Category Archives: Machine Learning
How to become a machine learning engineer: A cheat sheet …
If you are interested in pursuing a career in AI and don't know where to start, here's your go-to guide for the best programming languages and skills to learn, interview questions, salaries, and more.
Machine learning engineers--i.e., advanced programmers who develop artificial intelligence (AI) machines and systems that can learn and apply knowledge--are in high demand, as more companies adopt these technologies. These professionals perform sophisticated programming, and work with complex data sets and algorithms to train intelligent systems.
While many fear that AI will soon replace jobs, at this phase in the technology's development, it is still creating positions like machine learning engineers, as companies need highly-skilled workers to develop and maintain a wide range of applications.
To help those interested in the field better understand how to break into a career in machine learning, we compiled the most important details and resources. This guide on how to become a machine learning engineer will be updated on a regular basis.
SEE: Managing AI and ML in the enterprise (ZDNet special report) | Download the report as a PDF (TechRepublic)
According to TechRepublic writers Hope Reese and Brandon Vigliarolo, machine learning is a branch of AI that gives computer systems the ability to automatically learn and improve from experience, rather than being explicitly programmed. In machine learning, computers use massive sets of data and apply algorithms to train on and make predictions.
Machine learning systems are able to rapidly apply knowledge and training from large data sets to perform facial recognition, speech recognition, object recognition, translation, and many other tasks.
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Demand for AI talent, including machine learning engineers, is exploding: Between June 2015 and June 2018, the number of job postings with "AI" or "machine learning" increased by nearly 100%, according to a report from job search site Indeed. The percent of searches for these terms on Indeed also increased by 182% in that time frame, the report found.
"There is a growing need by employers for AI talent," Raj Mukherjee, senior vice president of product at Indeed, told TechRepublic. "As companies continue to adopt solutions or develop their own in-house it is likely that demand by employers for these skills will continue to rise."
SEE: IT jobs 2018: Hiring priorities, growth areas, and strategies to fill open roles (Tech Pro Research)
In terms of specific positions, 94% of job postings that contained AI or machine learning terminology were for machine learning engineers, the report found. And 41% of machine learning engineer positions were still open after 60 days.
"Software is eating the world and machine learning is eating software," Vitaly Gordon, vice president of data science and software engineering for Salesforce Einstein, told TechRepublic. "Machine learning engineering is a discipline that requires production grade coding, PhD level machine learning, and the business acumen of a product manager. Finding such rare people can uplift a company from a follower into a leader in their space, and everyone is looking for them."
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Machine learning engineers can take a number of different career paths. Here are a few roles in the field, and the skills they require, according to Udacity.
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Python and R are the most popular programming languages for machine learning, data science, and analytics, according to a KDnuggets survey. Python had a 66% share of voters who used the tool in 2018--an increase of 11% from 2017. Meanwhile, R had a 49% share in 2018, down 14% from 2017.
An IBM report ranked Python, Java, and R as the top languages for machine learning engineers, followed by C++, C, JavaScript, Scala, and Julia.
SEE: All of TechRepublic's cheat sheets and smart person's guides
When developing machine learning applications, the training and operational phases for algorithms are different, as reported by our sister site ZDNet. Therefore, some people use one language for the training phase and another one for the operational phase.
"For 'ordinary machine learning,' it does not matter what language you use," Luiz Eduardo Le Masson, data science leader at Stone Co., told ZDNet. "But when you need to have real online learning algorithms and inferences in realtime for millions of simultaneous clusters and respond in less than 500 ms, the topic does not only involve languages, but architecture, design, flow control, fault tolerance, resilience."
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Generally, machine learning engineers must be skilled in computer science and programming, mathematics and statistics, data science, deep learning, and problem solving. Here is a breakdown of some of the skills needed, according to Udacity.
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Machine learning engineers in the US earn an average salary of $134,449, according to data from Indeed. In terms of AI-related jobs, it comes in third place for salary, after director of analytics ($140,837) and principal scientist ($138,271).
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New York City has the highest concentration of AI jobs, with nearly 12% of all AI job postings found there, according to Indeed. New York also has the highest concentrations of data engineer, data scientist, and director of analytics job postings of any US metro area, potentially supporting the media, fashion, and banking industry centers located there, Indeed found.
Following New York City in AI job concentration is San Francisco (10%), San Jose, CA (9%), Washington, DC (8%), Boston (6%), and Seattle (6%). San Jose has the most postings for machine learning engineers in particular, along with algorithm engineers, computer vision engineers, and research engineers.
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Those applying for machine learning jobs can expect a number of different types of questions during an interview, testing their skills in mathematics and statistics, data science, deep learning, programming, and problem solving.
Some questions that a machine learning engineer can expect to be asked during an interview include:
It's also important for the job applicant to arrive at the interview with questions for the hiring manager, Dave Castillo, managing vice president of machine learning at Capital One told TechRepublic.
"An interview is a two-way conversation," Castillo said. "Just as important as the questions that we ask are the questions that candidates ask us. We want to ensure that not only is the candidate the right choice for the company, but the company is the right choice for the candidate."
Additional resources
There are different paths into a career as a machine learning engineer. A good place to start is by learning a programming language like Python, R, or Java. For machine learning specifics, a number of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), online programs, and certifications are available, including classes on Coursera and edX, and a nanodegree from Udacity.
You can also gain practical experience through doing real projects on real data, on sites like Kaggle. Joining local organizations such as meetups or hackathons to learn from others in the field can also help.
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Discover the secrets to IT leadership success with these tips on project management, budgets, and dealing with day-to-day challenges. Delivered Tuesdays and Thursdays
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Machine Learning | The MIT Press
An astonishing machine learning book: intuitive, full of examples, fun to read but still comprehensive, strong and deep! A great starting point for any university studentand a must have for anybody in the field.
Jan Peters
Darmstadt University of Technology; Max-Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems
Kevin Murphy excels at unraveling the complexities of machine learning methods while motivating the reader with a stream of illustrated examples and real world case studies. The accompanying software package includes source code for many of the figures, making it both easy and very tempting to dive in and explore these methods for yourself. A must-buy for anyone interested in machine learning or curious about how to extract useful knowledge from big data.
John Winn
Microsoft Research, Cambridge
This is a wonderful book that starts with basic topics in statistical modeling, culminating in the most advanced topics. It provides both the theoretical foundations of probabilistic machine learning as well as practical tools, in the form of Matlab code.The book should be on the shelf of any student interested in the topic, and any practitioner working in the field.
Yoram Singer
Google Inc.
This book will be an essential reference for practitioners of modern machine learning. It covers the basic concepts needed to understand the field as whole, and the powerful modern methods that build on those concepts. In Machine Learning, the language of probability and statistics reveals important connections between seemingly disparate algorithms and strategies.Thus, its readers will become articulate in a holistic view of the state-of-the-art and poised to build the next generation of machine learning algorithms.
David Blei
Princeton University
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Machine Learning | The MIT Press
Creating Machine Learning models in Power BI | Microsoft …
Were excited to announce the preview of Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) for Dataflows in Power BI. AutoML enables business analysts to build machine learning models with clicks, not code, using just their Power BI skills.
Power BI Dataflows offer a simple and powerful ETL tool that enables analysts to prepare data for further analytics. You invest significant effort in data cleansing and preparation, creating datasets that can be used across your organization. AutoML enables you to leverage your data prep effort for building machine learning models directly in Power BI.
With AutoML, the data science behind the creation of ML models is automated by Power BI, with guardrails to ensure model quality, and visibility to ensure you have full insight into the steps used to create your ML model.
AutoML also emphasizes Explainability highlighting the key features among your inputs that most influence the predictions returned by your model. The full lifecycle for creation, hosting and deployment of the ML models is managed by Power BI, without any additional dependencies.
AutoML is available for dataflows in workspaces hosted on Power BI Premium and Embedded capacities. In this release, we are introducing support for ML models for Binary Predictions, Classifications and Regressions. Timeseries forecasting will also be available shortly.
To create your AutoML model, simply select the dataflow entity with the historical data and the field with the values you want to predict, and Power BI will suggest the types of ML models that can be built using that data. Next, Power BI analyzes the other available fields in the selected entity to suggest the input fields you can use to create your model. You can change or accept these suggestions, and just save your configuration.
Your machine learning model will automatically be trained upon the next refresh of your dataflow, automating the data science tasks of sampling, normalization, feature extraction, algorithm and hyperparameter selection, and validation.
After training, an automatically generated Power BI report summarizes the performance of your ML model. It includes information about key influencers that the model uses to predict an outcome. The report is specific to each model type, explaining how the model can be applied.
A statistical summary page in the report includes the standard data science measures of performance for the model.
The report also includes a Training details page, that provides full visibility into the process used to create the model. It describes how each input field was transformed, as well as every iteration with the algorithm and parameter settings used to create your model.
With just a couple of clicks, you can apply the model to incoming data, and Power BI keeps your predictions up-to-date whenever the dataflow is refreshed. It also includes an individualized explanation for each specific prediction score that the ML model produces.
AutoML is now available for preview in all public cloud regions where Power BI Premium and Embedded is available. You can follow this step-by-step tutorial to build your first machine learning model using AutoML in minutes!
You can also read about AutoML in Power BI to learn more. If you have any questions, you can reach me at @santoshc1. Wed love to hear your feedback on the experience, and ideas on how youd like to use AutoML.
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Creating Machine Learning models in Power BI | Microsoft ...
Overcoming the Challenges Associated with Machine Learning and AI Strategies – EnterpriseTalk
Better customer experience, lower costs, enhanced accuracy, and new features are a few advantages of applying machine learning models to real-world applications.
According to a survey conducted by Rackspace Technology, 34% of respondents project having up to 10 artificial intelligence and machine learning projects in place within the coming two years. Meanwhile, 31% see data quality as a primary challenge to preparing actionable insights into AI and machine learning projects.
Before applying the power of machine learning to business and operations, companies must overcome various obstacles.
Lets dive into some of the primary challenges businesses encounter while integrating AI technologies into business operations in data, skills, and strategy.
Also Read: The Essentials of a Successful Cloud Migration Strategy
Data still remains a significant barrier in various stages of planning and utilizing an AI strategy. According to the Rackspace survey, 34% of the respondents said low data quality is the foremost cause of machine learning research and development failure, and 31% stated that they lacked production-ready data.
The AI research community has access to several public datasets for practice and testing their latest machine learning technologies, but when it comes to implementing those technologies to real applications, gaining access to quality data is challenging.
To overcome the data challenges of AI strategies, businesses must fully evaluate their data infrastructure, and breaking down silos should be a top priority in all machine learning initiatives. Furthermore, organizations should also have the right methods to filter their data to boost the performance and accuracy of their machine learning models.
The next area of struggle for most businesses is access to machine learning and data science talent. However, with the evolution of new machine learning and data science devices, the talent problem has grown less severe.
Before starting an AI initiative, it is advised that all businesses should perform a thorough evaluation of in-house expertise, available devices, and integration opportunities. Additionally, businesses must consider if re-skilling is a logical course of action for long-term business goals. If its feasible for businesses to up skill their engineers to take data science and machine learning projects, they will be better off in the long run.
Also Read: Digital Transformation and Edge Computing go Hand in Hand
Another area that has seen extensive growth in recent years is the outsourcing of AI talent. According to the Rackspace survey, just 38 % of the respondents depend on in-house talent to improve AI applications. Others either completely outsource their AI projects or use a mixture of in-house and outsourced talent.
A successful strategy requires close communication between AI experts and subject matter specialists from the company executing the plan.
AI projects not only require strategy and technical expertise but also a strong partnership with the company and the leadership. Outsourcing AI talent should be done meticulously. While it can expedite the process of creating and executing an AI strategy, businesses must ensure that their experts are wholly committed to the process. Ideally, organizations should make their in-house team of data scientists and machine learning engineers work with outsourced specialists.
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Overcoming the Challenges Associated with Machine Learning and AI Strategies - EnterpriseTalk
Machine Learning Algorithms | Machine Learning | Intellipaat
Understanding Machine Learning
The term Machine Learning seems to be a hot cake these days. So, what exactly is it?Well, simply put, Machine Learning is the sub-field of Artificial Intelligence, where we teach a machine how to learn, with the help of input data.Now that we know, what exactly is machine learning, lets have a look at the types of Machine Learning algorithms.
Machine Learning Algorithms can be grouped into two types:
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In supervised machine learning algorithms, we have input variables and output variables. The input variables are denoted by x and the output variables are denoted by y.Here, the aim of supervised learning is to understand, how does y vary with x, i.e. the goal is to approximate the mapping function so well that when we have a new input data (x) we can predict the output variables (Y) for that data.Or, in other words, we have dependent variables and independent variables and our aim is to understand how does a dependent variable change with respect to an independent variable.Lets understand supervised learning through this example:Here, our independent variable is Gender of the student and dependent variable is Output of the student and we are trying to determine whether the student would pass the exam or not based of the students gender.Now, supervised learning can again be divided into regression and classification, so lets start with regression.
In regression, the output variable is a continuous numeric value. So, lets take this example to understand regression better:Here, the output variable is the cost of apple, which is a continuous value, i.e. we are trying to predict the cost of apple with respect to other factors.Now, its time to look at one of the most popular regression algorithm -> Linear Regression.
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As the name states, linear regression is used to determine the linear relationship between independent and dependent variable. Or in other words, it is used in estimating exactly how much ofywill linearly change, whenxchanges by a certain amount.As we see in the image, a cars mpg(Miles per Gallon) is mapped onto the x-axis and the hp(Horse Power) is mapped on the y-axis and we are determining if there is a linear relationship between hp and mpg.So, this was the linear regression algorithm, now lets head onto classification in machine learning.
In classification, the output variable is categorical in nature. So, lets take this example to understand classification better:Here, the output variable is the gender of the person, which is a categorical value and we are trying to classify the person into a specific gender based on other factors.Now, well look at these classification algorithms in brief:
Decision tree is one of the most used machine learning algorithms in use, currently. As the name suggests, in Decision Tree, we have a tree-like structure of decisions and their possible consequences.At each node there is a test condition and the node splits into left and right children based on the test condition.Now, lets look at some terminologies of Decision Tree In Python:
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As the name states, random forest is an ensemble of multiple decision tree models. In this algorithm, random subsets are generated from the original dataset. Lets say, if x datasets are created from the original dataset, then, x decision trees are built on top of these datasets. So, each of these decision trees generate a result and the optimal solution is found out by taking the aggregate of all the individual results.
So, these were some of the classification algorithms, now, lets head onto unsupervised learning:
In unsupervised machine learning algorithms, we have input data with no class labels and we build a model to understand the underlying structure of the data. Lets understand this with an example:Here, we have input data with no class labels and this input data comprises of fish and birds. Now, lets build an unsupervised model on top of this input data. So, this will give out two clusters. The first cluster comprises of all the fish and the second cluster comprises of all the birds.
Now, you guys need to keep in mind that even though there were no class labels, this unsupervised learning model was able to divide this data into two clusters and this clustering has been done on the basis of similarity of characteristics.Now, out of all the unsupervised machine learning algorithms, k-means clustering is the most popular, so lets understand that.
Go through this Artificial Intelligence Interview Questions And Answers to excel in your Artificial Intelligence Interview.
K means clustering is an unsupervised machine learning algorithm, where the aim is to group similar data points into a single cluster. So, there must be high intra-cluster similarity and low inter-cluster similarity, i.e. all the data points within a cluster should be as similar as possible and the data points between two different clusters should be as dissimilar as possible.In k-means clustering, k denotes the number of clusters to be formed. So, in the above picture, the value of k=3 and hence 3 clusters are formed.
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Machine Learning Algorithms | Machine Learning | Intellipaat
Professor of Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning job with UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON | 249199 – Times Higher Education (THE)
Do you have proven expertise in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning and an established international reputation within the field, both in industry and academia? Are you looking for a challenging role in an environment that is open, vibrant and welcomes new ideas? Then Be The Change, follow your passion and join the University of East London as Professor of Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning.
These are exciting times at the University as, under a brand new transformational 10-year strategy, Vision 2028, were committed to providing students with the skills necessary to thrive in an ever-changing world, includingincreasing the diversity of the talent pipeline, particularly for Industry 4.0 jobs. Our pioneering and forward-thinking vision is set to make a positive and significant impact to the communities we serve too, and inspire our staff and students to reach their full potential. This is your chance to be part of that journey.
Join us, and youll be a key member of our Computer Science & Digital Technologies departments School of Architecture, Computing and Engineering team. Your challenge? To raise the profile of the department and school, specifically in impactful applied research in disciplines that include Deep Learning, Computer Vision and Natural Language Processing. But thats not all. Well also rely on you to lead and develop the Schools work, both in relation to taught courses and in terms of research, consultancy, knowledge transfer and income generation. And, as a senior academic leader, youll be instrumental in shaping the Schools strategy for promoting research, learning & teaching and employability initiatives.
Playing a prominent role in obtaining funding for research and knowledge exchange activities in your area of expertise will be important too. Well also encourage you to contribute to other aspects of the Schools work too, such as staff development activities, mentoring and supporting the development of early career researchers and joint supervision of PhD students. Put simply, youll bring leadership, vision and inspiration for the future direction of research and teaching in AI.
To succeed, youll need a PhD in Computer Science or other relevant area and experience of teaching in higher education or training in a professional context and applying innovative and successful approaches to learning. Youll also need a proven ability to lead on the fusion of practice and theory in specific disciplines, in-depth experience of research & knowledge exchange projects and a record of significant research & knowledge exchange grant capture and/or income generation or equivalent. As comfortable developing and managing major research grant applications as you are communicating academic findings to policy and wider public audiences, you also have experience of PhD supervision as a Director of Studies and other research mentorship activities.
In summary, you have what it takes to act as a role model and ambassador to raise the Universitys profile and increasing its impact and influence and establish links with a variety of businesses, public and third sector organisations.
So, if you have what we are looking for and are keen to take on this exciting challenge, get in touch.
At the University of East London, we aim to attract and retain the best possible staff and offer a working environment at the heart of a dynamic region with excellent transport links. You can look forward to a warm, sincere welcome, genuine camaraderie and mobility in an institution led with passion, visibility and purpose. Your impact, resilience and sense of collegiality will directly contribute to the Universitys future and those of the students whose lives you will touch and change forever. We also offer a great range of benefits including pension, family friendly policies and an on-site nursery and gym at our Docklands Campus.
Closing date: 13 April 2021.
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Professor of Artificial intelligence and Machine Learning job with UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON | 249199 - Times Higher Education (THE)
Dascena Announces Publication of Results From Its Machine Learning Algorithm for Prediction of Acute Kidney Injury in Kidney International Reports -…
OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Dascena, Inc., a machine learning diagnostic algorithm company that is targeting early disease intervention to improve patient care outcomes, today announced the publication in Kidney International Reports of results from a study evaluating the companys machine learning algorithm, PreviseTM, for the earlier prediction of acute kidney injury (AKI). Findings showed that Previse was able to predict the onset of AKI sooner than the standard hospital systems, XGBoost AKI prediction model and the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), up to 48 hours in advance of onset. Previse has previously received Breakthrough Device designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
AKI is a severe and complex condition that presents in many hospitalized patients, yet it is often diagnosed too late, resulting in significant kidney injury with no effective treatments to reverse damage and restore kidney function, said David Ledbetter, chief clinical officer of Dascena. If we are able to predict AKI onset earlier, physicians may be able to intervene sooner, reducing the damaging effects. These findings with Previse are exciting and further demonstrate the role we believe machine learning algorithms can play in disease prediction. Further, with Breakthrough Device designation from the FDA, we hope to continue to efficiently advance Previse through clinical studies so that we may be able to positively impact as many patients as possible through earlier detection.
The study was conducted to evaluate the ability of Previse to predict for Stage 2 or 3 AKI, as defined by KDIGO guidelines, compared to XGBoost and SOFA. Using convolutional neural networks (CNN) and patient Electronic Health Record (EHR) data, 12,347 patient encounters were analyzed, and measurements included Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic (AUROC) curve, positive predictive value (PPV), and a battery of additional performance metrics for advanced prediction of AKI onset. Findings from the study demonstrated that on a hold-out test set, the algorithm attained an AUROC of 0.86, compared to 0.65 and 0.70 for XGBoost and SOFA, respectively, and PPV of 0.24, relative to a cohort AKI prevalence of 7.62%, for long-horizon AKI prediction at a 48-hour window prior to onset.
About Previse
Previse is an algorithm that continuously monitors hospitalized patients and can predict acute kidney injury more than a full day before patients meet the clinical criteria for diagnosis, providing clinicians with ample time to intervene and prevent long-term injury.
About Dascena
Dascena is developing machine learning diagnostic algorithms to enable early disease intervention and improve care outcomes for patients. For more information, visit dascena.com
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Dascena Announces Publication of Results From Its Machine Learning Algorithm for Prediction of Acute Kidney Injury in Kidney International Reports -...
Machine learning calculates affinities of drug candidates and targets – Drug Target Review
A novel machine learning method called DeepBAR could accelerate drug discovery and protein engineering, researchers say.
A new technology combining chemistry and machine learning could aid researchers during the drug discovery and screening process, according to scientists at MIT, US.
The new technique, called DeepBAR, quickly calculates the binding affinities between drug candidates and their targets. The approach yields precise calculations in a fraction of the time compared to previous methods. The researchers say DeepBAR could one day quicken the pace of drug discovery and protein engineering.
Our method is orders of magnitude faster than before, meaning we can have drug discovery that is both efficient and reliable, said Professor Bin Zhang, co-author of the studys paper.The affinity between a drug molecule and a target protein is measured by a quantity called the binding free energy the smaller the number, the better the bind.A lower binding free energy means the drug can better compete against other molecules, meaning it can more effectively disrupt the proteins normal function.
Calculating the binding free energy of a drug candidate provides an indicator of a drugs potential effectiveness. However, it is a difficult quantity to discover.Methods for computing binding free energy fall into two broad categories:
The researchers devised an approach to get the best of both worlds. DeepBAR computes binding free energy exactly, but requires just a fraction of the calculations demanded by previous methods.
The BAR in DeepBAR stands for Bennett acceptance ratio, a decades-old algorithm used in exact calculations of binding free energy. Using the Bennet acceptance ratio typically requires a knowledge of two endpoint states, eg, a drug molecule bound to a protein and a drug molecule completely dissociated from a protein, plus knowledge of many intermediate states, eg, varying levels of partial binding, all of which slow down calculation speed.
DeepBAR reduces in-between states by deploying the Bennett acceptance ratio in machine learning frameworks called deep generative models.
These models create a reference state for each endpoint, the bound state and the unbound state, said Zhang. These two reference states are similar enough that the Bennett acceptance ratio can be used directly, without all the costly intermediate steps.
It is basically the same model that people use to do computer image synthesis, says Zhang. We are sort of treating each molecular structure as an image, which the model can learn. So, this project is building on the effort of the machine learning community.
These models were originally developed for two-dimensional (2D) images, said lead author of the study Xinqiang Ding. But here we have proteins and molecules it is really a three-dimensional (3D) structure. So, adapting those methods in our case was the biggest technical challenge we had to overcome.
In tests using small protein-like molecules, DeepBAR calculated binding free energy nearly 50 times faster than previous methods. The researchers add that, in addition to drug screening, DeepBAR could aid protein design and engineering, since the method could be used to model interactions between multiple proteins.
In the future, the researchers plan to improve DeepBARs ability to run calculations for large proteins, a task made feasible by recent advances in computer science.
This research is an example of combining traditional computational chemistry methods, developed over decades, with the latest developments in machine learning, said Ding. So, we achieved something that would have been impossible before now.
The research is published in Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters.
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Machine learning calculates affinities of drug candidates and targets - Drug Target Review
What is Machine Learning? | IBM
Machine learning focuses on applications that learn from experience and improve their decision-making or predictive accuracy over time.
Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) focused on building applications that learn from data and improve their accuracy over time without being programmed to do so.
In data science, an algorithm is a sequence of statistical processing steps. In machine learning, algorithms are 'trained' to find patterns and features in massive amounts of data in order to make decisions and predictions based on new data. The better the algorithm, the more accurate the decisions and predictions will become as it processes more data.
Today, examples of machine learning are all around us. Digital assistants search the web and play music in response to our voice commands. Websites recommend products and movies and songs based on what we bought, watched, or listened to before. Robots vacuum our floors while we do . . . something better with our time. Spam detectors stop unwanted emails from reaching our inboxes. Medical image analysis systems help doctors spot tumors they might have missed. And the first self-driving cars are hitting the road.
We can expect more. As big data keeps getting bigger, as computing becomes more powerful and affordable, and as data scientists keep developing more capable algorithms, machine learning will drive greater and greater efficiency in our personal and work lives.
There are four basic steps for building a machine learning application (or model). These are typically performed by data scientists working closely with the business professionals for whom the model is being developed.
Training data is a data set representative of the data the machine learning model will ingest to solve the problem its designed to solve. In some cases, the training data is labeled datatagged to call out features and classifications the model will need to identify. Other data is unlabeled, and the model will need to extract those features and assign classifications on its own.
In either case, the training data needs to be properly preparedrandomized, de-duped, and checked for imbalances or biases that could impact the training. It should also be divided into two subsets: the training subset, which will be used to train the application, and the evaluation subset, used to test and refine it.
Again, an algorithm is a set of statistical processing steps. The type of algorithm depends on the type (labeled or unlabeled) and amount of data in the training data set and on the type of problem to be solved.
Common types of machine learning algorithms for use with labeled data include the following:
Algorithms for use with unlabeled data include the following:
Training the algorithm is an iterative processit involves running variables through the algorithm, comparing the output with the results it should have produced, adjusting weights and biases within the algorithm that might yield a more accurate result, and running the variables again until the algorithm returns the correct result most of the time. The resulting trained, accurate algorithm is the machine learning modelan important distinction to note, because 'algorithm' and 'model' are incorrectly used interchangeably, even by machine learning mavens.
The final step is to use the model with new data and, in the best case, for it to improve in accuracy and effectiveness over time. Where the new data comes from will depend on the problem being solved. For example, a machine learning model designed to identify spam will ingest email messages, whereas a machine learning model that drives a robot vacuum cleaner will ingest data resulting from real-world interaction with moved furniture or new objects in the room.
Machine learningmethods (also called machine learning styles) fall into three primary categories.
Supervised machine learning trains itself on a labeled dataset. That is, the data is labeled with information that the machine learning model is being built to determine and that may even be classified in ways the model is supposed to classify data. For example, a computer vision model designed to identify purebred German Shepherd dogs might be trained on a data set of various labeled dog images.
Supervised machine learning requires less training data than other machine learningmethods and makes training easier because the results of the model can be compared to actual labeled results. But, properly labeled data is expensive to prepare, and there's the danger of overfitting, or creating a model so closely tied and biased to the training data that it doesn't handle variations in new data accurately.
Learn more about supervised learning.
Unsupervised machine learning ingests unlabeled datalots and lots of itand uses algorithms to extract meaningful features needed to label, sort, and classify the data in real-time, without human intervention. Unsupervised learning is less about automating decisions and predictions, and more about identifying patterns and relationships in data that humans would miss. Take spam detection, for examplepeople generate more email than a team of data scientists could ever hope to label or classify in their lifetimes. An unsupervised learning algorithm can analyze huge volumes of emails and uncover the features and patterns that indicate spam (and keep getting better at flagging spam over time).
Learn more about unsupervised learning.
Semi-supervised learning offers a happy medium between supervised and unsupervised learning. During training, it uses a smaller labeled dataset to guide classification and feature extraction from a larger, unlabeled data set. Semi-supervised learning can solve the problem of having not enough labeled data (or not being able to afford to label enough data) to train a supervised learning algorithm.
Reinforcement machine learning is a behavioral machinelearning model that is similar to supervised learning, but the algorithm isnt trained using sample data. This model learns as it goes by using trial and error. A sequence of successful outcomes will be reinforced to develop the best recommendation or policy for a given problem.
The IBM Watson system that won the Jeopardy! challenge in 2011 makes a good example. The system used reinforcement learning to decide whether to attempt an answer (or question, as it were), which square to select on the board, and how much to wagerespecially on daily doubles.
Learn more about reinforcement learning.
Deep learning is a subset of machine learning (all deep learning is machine learning, but not all machine learning is deep learning). Deep learning algorithms define an artificial neural network that is designed to learn the way the human brain learns. Deep learning models require large amounts of data that pass through multiple layers of calculations, applying weights and biases in each successive layer to continually adjust and improve the outcomes.
Deep learning models are typically unsupervised or semi-supervised. Reinforcement learning models can also be deep learning models. Certain types of deep learning modelsincluding convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and recurrent neural networks (RNNs)are driving progress in areas such as computer vision, natural language processing (including speech recognition), and self-driving cars.
See the blog post AI vs. Machine Learning vs. Deep Learning vs. Neural Networks: Whats the Difference? for a closer look at how the different concepts relate.
Learn more about deep learning.
As noted at the outset, machine learning is everywhere. Here are just a few examples of machine learning you might encounter every day:
IBM Watson Machine Learning supports the machine learning lifecycle end to end. It is available in a range of offerings that let you build machine learning models wherever your data lives and deploy them anywhere in your hybrid multicloud environment.
IBM Watson Machine Learning on IBM Cloud Pak for Data helps enterprise data science and AI teams speed AI development and deployment anywhere, on a cloud native data and AI platform. IBM Watson Machine Learning Cloud, a managed service in the IBM Cloud environment, is the fastest way to move models from experimentation on the desktop to deployment for production workloads. For smaller teams looking to scale machine learning deployments, IBM Watson Machine Learning Server offers simple installation on any private or public cloud.
To get started, sign up for an IBMid and create your IBM Cloud account.
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What is Machine Learning? | IBM
Next Raspberry Pi CPU Will Have Machine Learning Built In – Tom’s Hardware
At the recent tinyML Summit 2021, Raspberry Pi co-founder Eben Upton teased the future of 'Pi Silicon' and it looks like machine learning could see a massive improvement thanks to Raspberry Pi's news in-house chip development team.
It is safe to say that the Raspberry Pi Pico and its RP2040 SoC have been popular. The Pico has only been on the market for a few weeks, but already has sold 250,000 units with 750,000 on back order. There is a need for more boards powered by the RP2040 and partners such as Adafruit, Pimoroni, Adafruit and Sparkfun are releasing their own hardware, many with features not found on the Pico.
Raspberry Pi's in house application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) team are working on the next iteration, and seems to be focused on lightweight accelerators for ultra low power machine learning applications.
During Upton's talk at 40 minutes the slide changes and we see "Future Directions" a slide that shows three current generation 'Pi Silicon' boards, two of which are from board partners, SparkFun's MicroMod RP2040 and Arduino's Nano RP2040 Connect. The third is from ArduCam and they are working on the ArduCam Pico4ML which incorporates machine learning, camera, microphone and screen into a the Pico package.
The last bullet point hints at what the future silicon could be. It may come in the form of lightweight accelerators possibly 4-8 multiply-accumulates (MACs) per clock cycle. In Upton's talk he says that it is "overwhelmingly likely that there will be some other piece of silicon from Raspberry Pi".
Want to learn more about the Raspberry Pi Pico? We have just the page for you.
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Next Raspberry Pi CPU Will Have Machine Learning Built In - Tom's Hardware