arXiv subjects

Michael Head

Publications and source records attributed to Michael Head.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Journal Publications in Medicine: Ranking vs. Interdisciplinarity

Interdisciplinary research is critical for innovation and addressing complex societal issues. We characterise the interdisciplinary knowledge structure of PubMed research articles in medicine as correlation networks of medical concepts and compare the interdisciplinarity of articles between high-ranking (impactful) and less high-ranking (less impactful) medical journals. We found that impactful medical journals tend to publish research that are less interdisciplinary than less impactful journals. Observing that they bridge distant knowledge clusters in the networks, we find that cancer-related research can be seen as one of the main drivers of interdisciplinarity in medical science. Using signed difference networks, we also investigate the clustering of deviations between high and low impact journal correlation networks. We generally find a mild tendency for strong link differences to be adjacent. Furthermore, we find topic clusters of deviations that shift over time. In contrast, topic clusters in the original networks are static over time and can be seen as the core knowledge structure in medicine. Overall, journals and policymakers should encourage initiatives to accommodate interdisciplinarity within the existing infrastructures to maximise the potential patient benefits from IDR.

cs.SI↗

arXiv2025

Prestigious but less interdisciplinary: a network analysis on top-rated journals in medicine

Interdisciplinary research, a process of knowledge integration, is vital for scientific advancements. It remains unclear whether prestigious journals that are highly impactful lead in disseminating interdisciplinary knowledge. In this paper, by constructing topic-level correlation networks based on publications, we evaluated the interdisciplinarity of more and less prestigious journals in medicine. We found research from prestigious medical journals tends to be less interdisciplinary than research from other medical journals. We also established that cancer-related research is the main driver of interdisciplinarity in medical science. Our results indicate a weak tendency for differences in topic correlations between more and less prestigious journals to be co-located. Accordingly, we identified that interdisciplinarity in prestigious journals mainly differs from interdisciplinarity in other journals in areas such as infections, nervous system diseases and cancer. Overall, our results suggest that interdisciplinarity in science could benefit from prestigious journals easing rigid disciplinary boundaries.

cs.SI↗

arXiv2024

Integration vs segregation: network analysis of interdisciplinarity in funded and unfunded research on infectious diseases

Interdisciplinary research fuels innovation. In this paper, we examine the interdisciplinarity of research output driven by funding. Considering 36 major infectious diseases, we model interdisciplinarity through temporal correlation networks based on funded and unfunded research from 1995-2022. Using hierarchical clustering, we identify coherent periods of time or regimes characterised by important research topics like vaccinations or the Zika outbreak. We establish that funded research is less interdisciplinary than unfunded research, but the effect has decreased markedly over time. In terms of network growth, we find a tendency of funded research to focus on readily established connections leading to compartmentalisation and conservatism. In contrast, unfunded research tends to be exploratory and bridge distant knowledge leading to knowledge integration. Our results show that interdisciplinary research on prominent infectious diseases like HIV and tuberculosis tends to have strong bridging effects facilitating global knowledge integration in the network. At the periphery of the network, we observe the emergence of vaccination-related and Zika-related knowledge clusters, both with limited systemic impact. We further show that despite the surge in publications related to COVID-19, its systematic impact on the disease network remains relatively low. Overall, this research provides a generalisable framework to examine the impact of funding in interdisciplinary knowledge creation. It can assist in priority setting, for example with horizon scanning for new and emerging threats to health, such as pandemic planning. Policymakers, funding agencies, and research institutions should consider revamping evaluation systems to reward interdisciplinary work and implement mechanisms that promote and support intelligent risk-taking.

cs.SI↗

arXiv2024

Modelling the mitigation of anti-vaccine opinion propagation to suppress epidemic spread: A computational approach

Information regarding vaccines from sources such as health services, media, and social networks can significantly shape vaccination decisions. In particular, the dissemination of negative information can contribute to vaccine hesitancy, thereby exacerbating infectious disease outbreaks. This study investigates strategies to mitigate anti-vaccine social contagion through effective counter-campaigns that disseminate positive vaccine information and encourage vaccine uptake, aiming to reduce the size of epidemics. In a coupled agent-based model that consists of opinion and disease diffusion processes, we explore and compare different heuristics to design positive campaigns based on the network structure and local presence of negative vaccine attitudes. We examine two campaigning regimes: a static regime with a fixed set of targets, and a dynamic regime in which targets can be updated over time. We demonstrate that strategic targeting and engagement with the dynamics of anti-vaccine influence diffusion in the network can effectively mitigate the spread of anti-vaccine sentiment, thereby reducing the epidemic size. However, the effectiveness of the campaigns differs across different targeting strategies and is impacted by a range of factors. We find that the primary advantage of static campaigns lies in their capacity to act as an obstacle, preventing the clustering of emerging anti-vaccine communities, thereby resulting in smaller and unconnected anti-vaccine groups. On the other hand, dynamic campaigns reach a broader segment of the population and adapt to the evolution of anti-vaccine diffusion, not only protecting susceptible agents from negative influence but also fostering positive propagation within negative regions.

cs.SI↗

arXiv2021

The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE): Pre-Launch

Scheduled to launch in late 2021, the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a NASA Small Explorer Mission in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The mission will open a new window of investigation - imaging X-ray polarimetry. The observatory features 3 identical telescopes each consisting of a mirror module assembly with a polarization-sensitive imaging X-ray detector at the focus. A coilable boom, deployed on orbit, provides the necessary 4-m focal length. The observatory utilizes a 3-axis-stabilized spacecraft which provides services such as power, attitude determination and control, commanding, and telemetry to the ground. During its 2-year baseline mission, IXPE will conduct precise polarimetry for samples of multiple categories of X-ray sources, with follow-on observations of selected targets.

astro-ph.IM↗