Studying epidemics in virtual worlds

After news reports about an outbreak of swine flu in Mexico, health officials in Allegheny County, PA, tested 15 different courses of action in a virtual model of the country. A team at the University of Pittsburgh had built a virtual world, similar to Second Life or SimCity, with the county's 1.3 million residents represented by digital characters. It ran through 15 scenarios, with a variety of government reactions.