Data Science & AI

CERI’s data science team participated in a joint scientific collaboration meeting with Universities of Oxford and Copenhagen as part of funded projects by the Wellcome Trust and NovoNordisk Foundation.

Article by Dr Houriiyah Tegally

ERI’s data science team participated in a joint collaboration meeting in Copenhagen with various international collaborators, including  the Computational and Mathematical Global Health Group at The University of Copenhagen (PIs: Samir Bhatt, David Duchene), University of Oxford (Moritz U G Kraemer and Mahan Ghafari) and the Royal Veterinary College (Oliver Pybus, Jayna Raghwani and Divya Venkatesh). This two-day meeting during beautiful spring days in Copenhagen involved exciting discussions about AI, health, infectious diseases and genetics! One of the aims from this meeting was to identify major themes in these intersecting fields moving forward. The various groups left the meeting collectively looking forward to working on these problems together.

The CERI team was represented by our data scientists: Dr. Houriiyah Tegally (Head of Data Science Unit), Dr. Monika Moir (Researcher), Dr. Gaspary Mwanyika (Postdoc), Jenicca Poongavanan (PhD Student), Graeme Dor (PhD Student), Carlin Foka (PhD student), Haingo Andry (PhD Student), and Daniel Van Zyl (PhD Student). The team presented our breadth of work on arbovirus genomic epidemiology, transmission risk mapping, deep learning for disease distribution mapping and climate migration. We heard from our collaborators about their research involving theoretical methods development, one health research, mathematical modelling, and more. The whole group then split into 4 breakout sessions to discuss emerging research ideas in climate & health, pathogen genomics, optimal public health decision making, and emergence and expansion of pathogens with pandemic potential. The breakout groups further designed specific projects on these topics to be tackled collaboratively over the rest of the year.

In addition to the meeting, the team enjoyed networking over Copenhagen’s breakfast pastries, cycling through cherry blossoms across the city, and during a boat ride to Reffen street foods.

The CERI team reflected on their experience:

Jenicca Poongavanan:

“It was inspiring to see what everyone is working on, smart people tackling big problems. The energy in the room made me proud to be part of this team. Copenhagen’s cherry blossoms and biking culture were stunning, but everytime I meet with our data science team I leave more inspired and this time it was no different. Sharing ideas, facing common PhD struggles, and exchanging feedback in such a collaborative space reminded me how lucky I am to be part of this group.

Gaspary Mwanyika:

“During my recent trip to Copenhagen, I had the opportunity to share preliminary findings from my research on dengue virus genomic surveillance and transmission dynamics in Africa. The discussions were highly productive, with valuable input from international experts on improving molecular clock approaches using single and multi-gene models for analyzing the rapidly evolving viral strains such as dengue, Influenza and SARS-CoV-2 . It was a great platform to refine novel ideas and foster collaboration. Outside the academic sessions, our data science team from CERI enjoyed exploring the city—highlights included a stroll through the beautiful King’s Garden, listening to the Royal Guards that further enriched our experience, underscoring the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in global health research”

Haingo Andry:

“My time at the Copenhagen retreat was a rewarding experience. I presented my initial research on human climate migration to a varied group. The feedback was useful and offered fresh viewpoints on how to tackle the problem. Connecting with people from different fields was just as important. These exchanges showed how interesting it is to combine diverse expertise to address complex global issues like public health. A standout moment was a breakout session on using machine learning for climate challenges. It revealed the huge, underexplord potential in this area, especially when tackled across disciplines. It’s clear there’s a well of possibilities where fields like biology, mathematics, and climate science can meet to spark new questions. The discussions showed how much we can gain by learning from each other, mixing technical skills with other domains for more complete research”

Graeme Dor:

“The trip was a fantastic opportunity to engage with like-minded researchers from diverse yet complementary backgrounds and to experience the impactful research being conducted across the different groups. The complementarity of approaches across the research groups enabled engaging discussions that lead to the identification of potential areas for collaboration. Meeting in person with researchers I had only met once before, or solely online, added a personal dimension that strengthened our connections and made future collaboration feel more actionable. Beyond the research side, it was also my first time visiting Copenhagen, and the trip offered a wonderful chance to explore the beautiful city and bond with colleagues.”

Monika Moir:

The meeting held in Copenhagen with Moritz Kramer’s lab from Oxford and Samir Bhatt’s group from the University of Copenhagen was an inspiring showcase of truly high-level public health science. We learnt about the broad range of theoretical and applied projects the teams are working on, and spent time intentionally searching for projects we can collaboratively develop. We anticipate it to have been a productive meeting that will yield grant applications and scientific publications. The University of Copenhagen hosts gave us a taste of the Danish experience of ‘hygge’ by creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for our discussions.

Carlin Foka:

“The Copenhagen retreat was a truly rewarding experience. It marked the first time I presented my research project, Deep Learning for Disease Distribution Modelling, to an international panel of researchers. I received valuable feedback and insightful suggestions to refine my methodology. One highlight of the retreat was the Hackathon, where I had the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from more experienced participants. I also appreciated the social events, which helped break down barriers and foster potential future collaborations.”

Daniel van Zyl:

“The Copenhagen retreat was a wonderful experience. Copenhagen is a beautiful city, and a wonderful venue for the meeting; and I’m very grateful to the Copenhagen team for having us. It was so fantastic to feel more a part of a bigger picture of epidemic response, and to see what so many amazing minds have been working on. The trip has significantly advanced my work in two key ways: not only did I receive valuable feedback on my presentation, but I also had the opportunity to discuss my future ideas and research aspirations with the Oxford and Copenhagen teams, which has better equipped me to navigate the path ahead. I truly look forward to any future collaborations we may have.”