John W. Ayers

About

DATA SAVES LIVES

John Ayers, John W Ayers, John W. Ayers, Google Trends Health, Big Data, Big Media Data, Ayers

Vice Chief of Innovation | Assoc. Professor
Div. Infectious Disease & Global Public Health University of California San Diego
email: ayers.john.w@gmail.com

John W. Ayers, PhD, MA, is a CSU Bakersfield, Johns Hopkins and Harvard trained computational epidemiologist who uses big data to yield rapid and novel insights with measurable public health impacts. He is the Vice Chief of Innovation in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Public Health, Associate Professor of Medicine, and Affiliate Scientist in the Qualcomm Institute all at UC San Diego.

Together with Ben Althouse, Mark Dredze, and Eric Leas he has yielded many actionable insights including the discovery of seasonal patterns across mental illness, the discovery of circaseptan (day-of-the-week) patterns in health behaviors, the first replicable evaluation strategy for discrete awareness campaigns, a major overhaul of infectious disease forecasting algorithms, how Netflix's 13 Reasons Why increased suicides, and a data driven strategy to passively discover the public's health concerns. Nate Silver's Five Thirty Eight called him a "brave scientist" for his work on controversial issues like gun violence prevention. He was awarded the Burroughs Wellcome Fund innovator in regulatory science award.

Position Paper

Biosketch

Support

News

A recent study bemoaned the lack of science in awareness days, with many concluding awareness is overrated. Yet there are more awareness days than calendar days. Using news reports, Twitter postings, Web searches, Wikipedia impressions, and phone logs, you can evaluate the impact of awareness days and make them more impactful.

JMIR Pub Health

When Charlie Sheen disclosed his HIV positive status he did not promote HIV prevention nor did the news media. Yet millions of Americans went online in record numbers to find information about HIV symptoms, HIV testing, and condoms. On the heels of this discovery Sheen now speaks out on HIV prevention.

JAMA Internal Medicine

Is Awareness

Overated?

The economy can do more than leave you with an empty feeling in the pit of your stomach, it also makes you sick. For the first time economic conditions were linked with population health in near real time. For instance, a 1 percent change in unemployment is associated with a 7 percent change in population psychological distress.

J Affective Disorders | Am J Prev Med

Some speculate augmented reality games, like Pokémon GO, promote activity. But do they also pose dangerous side effects? Letting millions of Twitter users be our eyes and ears, in just 10 days more than 110,000 instances of distracted driving were reported, with this discovery leading to some safety improvements.

JAMA Internal Medicine

Does speaking up on climate change make a difference? Yes! Climate change advocacy is fostering public engagement with climate change isssues, with DiCaprio's Oscar acceptence speech concurring with record public engagement on climate change. Yet, words matter. Calls to action appear to resonate more than narratives.

PLoS One

Fewer than 250 reports on PubMed include the term ‘gun violence’ whereas, more than 88,000 studies make reference to ‘influenza,’ even though both rival the other as a cause of death. Why? There isn't federal funding. Yet free big media data can fill the gap by providing some data where literally no other data exist.

Bloomberg D4GX #1 | D4GX #2

RESEARCH WITH AN IMPACT

Tobacco Watcher is the first fully automated media monitoring terminal dedicated to informing global tobacco control. Operating 24/7/365, TW brings the world’s news (in 23 languages, from more than 350,000 sources) together in one place, extracts actionable insights, and pushes these insights to tobacco control advocates and decision makers.

www.tobaccowatcher.org

Public health leaders are often cautious, choosing to wait for traditional data instead of taking reasonable action in response to novel big media data. However, our findings underscore the value of big media data for yielding rapid, valid intelligence to make public health actionable and more responsive to the public it serves.

Prev Sci | Am J Prev Med

#MeToo brought sexual harassment and/or assault to the forefront of public discourse, but how has it impacted the lives of the public beyond the rich and famous? Even a year after #MeToo began, we found public engagement with sexual harassment training was 51% higher than expected, while reporting harassment was 30% higher.

JAMA Internal Medicine

The national marijuana industry is booming. While regulators sit idle, marijuana companies have modeled their strategies after big tobacco's greatest hits from the 1950s. This includes using false health claims (branding marijuana as a cure-all) and appealing to children (with kid friendly products, even high school varsity jackets).

JAMA | Am J Prev Med

Experts have expressed grave concerns because Netflix's "13 Reasons Why" ignores the World Health Organization's validated media guidelines for preventing suicide. Tragically, it is unsurprising then that the show increased Internet searches for suicide by 19%, including searches for "how to commit suicide."

JAMA Internal Medicine | JAMA Editorial

Heat-not-burn tobacco is big tobacco's latest product innovation to attract tech-savvy, health-conscious consumers. Two years ago there were essentially no interest in these products, but now there are between 5.9 and 7.5 million internet searches for heat-not-burn products in Japan (the first national test market) each month.

PLoS One

In the first two studies to assess the collateral consequences of COVID-19 on behavioral health we find millions of Americans sought out miracle cures online and panic attacks reached record highs, with spikes in each corresponding to the implementation of social distancing guidelines and media coverage on COVID-19.

JAMA Internal Medicine #1 | #2

Forget Dr. Google, the public is turning to social media to obtain "crowd-diagnoses" for their ailments. We found tens of thousands are seeking diagnoses for sexually transmitted diseases on public social media, even posting pictures of their you-know-what! Sometimes crowd-diagnoses are even being used to overrule a doctor’s diagnosis.

JAMA

CBD is this generation's snake oil. Falsely touted as a "cure all" we found staggering demand for CBD. 6.4 million Americans turn to Google to learn about or buy CBD each month, eclipsing or rivalling interest in most other health products or topics, including marijuana, yoga, exercise, meditation, and even electronic cigarettes.

JAMA Network Open

Mondays can literally kill you. You are more likely to have a stroke or worse on Monday. Yet, maybe Monday isn't all bad. Across the globe Web searches for health behavior changes spike on Monday, even though news and social media do not echo that pattern. On what day would you buy health promotion advertising?

JAMA Internal Medicine | Am J Prev Med | OpEd |

Is mental health seasonal? Web searches for mood are linked with the seasons, but surprisingly this seasonal pattern is replicated across a number of illnesses, including adhd, bipolar schizophrenia, etc. Since all theories are based on some data, what new theoretical development is needed in mental health research and can it lead to treatment?

Am J Prev Med | Am J Prev Med Blog

Everyone wants a miracle cure, but they often don't exist. This was especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic, with demand for unproven therapies skyrocketing as we reported. Showing this problem is always with us, we mined social media posts to discover how the public was using CBD to replace proven therapies (e.g., to treat Afib).

JAMA Internal Medicine | JAMA Network Open

Demand for abortion medications reached record highs after the Supreme Court of the United States draft ruling that would potentially overturn Roe v. Wade was leaked online. These trends may foretell similar public responses as abortion laws change in wake of a fractured policy landscape pending federal legislation.

JAMA Internal Medicine

Most misinformation
comes from bots, not people

In a first-of-its-kind study we discovered a majority of misinformation about COVID-19 on Facebook comes from bots, not people. Moreover, bots were significantly more likely to promote conspiracies. By targeting bots (which hamper freedom of speech by crowding out real voices) the infodemic may be cured.

JAMA Internal Medicine

Publications

PUBLICATIONS (click titles for pdfs)

Suicide Risk Behaviors among Sexual Minority Adolescents in the United States, 2015

Theodore L. Caputi, Davey Smith, John W. Ayers

JAMA. 2017;318(23):2349-2351.

| Washington Blade | Time |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Can a Selfie Promote Public Engagement with Skin Cancer?

Seth M. Noar, Eric C. Leas, Benjamin M. Althouse, Mark Dredze, D Kelley, John W. Ayers

Preventive Medicine. 2017; doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2017.10.038.

| Parade | Yahoo! v2 |

* Watch a viral video documenting our study

* Health Leader's "10 Most Memorable Stories of 2017"

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

They're Heating Up: Internet Search Query Trends Reveal Significant Public Interest in Heat-Not-Burn Tobacco Products

Theodore L. Caputi, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Joanna E. Cohen, John W. Ayers

PLoS One. 2017; 12:e0185735.

* As Philip Morris promotes heat-not-burn in the United States many cite this study

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Internet Searches for Suicide Following the Release of 13 Reasons Why

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Jon-Patrick Allem

JAMA Internal Medicine 2017;177(10):1527-1529.

* Ranked in the top 1,000 most circulated articles among 11+ million articles scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 25 most circulated articles in JAMA Internal Medicine according to Altmetric

* Read the JAMA Internal Medicine Editorial

* Read my coauthor's editorial in Salon

* Read Netflix cast's response to the criticism

The Charlie Sheen Effect on Rapid In-home Human Immunodeficiency Virus Test Sales

Jon-Patrick Allem, Eric C. Leas, Theodore L. Caputi, Mark Dredze, Benjamin M. Althouse, Seth M. Noar, John W. Ayers

Prev Sci 2017;18(5):541-544.

* Ranked in the top 0.1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Was then the 2nd all-time most circulated article in Prev Sci according to Altmetric

* As the title suggests, this is a follow up to the oft-cited 2016 study

Why Do People Use Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (Electronic Cigarettes)? A Content Analysis of Twitter, 2012-2015

John W. Ayers, Eric C. Leas, Jon-Patrick Allem, Mark Dredze, Adrian Benton, Benjamin M. Althouse, Tess B. Cruz, Jennifer B. Unger

PLoS One. 2017;12:e0170702.

| Huffington Post | Union Tribune |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Can Big Media Data Revolutionize Gun Violence Prevention?

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Eric C. Leas, Ted Alcorn, Mark Dredze

Bloomberg Data for Good Exchange. 2016.

| Tech at Bloomberg | Politico | Five Thirty Eight |

After Sandy Hook Elementary: A Year in the Gun Control Debate on Twitter

Adrian Benton, Braden Hancock, Glen Coppersmith, John W. Ayers, Mark Dredze

Bloomberg Data for Good Exchange. 2016.

| Tech at Bloomberg | Politico | Five Thirty Eight |

Which Cigarettes Do Americans Think are Safer?

Eric C. Leas, John W. Ayers, David Strong, John Pierce

Tobacco Control. 2016;tobaccocontrol-2016-053334.

Pokémon GO - A New Distraction for Drivers and Pedestrians

John W. Ayers, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Jon-Patrick Allem, Jurek Grabowski, Linda Hill

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2016;176(12):1865-1866.

* Read Pokémon GO maker Niantic's response and Dr. Ayers' counter on Mashable

* Pokémon GO's driving danger was subsequently addressed by the games' maker

* "Trended" on Facebook

* Ranked in the top 0.001% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 50 most circulated articles in JAMA Internal Medicine according to Altmetric

Big Data Sensors of Organic Advocacy: The Case of Leonardo DiCaprio and Climate Change

Eric C. Leas, Benjamin M. Althouse, Mark Dredze, Nick Obradovich, James Fowler, Seth M. Noar, Jon-Patrick Allem, John W. Ayers

PLoS One. 2016;11:e0159885.

* Read related commentary

* Ranks in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Revisiting the Rise of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems using Search Query Surveillance

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Jon-Patrick Allem, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Rebecca S. Willliams

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2016; 50(6):173-181.

* As the title suggests, this is a follow up to the oft-cited 2011 study

The Charlie Sheen Effect: News and Internet Searches for HIV

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Mark Dredze, Eric C. Leas, Seth M. Noar

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2016;176(4):552-554.

| Tech Times | Web to Med | Union Tribune |

* "Trended" on Facebook and Twitter

* Ranked in the top 0.001% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 75 most circulated articles in JAMA Internal Medicine according to Altmetric

Leveraging Big Data to Improve Health Awareness Campaigns: A Novel Evaluation of the Great American Smokeout

John W. Ayers, J Lee Westmaas, Eric C. Leas, Adrian Benton, Yunqi Chen, Mark Dredze, Benjamin M. Althouse

JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. 2016;2(1):e16

| Vox Italy | Health Day | Union Tribune |

* Read related commentary

* Read series in New York Magazine's Science of Us by Jeese Singal #1, #2, #3, #4

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Enhancing Disease Surveillance with Novel Data Streams: Challenges and Opportunities

Benjamin M. Althouse, Samuel V. Scarpino, Lauren Ancel Meyers, John W. Ayers, Marisa Bargsten, Joan Baumbach, John S. Brownstein, Lauren Castro, Hannah Clapham, Derek A.T. Cummings, Sara Del Valle, Stephen Eubank, Geoffrey Fairchild, Lyn Finelli, Nicholas Generous, Dylan George, David R Harper, Laurent Hébert-Dufresne, Michael A Johansson, Kevin Konty, Marc Lipsitch, Gabriel Milinovich, Joseph D. Miller, Elaine O. Nsoesie, Donald R. Olson, Michael Paul, Philip M. Polgreen, Reid Priedhorsky, Jonathan M Read, Isabel Rodríguez-Barraquer, Derek J. Smith, Christian Stefansen, David L. Swerdlow, Deborah Thompson, Alessandro Vespignani, Amy Wesolowski

EPJ Data Science. 2015;4:1.

* A report of the SFI Conference on modern disease surveillance by Ben Althouse and Sam Scarpino

When a Ban Really is Not a Ban: Internet Loopholes and Djarum Flavoured Cigarettes in the USA

Jon-Patrick Allem, John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Rebecca S. Willliams

Tobacco Control. 2015;tobaccocontrol-tobaccocon2015.

| US News & World Report |

“Tips From Former Smokers” Can Benefit From Considering All Available Data

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2015;49(6):133-134.

Changes in Internet Searches Associated with the “Tips from Former Smokers” Campaign

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Sherry Emery

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2015;48(6):e27-e29.

| Bloomberg | Science Daily | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Reply |

What can Digital Disease Detection Learn from (an External Revision to) Google Flu Trends?

Mauricio Santillana, David W. Zhang, Benjamin M. Althouse, John W. Ayers

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2014;47(3):341-347.

| The Guardian | NPR | Science Daily |

* Read related studies in Science and PLoS Computational Biology

Could Behavioral Medicine Lead the Web Data Revolution?

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Mark Dredze

JAMA. 2014;311(14):1399-1400.

| National Post | Australian Doctor |

* Ranks in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

What’s the Healthiest Day? Circaseptan (Weekly) Rhythms in Healthy Considerations

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Morgan Johnson, Mark Dredze, Joanna E. Cohen

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2014; 47(1):73-76.

* Watch related TEDxSanDiego talk

* Read Union Tribune OpEd

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 10 most circulated articles in Am J Prev Med according to Altmetric

Circaseptan (Weekly) Rhythms in Smoking Cessation Consideration

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Morgan Johnson, Joanna E. Cohen

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2014;174:146-148.

* Watch related TEDxSanDiego talk

* Read Union Tribune OpEd

* Ranks in the top 0.01% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranks in the top 100 most circulated articles in JAMA Internal Medicine according to Altmetric

Cancer Information Seeking in the Digital Age: Effects of Angelina Jolie's Prophylactic Mastectomy Announcement

Seth M. Noar, Benjamin M. Althouse, John W. Ayers, Diane B. Francis, Kurt M. Ribisl

Medical Decision Making. 2015;35:16-21.

| Medical Decision Making Editorial | PLoS Commentary |

Population Health Concerns During the United States’ Great Recession

Benjamin M. Althouse, Jon-Patrick Allem, Matthew A. Childers, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2014;46:166-170.

* United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS) commentary

* The Times of London worked with the authors to replicate the study in the United Kingdom

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 50 (all time) most circulated articles in Am J Prev Med according to Altmetric

U.S. Consumer Interest in Non-Cigarette Tobacco Products Spikes around the 2009 Federal Tobacco Tax Increase

Catherine Jo, John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Sherry Emery, Jidong Huang, Kurt M. Ribisl

Tobacco Control. 2014; doi:10.1136.

Do Celebrity Cancer Diagnoses Promote Primary Cancer Prevention?

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Seth M. Noar, Joanna E. Cohen

Preventive Medicine. 2014;58:81-84.

| Radio France | Huffington Post (France) |

Seasonality in Seeking Mental Health Information on Google

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Jon-Patrick Allem, J. Niels Rosenquist, Daniel E. Ford

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2013;44:520-525.

| Stuff | Union Tribune (cover) |

* One of the most cited articles in the Am J Prev Med that year

* Read Dr. Ayers' EpiAnalysis Commentary

* Read Dr. Ayers' Am J Prev Med Commentary

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 50 most circulated articles in Am J Prev Med according to Altmetric

Digital Detection for Tobacco Control: Online Reactions to the United States’ 2009 Cigarette Excise Tax Increase

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Kurt M. Ribisl, Sherry Emery

Nicotine & Tobacco Ressearch. 2013;doi:10.1093/ntr/ntt186.

Using Digital Surveillance To Examine The Impact Of Public Figure Pancreatic Cancer Announcements On Media And Search Query Outcomes

Seth M. Noar, Kurt M. Ribisl, Benjamin M. Althouse, Jessica F. Willoughby, John W. Ayers

JNCI Monographs. 2013;47:188-194.

| Fast Company |

Adult Prescription Drug Use and Pediatric Medication Exposures and Poisonings

Lindsey C. Burghardt, John W. Ayers, John S. Brownstein, Alvin C. Bronstein, Michele Burns Edwald, Florence T. Bourgeois

Pediatrics. 2013;132:18-27.

| Thriving | Medical Daily | MedPage Today |

Assessing the Online Social Environment for Surveillance of Obesity Prevalence

Rumi Chunara, Lindsay Bouton, John W. Ayers, John S. Brownstein

PLoS One. 2013;8(4): e61373.

* Ranks in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Novel Surveillance of Psychological Distress During the Great Recession

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Jon-Patrick Allem, Matthew A. Childers, Waleed Zafar, Carl Latkin, Kurt M. Ribisl, John S. Brownstein

Journal of Affective Disorders. 2012;142:323-330.

| Fox 5 | Union Tribune |

A Novel Evaluation of World No Tobacco Day in Latin America

John W. Ayers, Benjamin M. Althouse, Jon-Patrick Allem, Daniel E. Ford, Kurt M. Ribisl, Joanna E. Cohen

JMIR. 2012;14:e77.

Do Christian Denominations Exhibit Higher Rates Of Alcohol Consumption? A Study Of Korean American Women In California

D. Eastern Kang Sim, C. Richard Hofstetter, Veronica L. Irvin, John W. Ayers, C. Macera, Ming Ji, Melbourne F. Hovell

Journal of Religion and Health. 2013;52:285-298.

Smoking Trajectories among Koreans in Seoul and California: Exemplifying a Common Error in Age Parameterization

Jon-Patrick Allem, John W. Ayers, Jennifer B. Unger, Veronica L. Irvin, C. Richard Hofstetter, Melbourne F. Hovell

Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention. 2012;13:1851-1856.

The Environment Modifies the Relationship Between Social Networks and Secondhand Smoke Exposure among Korean Nonsmokers in Seoul and California

Jon-Patrick Allem, John W. Ayers, Jennifer B. Unger, Robert E. Vollinger, Carl Latkin, Hee Soon Juon, Hae Ryun Park, Hee Young Paik, C. Richard Hofstetter, Melbourne F. Hovell

Asia-Pacific Journal of Public Health. 2012(15);27:NP437-447.

South Korean Military Service Promotes Smoking: A Quasi-Experimental Design

Jon-Patrick Allem, John W. Ayers, Veronica L. Irvin, C. Richard Hofstetter, Melbourne F. Hovell

Yonsei Medical Journal. 2012;53:433-438.

Tracking the rise in popularity of electronic nicotine delivery systems (electronic cigarettes) using search query surveillance

John W. Ayers, Kurt M. Ribisl, John S. Brownstein

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2011;40:448-453.

| CNN | Los Angeles Times |

* One of the most cited articles in the Am J Prev Med that year

* Cited as groundbreaking by Conference of the Parties, WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

* Ranked as one of the first and most-cited electronic cigarette studies in a 2014 systematic review

Using Search Query Surveillance to Monitor Tax Avoidance and Smoking Cessation following the United States' 2009 "SCHIP" Cigarette Tax Increase

John W. Ayers, Kurt M. Ribisl, John S. Brownstein

PLoS One. 2011;6:e16777.

| Vector |

Two-Cultures? Latino and Asian Language Assimilation Along the US-Mexico Border

Antonio Ugues Jr., Keith Schnakenberg, Bo Kolody, C. Richard Hofstetter, John W. Ayers

California Journal of Politics and Policy. 2011;3.

Cultural and Social Network Predictors of Drinking Among Korean American Women

John W. Ayers, Christina Chambers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Suzanne C. Hughes, Washington Reyes, Sunny Kang, Veronica L. Irvin, Melbourne F. Hovell

Alcohol. 2011;45:89-97.

Measuring English Proficiency and Language Preference: Are Self-reports Valid?

John W. Ayers

American Journal of Public Health. 2010;100:1364-1366.

| Read Comment | Read Reply |

Hepatitis B vaccination prevalence and its predictors among Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, and multiracial adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

John W. Ayers, Hee Soon Juon, Sunmin Lee, Eunmi Park

Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. 2010;12:847-852.

Gender Modifies the Relationship Between Social Networks and Smoking among Adults in Seoul, South Korea

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Suzanne C. Hughes, Har Ryun Park, Hee Young Paik, Yoon Ju Song, Veronica L. Irvin, Melbourne F. Hovell

International Journal of Public Health. 2010;55:609-617.

Smoking on Both Sides of the Pacific: Home Smoking Restrictions and Secondhand Smoke Exposure Among Korean Adults and Children in Seoul and California

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Suzanne C. Hughes, Hae Ryun Park, Hee Yong Paik, Veronica L. Irvin, Jooeun Lee, Hee Soon Juon, Carl Latkin, Melbourne F. Hovell

Nicotine & Tobacco Research. 2010;12:1142-1150.

Can Religion Help Prevent Obesity? Religious Messages And The Prevalence Of Being Overweight Or Obese Among Korean Women In California

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Veronica L. Irvin, Yoonju Song, Hae Ryun Park, Hee Yong Paik, Melbourne F. Hovell

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 2010;49:536-549.

It's Others, Not The Police: Smoking, Reprimand, And Fines Among Adults Of Korean Descent In California

C. Richard Hofstetter, Melbourne F. Hovell, Veronica L. Irvin, John W. Ayers, Suzanne C. Hughes, Sunny Kang

Health Psychology. 2010;29:255.

Does Church Participation Facilitate Tobacco Control? A Report on Korean Immigrants

C. Richard Hofstetter, John W. Ayers, Veronica L. Irvin, D. Eastern Kang Sim, Suzanne C. Hughes, Frederick Reghard, Melbourne F. Hovell

Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health. 2010;12:187-197.

Exploring Religious Mechanisms For Healthy Alcohol Use: Religious Messages And Drinking Among Korean Women In California

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Suzanne C. Hughes, Veronica L. Irvin, D. Eastern Kang Sim, Melbourne F. Hovell

Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. 2009;70:890-898.

Sorting Out the Competing Effects of Acculturation, Immigrant Stress, and Social Support on Depression: A Report on Korean Women in California

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Paula Usita, Veronica L. Irvin, Sunny Kang, Melbourne F. Hovell

Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 2009;197:742-747.

Is Immigration a Racial Issue? Anglo Attitudes on Immigration Policies in a Border County

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter, Keith Schnakenberg, Bo Kolody

Social Science Quarterly. 2009;90:593-610.

The Bishops and their Flock: John Kerry and the Case of Catholic Voters in 2004

C. Richard Hofstetter, John W. Ayers, Robert Perry

Politics and Religion. 2008;1:436-455.

American Muslim Political Participation Following 9/11: Religious Belief, Political Resources, Social Structures, And Political Awareness

John W. Ayers, C. Richard Hofstetter

Politics and Religion. 2008;1:3-26.

| NPR's Day to Day |

* Ranked as the most read paper in Politics and Religion

* Awarded best paper at the California Student Research Competition among 23 participating universities

Changing Sides: 9/11 and the American Muslim Voter

John W. Ayers

Review of Religious Research. 2007:187-198.

Internet Searches for Abortion Medications Following the Leaked Supreme Court of the United States Draft Ruling

Adam M. Poliak, Nora Satybaldiyeva, Steffanie A. Strathdee, Eric C. Leas, Ramesh Rao, Davey M. Smith, John W. Ayers
JAMA Internal Medicine. 2022;10.1001/jamainternmed.2022.2998.

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Twitter and Facebook posts about COVID-19 are less likely to Spread Misinformation Compared to other Health Topics

David A. Broniatowski, Daniel Kerchner, Fouzia Farooq,

Xiaolei Huang, Amelia M. Jamison, Mark Dredze, Sandra C. Quinn, John W. Ayers
PloS One. 2022;17(1):e0261768.

Association of Online Search Trends With Vaccination in the United States

Philipp Berning, Leu Huang, Alexander C. Razavi, Ellen Boakye, Ngozi Osuji, Andrew C. Stokes, Seth S. Martin, John W. Ayers, Michael J. Blaha, Omar Dzaye
Frontiers in Immunology. 2022;13:884211.

Characterizing Self-Reports of Self-Identified Patient Experiences with Methadone Maintenance Treatment on an Online Community during COVID-19
Alicia L. Nobles, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, David Goodman-Meza,

María Luisa Zúñiga, Douglas Ziedonis, Steffanie A. Strathdee, John W. Ayers
Substance Use & Misuse. 2021;56(14):2134-2140.

Monitoring HIV testing and pre-exposure prophylaxis information seeking by combining digital and traditional data

Derek C. Johnson, Alicia L. Nobles, Theodore L. Caputi, Michael Liu, Eric C. Leas, Steffanie A. Strathdee, John W. Ayers
BMC Infectious Diseases. 2021;21(1):1-7.

Spread of misinformation about face masks and COVID-19 by automated software on Facebook

John W. Ayers, Brian Chu, Zecheriah Zhu, Eric C. Leas, Davey M. Smith, Mark Dredze, David A. Broniatowski
JAMA Internal Medicine. 2021;181(9):1251-1253.

| International Business Times | The Doctor Will See You Now |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

News coverage of the E-cigarette, or Vaping, product use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) outbreak and internet searches for vaping cessation

Eric C. Leas, Alicia Nobles, Theodore Caputi, Mark Dredze, Shu-Hong Zhu, Joanna Cohen, John W. Ayers
Tobacco Control. 2021;30(5):578-582.

Effect size reporting among prominent health journals: a case study of odds ratios

Brian Chu, Michael Liu, Eric C. Leas, Benjamin M. Althouse, John W. Ayers
BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine. 2021;26(4):184-184.

“First Do No Harm”: Effective Communication About COVID-19 Vaccines

David A. Broniatowski, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers
American Journal of Public Health. 2021;111(6):1055-1057.

Suicide-related Internet Searches During the Early Stages of the

COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States
John W Ayers, Adam Poliak, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Alicia L. Nobles
JAMA Network Open. 2021;4(1):e2034261.

| The New York Times |

Internet searches for acute anxiety during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic

John W. Ayers, Eric C. Leas, Derek Johnson, Adam Poliak, Benjamin Althouse, Mark Dredze, Alicia Nobles
JAMA Internal Medicine 2020;180(12):1706-1707.

| Huffington Post |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Trended on various social media platforms, including Twitter

Did Philip Morris International used the e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury (EVALI) outbreak to market IQOS heated tobacco?

John W. Ayers, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Theodore L. Caputi, Shu-Hong Zhu, Joanna E. Cohen.
Tobacco Control. 2021;tobaccocontrol-2021-056661.

Google Shopping Queries for Vaping Products, Juul and IQOS during the E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) Outbreak

Eric C. Leas, Natalie H. Moy, Alicia Nobles, John W. Ayers, Shu-Hong Zhu, Vidya Purushothaman
Tobacco Control. 2021;tobaccocontrol-2021-056481.

Telehealth in the COVID-19 Era: A Balancing Act to Avoid Harm
J. Jeffery Reeves, John W. Ayers, Christopher A. Longhurst
Journal of Medical Internet research. 2021;23(2):e24785.

A Philip Morris Advertisement for its Heated Tobacco Product IQOS sets a Troubling Precedent

Eric C. Leas, Joanna E. Cohen, John W. Ayers
Tobacco Control. 2020;29(e1):e168-e170.

Quantifying Public Interest in Police Reforms by Mining Internet Search Data Following George Floyd’s Death

John W. Ayers, Benjamin Althouse, Adam Poliak, Eric C. Leas, Alicia L. Nobles, Mark Dredze, Davey Smith
Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2020;22(10):e22574.

| Breitbart | UPI | Science |

Self-reported CBD use for Conditions with Proven Therapies

Eric C. Leas, Erik M. Hendrickson, Alicia L. Nobles, Rory Todd, Davey Smith, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers
JAMA Network Open. 2020;3(10):e2020977-e2020977

| Healthline |

* Watch the JAMA Network Podcast where we discussed this study in greater detail

Internet Searches for Unproven COVID-19 Therapies in the United States

Michael Liu, Theodore C. Caputi, Alan S. Kesselheim, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2020;180(8):1116-1118.

| Union Tribune |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Trended on various social media platforms, including Twitter

Collateral Crises of Gun Preparation and the COVID-19 Pandemic

Theodore C. Caputi, John W. Ayers, Mark Dredze, N Suplina, S Burd-Sharps

JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. 2020;6(2):e19369.

| Guardian | Medium |

*COI disclosure: this study was done in collaboration with Everytown for Gun Safety

Responses to Addiction Help-Seeking from Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant, Cortana, and Bixby Intelligent Virtual Assistants

Alicia Nobles, Eric C. Leas, Theodore L. Caputi, Shu-Hong Zhu, Steffanie A. Strathdee, John W. Ayers

Nature Digital Medicine. 2020;3(11):doi.org/10.1038/s41746-019-0215-9.

| Becker's Hospital Review | Drugs.com |

* Via Agence France-Presse this study was covered in numerous print outlets, including the Sunday Times (of South Africa), The Malaysian Mail, Times of India, Times of London, etc.

Requests for Diagnoses of Sexually Transmitted Diseases on a Social Media Platform

Alicia Nobles, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Christopher A. Longhurst, Davey Smith, John W. Ayers

JAMA. 2019;322(17):1712-1713.

| She Knows | Physicians Weekly | Dr. Oz |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Ranked in the top 10 in JAMA for the year by Altmetric.

* Watch Medscape's Impact Factor with Dr. F. Perry Wilson

* Via Agence France-Presse this study was covered in more than 1,000 print outlets, including Phnom Penh Post, Bangkok Post, Sunday Times (of South Africa), Times of India, Times of London, etc.

Trends in Internet Searches for Cannabidiol (CBD) in the United States

Eric C. Leas, Alicia Nobels, Theodore L. Caputi, Mark Dredze, Davey Smith, John W. Ayers

JAMA Open. 2019;2(10):e1913853.

| MSN | Regulatory Review |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

* Watch a live interview from Fox News on the dangers of CBD and marijuana

Ignoring Data Delays our Reaction to Emerging Public Health Tragedies Like 13 Reasons Why

Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers

JAMA Psychiatry. 2019;2755.

* Two years after our popular JAMA Internal Medicine study traditional data confirmed our earlier conclusions but ignored those data. Why ignore and more importantly wait two years to react when lives are on the line?

Harnessing Digital Data and Data Science to Achieve 90-90-90 Goals to End the HIV Epidemic

Steffanie A. Strathdee, Alicia Nobels, John W. Ayers

Current Opinions in HIV and AIDS 2019;14(6):481-485

The Need for Federal Regulation of Marijuana Marketing

John W. Ayers, Theodore L. Caputi, Eric C. Leas

JAMA. 2019;doi:10.1001/jama.2019.4432.

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Media Trends for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration 800-662-HELP Addiction Treatment Referral Services After a Celebrity Overdose

John W. Ayers, Alicia Nobels, Mark Dredze

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2018;doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2018.6562.

| Union Tribune |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Internet Searches for Sexual Harassment and Assault, Reporting, and Training Since the #MeToo Movement

Theodore L. Caputi, Alicia Nobels, John W. Ayers,

JAMA Internal Medicine. 2018;doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2018.5094.

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Next Generation Media Monitoring: Global Coverage of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (Electronic Cigarettes) on Bing, Google and Twitter, 2013-2018

John W. Ayers, Mark Dredze , Eric C. Leas, Theodore L. Caputi, Jon-Patrick Allem, Joanna E. Cohen

PLoS One. 2018;doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0205822.

* Visit TobacoWatcher.org to replicate this analysis in a few clicks

Don’t Quote Me: Reverse Identification of Research Participants in Social Media Studies

John W. Ayers, Theodore L. Caputi, Camille Nebeker, Mark Dredze

Nature Digital Medicine. 2018;doi.org/10.1038/s41746-018-0036-2.

* Our study generated considerable debate on social media, but don't worry we won't quote anyone

* Watch this online seminar on the impact of our study here

Substance Use Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Questioning Adolescents in the United States, 2015

Theodore L. Caputi, Laramie Smith, Steffanie Strathdee, John W. Ayers

American Journal of Public Health. 2018;10.2105/AJPH.2018.304446.

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Online Sales of Marijuana: An Unrecognized Public Health Dilemma

Theodore L. Caputi, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, John W. Ayers

American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2018;10.1016/j.amepre.2018.01.032.

| International Business Times | Study Finds | United Press International |

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Data Figure

DATA SAVES LIVES

Vice Chief of Innovation | Assoc. Professor Div. Infectious Disease & Global Public Health University of California San Diego email: ayers.john.w@gmail.com

Is Awareness

Overated?

RESEARCH WITH AN IMPACT

Most misinformation comes from bots, not people

PUBLICATIONS (click titles for pdfs)

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

​

Do Christian Denominations Exhibit Higher Rates Of Alcohol Consumption? A Study Of Korean American Women In California

​

​

It's Others, Not The Police: Smoking, Reprimand, And Fines Among Adults Of Korean Descent In California

Internet Searches for Abortion Medications Following the Leaked Supreme Court of the United States Draft Ruling

Twitter and Facebook posts about COVID-19 are less likely to Spread Misinformation Compared to other Health Topics

Association of Online Search Trends With Vaccination in the United States

Characterizing Self-Reports of Self-Identified Patient Experiences with Methadone Maintenance Treatment on an Online Community during COVID-19 Alicia L. Nobles, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, David Goodman-Meza,

María Luisa Zúñiga, Douglas Ziedonis, Steffanie A. Strathdee, John W. Ayers Substance Use & Misuse. 2021;56(14):2134-2140.

Monitoring HIV testing and pre-exposure prophylaxis information seeking by combining digital and traditional data

Spread of misinformation about face masks and COVID-19 by automated software on Facebook

​

News coverage of the E-cigarette, or Vaping, product use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) outbreak and internet searches for vaping cessation

Effect size reporting among prominent health journals: a case study of odds ratios

“First Do No Harm”: Effective Communication About COVID-19 Vaccines

Suicide-related Internet Searches During the Early Stages of the

COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States John W Ayers, Adam Poliak, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Alicia L. Nobles JAMA Network Open. 2021;4(1):e2034261.

| The New York Times |

Internet searches for acute anxiety during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic

Did Philip Morris International used the e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury (EVALI) outbreak to market IQOS heated tobacco?

Google Shopping Queries for Vaping Products, Juul and IQOS during the E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) Outbreak

Telehealth in the COVID-19 Era: A Balancing Act to Avoid Harm J. Jeffery Reeves, John W. Ayers, Christopher A. Longhurst Journal of Medical Internet research. 2021;23(2):e24785.

A Philip Morris Advertisement for its Heated Tobacco Product IQOS sets a Troubling Precedent

Quantifying Public Interest in Police Reforms by Mining Internet Search Data Following George Floyd’s Death

Self-reported CBD use for Conditions with Proven Therapies

​

​

​

​

​

​

* Ranked in the top 1% of all research scored by Altmetric

Vice Chief of Innovation | Assoc. Professor
Div. Infectious Disease & Global Public Health University of California San Diego
email: ayers.john.w@gmail.com

Most misinformation
comes from bots, not people

Characterizing Self-Reports of Self-Identified Patient Experiences with Methadone Maintenance Treatment on an Online Community during COVID-19
Alicia L. Nobles, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, David Goodman-Meza,

María Luisa Zúñiga, Douglas Ziedonis, Steffanie A. Strathdee, John W. Ayers
Substance Use & Misuse. 2021;56(14):2134-2140.

COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States
John W Ayers, Adam Poliak, Derek C. Johnson, Eric C. Leas, Mark Dredze, Alicia L. Nobles
JAMA Network Open. 2021;4(1):e2034261.

Telehealth in the COVID-19 Era: A Balancing Act to Avoid Harm
J. Jeffery Reeves, John W. Ayers, Christopher A. Longhurst
Journal of Medical Internet research. 2021;23(2):e24785.