MACHINE LEARNING FOR DUMMIES

Machine learning is one of the most in demand and fastest growing fields of this era. So what exactly is machine learning? Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence techniques which use statistical methods to enable machines to improve with experience. Machine learning uses algorithms whose performance improve as they are exposed to more data over time. Since this is the age of technology, it is a no brainer that more and more people are leaning towards this new and exciting field. 

What you need 

STEP 1:

START WITH THE VERY BASICS:

Machine learning is an extremely in depth field and it is absolutely necessary that you first have a good understanding of the basic requirements. Machine learning, like every other fields require a comprehensive knowledge of some fields or the other. Some of the very basic requirements are given below.

a. LEARN LINEAR ALGEBRA AND MULTIVARIATE CALCULUS

Linear algebra is a sub branch of mathematics and is one of the most important building blocks of machine learning. It is in describing the operation to algorithms to the implementation of algorithms. 

Multivariate calculus is a tool which we can take a function of multiple inputs and determine the influence of each of them individually. 

Linear algebra and multivariate calculus are extensively used in machine learning so it's best to get yourself somewhat familiarised with these topics

b.  LEARN STATISTICS

Data plays a huge role in machine learning and the best way to learn it, is to learn statistics. Some of the important statistics requirements in machine learning include statistical significance, regression, probability distribution, hypothesis testing, etc.

c. LEARN PYTHON

You can skip the first steps and learn them along the way if you are in a hurry to learn machine learning but what you absolutely can not skip is learning a programming language. And the best language to start with is, python. Python is one of the easiest languages to learn and especially if you're a total beginner at machine learning and are also a total beginner in programming languages like me when I first started all this. You can also check out the python section of my page if you want help with that. 

STEP 2:

LEARN VARIOUS MACHINE LEARNING CONCEPTS:

After you're done with the basics, you can finally start the fun part, machine learning. To get started with machine learning it's best if you start with the basic concepts and move onto the difficult stuff.

a. TERMINOLOGIES

The first and very basic thing you're gonna learn are a no brainer, the terminologies. You need to get yourself familiarised with the terminologies like model, feature, target, 

Etc. 

b. TYPES

Now comes the various types of machine learning. Here is a brief description of them

(i) SUPERVISED LEARNING:

This involves learning from Training dataset with labeled data using classification and regression methods. This learning process continues until the required level of performance is achieved.

(ii). UNSUPERVISED LEARNING:

This includes learning from unlabelled date and then finding the underlying structure in the data in order to learn more and more about the data itself using cluster analysis methods

(iii). SEMI SUPERVISED LEARNING:

This includes using unlabelled data with a small amount of labeled data. Using labeled data vastly increases the learning accuracy.

(iv). REINFORCEMENT LEARNING:

This includes learning optimal actions through trial and error so the next action is decided by learning behaviour of the exciting data and that will maximise the reward in the future.

C. WHERE SHOULD I LEARN MACHINE LEARNING?

Ok, so now you know what machine learning is and the basics it requires and it's various types so the obvious questions you must have now is where can I learn machine learning from. For that there are a bunch of sites that offer free courses on machine learning. Some of them are given below. 

(i) coursera 

(ii) edx

(iii) udemy

(iv) udacity

Step 3:

TAKE PART IN COMPETITION:

Now that you have learned all that there is to learn about machine learning, you can start taking part in competitions. It's totally optional. Taking part in competitions will help you further your knowledge of machine learning and will keep you up to date with the advancements in the field.

CONCLUSION:



In conclusion, I would like to say don't worry if it all might seem too much. Trust me you only need just a little bit of determination to learn anything new. It might seem daunting and a bit too much from time to time so whenever that happens take a break and relax. You are in no rush. It doesn't matter how fast or slow you're going everyone is going on their own time clock. Einstein explained it way back in 1913 that time is relative!