We leave numerous digital traces during our daily lives: our telephone calls, Internet connections, purchases and use of access cards result in a multitude of digitally stored data on our activities, habits and relationships. Similarly, industrial manufacturing, services, culture and the world of sport also create a wealth of digital information. The data reveals a complex system of human activity that we can learn most about through the study of an appropriate network framework. For this, we need to explore the connections between the network topology and its function. With a series of examples, János Kertész presents how we can, with the help of modern network studies, use “digital footprints” to recognise social and economic patterns.

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