Category Archives: Data Science
Pricing Analytics in Banking: Strategies, Examples
Last updated: 15th May, 2024 Have you ever wondered how your bank decides what to charge you for its services? Or, perhaps how do banks arrive at the pricing (fees, rates, and charges) associated with various banking products? If you’re a product manager, data analyst, or data scientist in the banking industry, you might be aware that these pricing decisions are far from arbitrary. Rather, these pricing decisions are made based on one or more frameworks while leveraging data analytics. They result from intricate pricing strategies, driven by an extensive array of data and sophisticated analytics. In this blog, we will learn about some popular pricing strategies banks execute to …
How to Choose Right Statistical Tests: Examples
Last updated: 13th May, 2024 Whether you are a researcher, data analyst, or data scientist, selecting the appropriate statistical test is crucial for accurate and reliable hypothesis testing for validating any given claim. With numerous tests available, it can be overwhelming to determine the right statistical test for your research question and data type. In this blog, the aim is to simplify the process, providing you with a systematic approach to choosing the right statistical test. This blog will be particularly helpful for those new to statistical analysis and unsure which test to use for their specific needs. You will learn a clear and structured method for selecting the appropriate …
Machine Learning Lifecycle: Data to Deployment Example
Last updated: 12th May 2024 In this blog, we get an overview of the machine learning lifecycle, from initial data handling to the deployment and iterative improvement of ML models. You might want to check out this book for greater insights into machine learning (ML) concepts – Machine Learning Interviews. The following is the diagram representing the machine learning lifecycle while showcasing three key stages such as preparing data, ML development, and ML deployment. These three stages are explained later in this blog. Stage A: Preparing Data Preparing data for training machine learning models involves collecting data, constructing data pipelines for preprocessing, and refining the data to prepare it for …
Linear Regression T-test: Formula, Example
Last updated: 7th May, 2024 Linear regression is a popular statistical method used to model the relationship between a dependent variable and one or more independent variables. In linear regression, the t-test is a statistical hypothesis testing technique used to test the hypothesis related to the linearity of the relationship between the response variable and different predictor variables. In this blog, we will discuss linear regression and t-test and related formulas and examples. For a detailed read on linear regression, check out my related blog – Linear regression explained with real-life examples. T-tests are used in linear regression to determine if a particular independent variable (or feature) is statistically significant …
Feature Selection vs Feature Extraction: Machine Learning
Last updated: 2nd May, 2024 The success of machine learning models often depends on the quality of the features used to train them. This is where the concepts of feature extraction and feature selection come in. In this blog post, we’ll explore the difference between feature selection and feature extraction, two key techniques used as part of feature engineering in machine learning to optimize feature sets for better model performance. Both feature selection and feature extraction are used for dimensionality reduction which is key to reducing model complexity given that higher model complexity often results in overfitting. We’ll provide examples of how they can be applied in real-world scenarios. If …
Bias-Variance Trade-off in Machine Learning: Examples
Last updated: 1st May, 2024 The bias-variance trade-off is a fundamental concept in machine learning that presents a challenging dilemma for data scientists. It relates to the problem of simultaneously minimizing two sources of residual error that prevent supervised learning algorithms from generalizing beyond their training data. These two sources of error are related to Bias and Variance. Bias-related errors refer to the error due to overly simplistic machine learning models. Variance-related errors refer to the error due to too much complexity in the models. In this post, you will learn about the concepts of bias & variance in the machine learning (ML) models. You will learn about the tradeoff between bias …
Mean Squared Error vs Cross Entropy Loss Function
Last updated: 1st May, 2024 As a data scientist, understanding the nuances of various cost functions is critical for building high-performance machine learning models. Choosing the right cost function can significantly impact the performance of your model and determine how well it generalizes to unseen data. In this blog post, we will delve into two widely used cost functions: Mean Squared Error (MSE) and Cross Entropy Loss. By comparing their properties, applications, and trade-offs, we aim to provide you with a solid foundation for selecting the most suitable loss function for your specific problem. Cost functions play a pivotal role in training machine learning models as they quantify the difference …
Cross Entropy Loss Explained with Python Examples
Last updated: 1st May, 2024 In this post, you will learn the concepts related to the cross-entropy loss function along with Python code examples and which machine learning algorithms use the cross-entropy loss function as an objective function for training the models. Cross-entropy loss represents a loss function for models that predict the probability value as output (probability distribution as output). Logistic regression is one such algorithm whose output is a probability distribution. You may want to check out the details on how cross-entropy loss is related to information theory and entropy concepts – Information theory & machine learning: Concepts What’s Cross-Entropy Loss? Cross-entropy loss, also known as negative log-likelihood …
Logistic Regression in Machine Learning: Python Example
Last updated: 26th April, 2024 In this blog post, we will discuss the logistic regression machine learning algorithm with a python example. Logistic regression is a regression algorithm specifically designed to estimate the probability of an event occurring. For example, it can be used in the medical field to predict the likelihood of a patient developing a certain disease based on various health indicators, such as age, weight, and blood pressure. It is often used in machine learning applications. In this blog, we will learn about the logistic regression algorithm, and use python to implement the logistic regression model with IRIS dataset. What is Logistic Regression? The logistic regression algorithm …
MSE vs RMSE vs MAE vs MAPE vs R-Squared: When to Use?
Last updated: 22nd April, 2024 As data scientists, we navigate a sea of metrics to evaluate the performance of our regression models. Understanding these metrics – Mean Squared Error (MSE), Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE), and R-Squared – is crucial for robust model evaluation and selection. In this blog, we delve into the intricacies of these different metrics while learning them based on clear definitions, formulas, and guidance on when to use which of these metrics. Different Types of Regression Models Evaluation Metrics The following are different types of regression model evaluation metrics including MSE, RMSE, MAE, MAPE, R-squared, and Adjusted …
Gradient Descent in Machine Learning: Python Examples
Last updated: 22nd April, 2024 This post will teach you about the gradient descent algorithm and its importance in training machine learning models. For a data scientist, it is of utmost importance to get a good grasp on the concepts of gradient descent algorithm as it is widely used for optimizing/minimizing the objective function / loss function / cost function related to various machine learning models such as regression, neural network, etc. in terms of learning optimal weights/parameters. This algorithm is essential because it underpins many machine learning models, enabling them to learn from data by optimizing their performance. Introduction to Gradient Descent Algorithm The gradient descent algorithm is an optimization …
Loss Function vs Cost Function vs Objective Function: Examples
Last updated: 19th April, 2024 Among the terminologies used in training machine learning models, the concepts of loss function, cost function, and objective function often cause a fair amount of confusion, especially for aspiring data scientists and practitioners in the early stages of their careers. The reason for this confusion isn’t unfounded, as these terms are similar / closely related, often used interchangeably, and yet, they are different and serve distinct purposes in the realm of machine learning algorithms. Understanding the differences and specific roles of loss function, cost function, and objective function is more than a mere exercise in academic rigor. By grasping these concepts, data scientists can make …
Model Complexity & Overfitting in Machine Learning: How to Reduce
Last updated: 4th April, 2024 In machine learning, model complexity, and overfitting are related in that the model overfitting is a problem that can occur when a model is too complex for different reasons. This can cause the model to fit the noise in the data rather than the underlying pattern. As a result, the model will perform poorly when applied to new and unseen data. In this blog post, we will discuss model complexity and how you can avoid overfitting in your machine-learning models by handling the model complexity. As data scientists, it is of utmost importance to understand the concepts related to model complexity and how it impacts …
Free IBM Data Sciences Courses on Coursera
In the rapidly evolving fields of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, staying ahead means continually learning and adapting. In this blog, there is a list of around 20 free data science-related courses from IBM available on coursera.org that can help data science enthusiasts master different domains in AI / Data Science / Machine Learning. This list includes courses related to the core technical skills and knowledge needed to excel in these innovative fields. Foundational Knowledge: Understanding the essence of Data Science lays the groundwork for a successful career in this field. A solid foundation helps you grasp complex concepts easily and contributes to better decision-making, problem-solving, and the capacity to …
Self-Supervised Learning vs Transfer Learning: Examples
Last updated: 3rd March, 2024 Understanding the difference between self-supervised learning and transfer learning, along with their practical applications, is crucial for any data scientist looking to optimize model performance and efficiency. Self-supervised learning and transfer learning are two pivotal techniques in machine learning, each with its unique approach to leveraging data for model training. Transfer learning capitalizes on a model pre-trained on a broad dataset with diverse categories, to serve as a foundational model for a more specialized task. his method relies on labeled data, often requiring significant human effort to label. Self-supervised learning, in contrast, pre-trains models using unlabeled data, creatively generating its labels from the inherent structure …
Large Language Models (LLMs): Types, Examples
Last updated: 31st Jan, 2024 Large language models (LLMs), being the key pillar of generative AI, have been gaining traction in the world of natural language processing (NLP) due to their ability to process massive amounts of text and generate accurate results related to predicting the next word in a sentence, given all the previous words. These different LLM models are trained on a large or broad corpus of text datasets, which contain hundreds of millions to billions of words. LLMs, as they are known, rely on complex algorithms including transformer architectures that shift through large datasets and recognize patterns at the word level. This data helps the LLMs better understand …
I found it very helpful. However the differences are not too understandable for me