Technical requirements

We will utilize Web3.py, a library designed for interacting with EVM-based blockchains such as Ethereum. Originally a JavaScript library, it has since evolved “towards the needs and creature comforts of Python developers,” as stated in its documentation. Web3.py is a library that facilitates connection and interaction with the blockchain.

If you have not worked with Web3.py before, it can be installed with the following code:

pip install web3

The blockchain data is reached after connecting to a copy of the blockchain hosted on a node. Infura serves as a cloud-based infrastructure provider that streamlines our connection to the Ethereum network, eliminating the need to run our own nodes. Detailed steps for creating an account and obtaining an API key are provided in the Appendix 1.

Additionally, we will employ Ganache, a program that creates a local blockchain on our computer for testing and developing purposes. This tool allows us to simulate the behavior of a real blockchain without the necessity of spending real cryptocurrency for interactions. For a comprehensive guide on how to utilize Ganache, please refer to the Appendix 1.

You can find all the data and code files for this chapter in the book’s GitHub repository at https://github.com/PacktPublishing/Data-Science-for-Web3/tree/main/Chapter01. We recommend that you read through the code files in the Chapter01 folder to follow along.