Emerging infectious diseases, potential bioterrorism, and known pathogens like tuberculosis and flu  pose an unending threat. Biosurveillance, a component of biosecurity in general, is the effort to track the spread of disease early (by using novel data sources like Google searches on symptoms) or even before the outbreak begins (by monitoring potential disease reservoirs like mosquitoes or livestock). Los Alamos scientists are hard at work on early-warning strategies like these, sophisticated epidemic forecasting models, and the development of rapid, inexpensive, field-ready detection assays that can reliably recognize harmful pathogens.

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