In most networks, there are elements that have a huge amount of direct connections to others, and these individuals tend to be rather important. They are called super-spreaders or hubs.
In the study of social networks, a key phenomena is the diffusion of information – how it travels from one individual to another across the network of people. An important question is how to identify the nodes with a high potential to spread information widely and deeper in the network.
To find the network communities, we need a mathematical equation that describes when a division of the network into communities meets these two criteria.
In this article, we discuss several ways to quantify the importance of nodes in a network. We will discuss how a simple game can help study this special property, and how it can help us in cases like reducing fake news.
On a quiet afternoon, professor Meth is working in her office in Leiden on some tantalizing mathematics problems. Suddenly, someone knocking on her door nervously disrupts the silence.