Connecticut is promoting an app developed by an MIT professor to help track the spread of COVID-19.
Connecticut is the first state to push the HowWeFeel app. It requires subscribers to report their age, gender, location and how they feel. Governor Ned Lamont says the information would be analyzed and reported to the state Department of Public Health.
“HowWeFeel is going to take information from all over this state if more and more of you sign-up for this app.”
Dr. Feng Zhang is the MIT neuroscientist who developed the app. He says the analysis will focus on zip codes.
“Through this information we are generating models to be able to predict the emergence of new infection hotspots.”
He says that information can be used to better fight the virus.
The app already has 200,000 subscribers around the country, with 3,500 in Connecticut. Zhang says 10,000 subscribers in a large city like Hartford would offer enough information to accurately track the virus.
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