EMOD input files

Every EMOD simulation is driven by a set of input files. Understanding what each file controls will help you follow the tutorial scripts.

Configuration file

config.json contains the simulation-wide settings: how long to run, which disease model to use, vector species, transmission parameters, and hundreds of other options. In the tutorials, build_config(config) is the callback that builds this file. It starts from a validated set of malaria defaults and then applies the changes specific to each tutorial.

Demographics file

The demographics file describes the human population: how many people, their initial age distribution, birth and death rates, and geographic node layout. In the tutorials, build_demog() builds this file. All tutorials use a single node of 1000 people with equilibrium vital dynamics and a sub-Saharan Africa age structure.

Campaign file

The campaign file defines interventions — what to deploy, to whom, and when. Each intervention event specifies a trigger, a target population, and an intervention class (bednet, drug, vaccine, etc.). In the tutorials, build_campaign() builds this file. Tutorial 1 has no campaign; interventions are introduced in Tutorial 3.

Reports and output files

Reports are configured in the script before the experiment runs. They tell EMOD what to measure and at what frequency — for example, monthly PfPR by age bin, or daily clinical incidence. EMOD writes each report's results to an output file in the output/ subdirectory of each simulation. InsetChart.json is a time-series summary of key channels that is enabled by setting Enable_Default_Reporting = 1 in the config. Additional reports such as MalariaSummaryReport can be added to the task via add_reporters(). Tutorial 2 introduces reports and shows how to download and plot the output files.