SIR rumor spreading model in the new media age

With the prevalence of new media, e.g., microblogging, rumors spread faster and wider than ever before. On the basis of prior studies, this paper modifies a flow chart of the rumor spreading process with the SIR (Susceptible, Infected, and Recovered) model, and thus makes the rumor spreading process more realistic and apparent. The authors believe that ignorants will inevitably change their status once they are made aware of a rumor by spreaders; the probabilities that a spreader becomes a stifler are differentiated in accordance with reality. In the numerical simulation part, the impact that variations of different parameters have on the rumor spreading process will be analyzed. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.