2020, Tang, Xiuchuan, Huo, Wei, Yuan, Ye, Li, Xiuting, Shi, Ling, Kurths, Jürgen

Here we present a method to estimate the total number of nodes of a network using locally observed response dynamics. The algorithm has the following advantages: (a) it is data-driven. Therefore it does not require any prior knowledge about the model; (b) it does not need to collect measurements from multiple stimulus; and (c) it is distributed as it uses local information only, without any prior information about the global network. Even if only a single node is measured, the exact network size can be correctly estimated using a single trajectory. The proposed algorithm has been applied to both linear and nonlinear networks in simulation, illustrating the applicability to real-world physical networks. © 2020 The Author(s). Published by IOP Publishing Ltd on behalf of the Institute of Physics and Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft.