Anonymous
By Harrison Tasoff, UC Santa Barbara
While sheltering at home this spring quarter, one enterprising undergraduate is using the skills he’s learning at UC Santa Barbara to make sense of the pandemic sweeping the globe. Second-year computer science major Eran Naveh has put together a website that tracks cases of COVID-19 in the U.S., allowing users to compare how the disease is impacting different states.
“Like many people, I have been bombarded by news and updates about the coronavirus and early on found myself interested in its spread,” Naveh said. Around the same time, he received an email from the New York Times that announced the paper would be providing COVID-19 data free to use. Naveh began investigating how he could use that data to make better sense of the pandemic, especially regarding its effect on his home town in the Bay Area.
The result: the US COVID-19 Tracker, which offers a simple, straightforward way of visualizing and comparing data on the novel coronavirus from around the country. It also allows users to gauge growth by plotting new cases and deaths per day. What’s more, Naveh included a section that enables users to create their own data table by customizing drop-down menus for different fields.
“I think it is valuable to be able to see numerous states or counties on the same plot,” he said, “especially now that so many areas in the U.S. have reached advanced stages of disease spread.”
Most of the site’s visits so far have come from California, though Naveh has also seen visitors from India, Israel and Thailand, among others.
Naveh originally started this project out of personal interest, but soon recognized the value it could provide to others. It went live online April 7. “I plan on reaching out to friends in other disciplines and working with them on calculating more advanced data insights and possibly projections,” he said, adding that he hopes to have a version optimized for mobile use ready in the near future.
Local readers have put together their own coronavirus graphics to track the number of cases in Santa Barbara County.
Below are their findings:
By Scott
As we see the cases of COVID-19 expand in the United States and Calif, here is a chart I started a few weeks ago, with confirmed cases in Italy, the US, California, and LA county.
Here is the link to the graph and stats.
Another edhat reader created a graph including COVID-19 cases per capita in Santa Barbara County.
By an edhat reader
I saw an interactive coronavirus graph but together by a UCSB student on Reddit today. Below is the post:
Hey guys I built a cool data visualization website that allows you to compare COVID curves from all around the US and also allows you to create your own interesting data tables. I’d love some feedback and would appreciate if you shared it! It’s optimized for computers so if you can check it out on your computer or use landscape mode on your phone please do so. Thanks!! https://www.uscovid19tracker.info
All these models are based on poor and inconsistent data . Ever heard Crap in equals Crap out? What is the criteria for testing in Italy? Or other parts of the US for that matter? It would be slightly better to look at hospital admissions. Until there is significant consistent testing of asymptomatic people we will never know the true extent.
A great analysis on the models/data and how it applies to us locally: https://www.noozhawk.com/article/brian_goebel_current_data_point_to_bent_covid_19_curve_california_20200408
Thanks for putting the graphs together with the data we have available to us. Don’t let the complainers get you down.
I’ve been noticing for the past week or so that the number of cases in North county (Lompoc, Orcutt, Santa Maria) have been higher than South county. These graphs confirm that the cases per capita are much higher in North county. I wonder why that is. Less compliance with social distancing guidelines and/or mask wearing?
I’ve spent the last few weeks working on the italy, US, Cal and LA county graphs
here is the link for Italy, USA and Cal https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/italy/
and the link for LA county http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/
I also used Wikipedia for the populations to get per capita
this information is also on the stats page on the graph. possibly the information is “poor and Inconsistent” , but , I assume that it is accurate until proven otherwise
thanks for your comment
One factor may be poorer people with essential jobs that they can’t do from home. That has a big effect on infection rates and fatalities.
03:46 Regarding your statement “impossible to contain in the prison.” The virus did not originate in the prison. It had to be brought into the prison by a person who works or visited there. It is the result of the virus having not been contained in the community. Not the other way around.