Chain-binomial epidemic model 2026-10-06
A chain-binomial epidemic model uses discrete time, with conditionally independent binomial distributions for infection and recovery counts given the current compartments. It requires valid probability parameters; replacing by is a small-step approximation.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2016 iii Paper 207 3 e Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-06
At time zero the chain-binomial epidemic model has and , independently. The update gives . Since and , extinction at day one is equivalent to and . Hence the one-day extinction probability isThis is the exact probability for the printed discrete-time approximation, which requires wherever used. It should not be substituted for the distinct continuous-time extinction calculation.