiedermann will be talking live in Görlitz. However, as the event is organized in a hybrid format that includes a videoconferencing tool by Zoom Inc., people interested in the topic have the chance to also join the talk remotely. Please ask for the login details via contact@casus.science.