SIMPLE INTRODUCTION TO MACHINE LEARNING

Abdullahi Yusuf Rufai
3 min readJul 26, 2023

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INTRODUCTION: Machine learning is a subfield of artificial intelligence that involves the development of algorithms and statistical models that enable computers to improve their performance in tasks through experience. These algorithms and models are designed to learn from data and make predictions or decisions without explicit instructions.

Machine learning has become very common in artificial intelligence. Here, programmers teach computers how they can learn to solve problems by themselves instead of teaching them how to solve problems. Programmers use advanced statistics applications to teach computers how they can identify data patterns and make relevant predictions from the patterns.

SOME DEFINITIONS OF MACHINE LEARNING

machine learning is defined as the field of study that gives computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed (Arthur Samuel 1959).

Machine learning (ML) is also an umbrella term for solving problems for which the development of algorithms by human programmers would be cost-prohibitive, and instead, the problems are solved by helping machines ‘discover’ their ‘own’ algorithms, without needing to be explicitly told what to do by any human-developed algorithms (Wikipedia).

Furthermore, A computer program is said to learn from experience E with respect to some class of tasks T and performance measure P, if its performance at tasks T, as measured by P, improves with experience E.

CLASSIFICATION OF MACHINE LEANING

  1. Supervised machine learning
  2. Unsupervised machine learning
  3. Reinforcement machine learning

Supervised machine learning: Supervised learning is a type of machine learning where the algorithm learns from labeled data. In supervised learning, the algorithm is trained on a labeled dataset that includes inputs and correct outputs that is it learns from input data to produce outputs. the goal of supervised learning is to map input data with the output data. Supervised learning is based on supervision, and it is the same as when a student learns things under the supervision of the teacher. An example of supervised learning is spam filtering.

Supervised learning can be grouped further in two categories of algorithms:

  • Classification
  • Regression

Unsupervised machine learning: Unsupervised learning is a learning method in which a machine learns without any supervision.

The training is provided to the machine with the set of data that has not been labeled, classified, or categorized, and the algorithm needs to act on that data without any supervision. The goal of unsupervised learning is to restructure the input data into new features or a group of objects with similar patterns.

In unsupervised learning, we don’t have a predetermined result. The machine tries to find useful insights from the huge amount of data. It can be further classifieds into two categories of algorithms:

  • Clustering
  • Association

Reinforcement machine learning: Reinforcement learning is a feedback-based learning method, in which a learning agent gets a reward for each right action and gets a penalty for each wrong action. The agent learns automatically with this feedbackand improves its performance.

SOME APPLICATIONS OF MACHINE LEARNING

  1. Image recognition
  2. Speech recognition
  3. Natural language processing
  4. Product recommendations
  5. Traffic prediction

CONCLUSION:

machine learning is a powerful and rapidly evolving field that lies at the heart of modern technological advancements. It enables computers to learn from data, identify patterns, and make informed decisions without explicit programming. Through various techniques such as supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement learning, machine learning algorithms can be trained to perform tasks ranging from image recognition to natural language processing. As we continue to explore and refine the capabilities of machine learning, it holds the promise of transforming industries, improving everyday life, and shaping the future of innovation. Embracing this technology and understanding its principles will undoubtedly play a pivotal role in driving progress in the years to come.

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Abdullahi Yusuf Rufai

A tech enthusiasm having interest in Embedded systems, ML, AI, IOT, data science, software devt, leadership, researching and Technical and research writing