“…It involves designing and analysing algorithms that enable computers to learn automatically. Unlike statistical methods, in which variable relationships are explicitly defined, ML models can achieve accurate predictions more rapidly and have therefore become popular with regard to infectious diseases ( Bergquist et al., 2024 ; Lu et al, 2022 ; Rampogu, 2023 ). This approach has been used to identify high-risk areas for S. japonicum transmission ( Gong et al., 2021 ) and the parasite’s intermediate host in China Oncomelania hupensis ( Liu et al., 2023 ; Zheng et al., 2021 ).…”