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By Caleb Anton
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
Ive always appreciated the power behind computation and how weve managed to create highly
automated systems to stimulate human development. However, I always assumed that automating these
processes required a great deal of understanding from the user or programmer. Little did I know, that
weve managed to automate the very process of learning itself, and we can use that to solve problems and
recognize patterns we cant even begin to understand. After watching an artificial neural network learn to
play and eventually speed run a Mario level, I became very intrigued with the functions and applications
of machine learning.
Before officially researching my topic, I had already picked up on a few areas that machine
learning is being used today, whether it be from news articles or YouTube videos. I also understood that
many machine learning systems were based on the human brain and simulate many of the biological
functions that allow us to adapt to new ideas, situations, or problems. However, I felt that I needed to
learn more about the topic to better appreciate its inner workings and how it has and will change the
world.
I formed many questions about my topic. How do machine learning algorithms function? What
are the different types of algorithms? How is it currently affecting the world, and how will it affect the
world in the future. Will there be any breakthroughs? Even though my questions focused on many
different aspects of machine learning, they all fit under one overarching question: What are the processes
involved with and applications of machine learning? After searching, I was able to come up with an
I began doing some background research with a simple google search for machine learning. It
became quickly apparent that I didnt understand much of the jargon used in the scholarly articles that
came from an unrefined search. From there, I used different glossaries from college resources to come up
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
with a better vocabulary to tackle articles targeted at people that were more experienced with machine
learning. In order to understand a lot of the vocabulary that was defined in the glossaries, I needed to
understand different aspects of machine learning. This lead me to my first question: How do machine
After searching through many scholarly articles, I found that it would be much easier to
understand the math behind how machine learning algorithms work if described with the sole purpose of
educating. I settled on a lecture series for students taking a machine learning class at Stanford. However,
after making my way through about half of the lectures, I realized that the information that I was learning
would be too in depth for the broad scope of my topic. I decided to use the information I picked up from
the lectures to go back to the glossaries that were too complicated for me to understand at first. I used this
information and honed in on a generic, yet simple to understand type of algorithm called error
backpropagation. On top of that, I learned about many different types of machine learning algorithms and
how to practically recreate them. Although it would be too difficult to describe in my iSearch, I planned
Now that I was getting to know machine learning better from a technical aspect, I decided to
contact someone for an interview. I found that there was a local expert working with deep learning at the
Nasa Langley Research Center, and I was very excited to get their expert opinions on machine learning.
However, after not receiving a response for over a week, I decided to continue my search without the
interview. I figured that it would be important to research the questions that I wouldve asked the expert,
and that I could use this as an opportunity to find research by experts that would know more about the
From there, my research became a lot easier. Rather than focusing on the technical aspects, I
started to focus on how machine learning will and has changed the world we live in. There were no longer
any hard concepts to try and understand, so the main challenge that I faced in this portion of the research
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
was making sure that my somewhat opinionated research was from unbiased sources. When looking at the
future of machine learning, it was very important to find a source that was based off of fact and data
analysis rather than expert opinions. Luckily, the Global Mckinsey Institute did a very thorough and well
known study on the future of automation and machine learning in many different types of fields and work
in those fields. I was able to confirm the validity of the source, because they were very reputable and well
known. Also, many other scholarly articles I found for this aspect in my research referenced the work
Finally, after getting a better understanding on how machine learning could be used and is
currently being used, I wanted to see how machine learning might benefit from the exponential growth of
computers. However, I quickly learned about the prospect of quantum computing, and how it would
benefit the world of machine learning much greater than increasing the speed of regular computers. I used
a couple different sources to learn how quantum computing will benefit machine learning. They werent
very technical and scholarly articles, but I felt that it was important that they were clear to understand
because I did not have enough time to dive into the subject of quantum mechanics. The different sources
that I ended up using contained matching information, and I thought that the matching information helped
After completing my research and organizing my thoughts, I felt that I had adequate information
Much of machine learning is based off of naturally occurring phenomenon. A lot of the basic
ideas and structure in machine learning algorithms are based off of the human brain. Because of this, it's
important to understand how biological neurons function. They are connected in complex arrangements,
and use electric pulses and specific chemicals to transmit impulses from one neuron to the next; in other
words, electrical pulses from other biological neurons cause the transfer of substances called
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
neurotransmitters, or chemical messengers, across a structure called a synapse, to the dendrites, or the
receiving end, of other neurons, called downstream neurons. The arrival of the neurotransmitters in the
dendrite of the downstream neuron increases the tendency of the downstream neuron to send an electrical
pulse, or fire. If enough dendrites in a neuron receive neurotransmitters in a short period of time, the
Many machine learning algorithms use nodes, which are simple models of biological neurons and
are used in neural networks to perform a small part of some overall computational problem. Many
connected nodes, or artificial neurons, form a neural network. These connections have weights, meaning
that each has a parameter that determines how much notice a neuron pays to the activation it receives
from another neuron. These weights correspond to synapses in a biological neuron, and they are the
parameters that you multiply by the input signals in a given connection. If the weight is positive, the
connection is considered excitatory, while if the weight is negative, the connection is called inhibitory.
One of the most common and simple ways the neural network can be set up, is in a feedforward network,
which is a kind of neural network where information only travels forward. Because of this, nodes can be
numbered, and each node has weighted connections only to nodes with higher numbers. In practice, the
nodes of most feedforward nets are partitioned into layers, or sets of nodes, and layers may be numbered
in such a way that nodes in each layer are connected only to nodes in next layer, or the layer with the next
higher number. Commonly, successive layers are totally interconnected, meaning that each node in the
earlier layer is connected to every node in the next layer. Nodes are classified by which layer they are in.
The first layer has no input connections, making it the input layer, and it consists of input units. The last
layer has no output connections, making it the output layer, and are made up of output units. Layers in
between the input and output layers are termed hidden layers, and consist of hidden units. When the
network is operating, the activation of non-input neurons are computed using each neuron's activation
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
function, or the function that describes the output behavior of the node. Most algorithms start by
computing the weighted sum of the inputs, which is the sum of the inputs multiplied by the weight
associated with each connection. The total net input is usually transformed in some way, using what is
sometimes called a squashing function. The simplest squashing function is a step function: if the total net
input is less than zero, or more often, some threshold T, then the output of the neuron is zero, otherwise it
is a one. These networks can be trained using an error backpropagation algorithm. (Wilson, 2012) When a
specific result is expected from the output units, the network is run, or propagated, with specific values
assigned, or clamped, to the input units. The squared error function is is used to compare the values of
output units with the expected values. After each propagation, the weights are updated in a way that helps
reduce the total error. Error backpropagation is a very simple, yet common example of a neural network
machine learning algorithm; however, there are many other types of machine learning algorithms.
(Mazur, 2016)
In order to make referring to machine learning algorithms less difficult, there exists a couple
different taxonomies. One way you can classify them is by learning style, and all algorithms fall under
three categories: supervised, unsupervised, or semi supervised learning. In supervised learning, the input
data is called training data, and it has a known result or label. A training process is repeated until the
desired level of accuracy is reached. For example, you could feed spam emails and non-spam emails into
a supervised training algorithm until it reaches a desired level of accuracy. Then, the algorithm could be
used to predict whether emails are spam emails or not. Some examples of algorithms under this category
are Logistic Regression and Error Back Propagation. In unsupervised learning, the input data is not
labeled and it doesn't have a known result. It deduces structures present in the input data and can be used
to extract general rules, reduce redundancy, or organize data by similarity. Some good of examples of
problems that can be solved using unsupervised learning are clustering (grouping), reducing the number
databases ( or association rule learning.) In contrast to the spam and non-spam email example,
unsupervised learning could be used to group emails together by type when the categories arent
specified. Examples of unsupervised learning algorithms include the Apriori algorithm and k-Means. In
semi-supervised learning, the input data is a mixture of labeled and unlabeled examples. There is a
desired prediction problem, but the model must learn the structures to organize the data as well as make
predictions. They are used in classification and regression. Example algorithms extend to other flexible
methods that make assumptions about how to model unlabeled data. (Brownlee, 2017) Machine learning
algorithms are also grouped by similarity or how they work. There are a vast amount of functionally
different algorithms, but some prominent examples are tree-based methods, neural network inspired
Because of machine learnings dynamicity, it's being applied to new problems all the time. Many
of these problems seem easy for humans to do, like interpreting languages, but pose an immense
challenge to those attempting to structurally define all the rules involved in the process in order to
automate it. However, some are very difficult to solve by humans, like finding arbitrary patterns in large
amounts of interconnected data, like ad or video recommendation algorithms. There are many different
problems that machine learning excels at, and has been able to eliminate a lot of unnecessary human
labor.
Because most malware are just slightly varied versions of previous malware, machine learning is
being used to very quickly find ways to defend against these, increasing data security. On top of that,
machine learning is benefiting personal security. It's being already being used in airports to spot
anomalies that people are very likely to miss. The stock market is another very classical machine learning
problem. Lots of data is being fed through deep learning bots that interpret and make trades at incredibly
high speeds and in large volumes. Smart cars are made possible through machine learning by developing
driving patterns and recognizing new conditions that would be very hazardous. Language has always been
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
very difficult to interpret by computers. However, using deep learning, many greats strides are being
made on this issue. In fact, it's very likely that you've read an article written almost exclusively by a
Google has been a very notable pioneer when it comes to deep learning, which is an algorithm
that consists of very complex interconnected neural network algorithms. They have many hidden layers.
They currently use it to optimize search results, recommend and promote videos on YouTube, etc. Also,
they have created google deepmind, which was made to adapt to many different problems. They have also
used it to play pictionary, Space Invaders, and many other fun/interesting ideas that have posed problems
A set of thorough studies have been done by the Global Mckinsy Institute that predict what the
use of machine learning in different fields. Knowing that machine learnings greatest potential across
industries includes improving forecasting and predictive analytics, 120 different use cases were analyzed.
(Chui, n.d.) They have also predicted which jobs are the most likely to be replaced using machine
learning. The major factor involved with whether machine learning is applicable to different fields is the
amount of data produced. For now, many jobs will most likely stay safe; however, as the technology
develops, more and more jobs will become much easier to automate. (Columbus, 2017)
Even though machine learning algorithms are becoming more optimized, their speed and
effectiveness is greatly hindered by the processing power of the computer. In order for processing power
to increase, transistors, which are the building blocks of all computers, must become smaller. Luckily,
weve become very good shrinking transistors, and there is a law, Morgans Law, that states that the
number of transistors we can fit on a given chip doubles every two years (which doubles the processing
power every two years.) However, when they get small enough, they will be able to pass over regions
they aren't supposed to through a process called quantum tunneling. (Particles on the quantum scale are
able to ignore initial decreases in energies if it leads to an increase in energy.) Because transistors are
getting closer to reaching their theoretical size limit, Morgan's law is starting to break down. This has lead
many machine learning algorithms to rely on a connected network of computers, rather than using a single
processor. Luckily, machine learning suits itself really well to cloud computing. If anything, the
slowdown of computer processing power advancement only increases the need for machine learning.
When transistor's eventually reach their limit, most research and development will be in the field
of quantum computing. Using many of the weird processes that occur at the quantum level, quantum
computing will be much faster when you have to look through or analyze a lot of information or do a lot
of things at once, like factoring. It won't be any better at doing regular straight forward tasks though.
However, one of the most exciting parts about quantum computing is that it will increase the speed of
machine learning algorithms exponentially (according to the number of qubits.) Once that happens,
machine learning will be able to used for so much more than we could even imagine. (Palmer, 2014)
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
Growth As A Researcher
I have grown as lot as a result of this research project. Because I was put into a situation where I
had to dive into a topic and conduct formal research, I came to learn how interesting it can be. When I
ended up in a state of flow, the task became much less arduous and even rewarding. I can use this new
found craving for information on other research topics, which will allow me to give a genuine and
I also have learned how to benefit from formal research journals, and to gradually develop
vocabulary to tackle complex articles. This has opened up a wide variety of resources that I would have
previously ignored.
After completing my research, Im sure that I will continue to investigate the field of machine
References
Columbus, L. (2017, January 01). McKinsey's 2016 Analytics Study Defines The Future Of Machine
https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2016/12/18/mckinseys-2016-analytics-study-defines-t
he-future-machine-learning/#ce1c38414eb2
How quantum computing could change everything. (2014, October 28). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from
http://theweek.com/articles/443104/how-quantum-computing-could-change-everything
Marr, B. (2016, September 30). AI And Machine Learning Use Cases. Retrieved June 12, 2017, from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2016/09/30/what-are-the-top-10-use-cases-for-machine-
learning-and-ai/#400bc59a94c9
M. (2016, December 29). A Step by Step Backpropagation Example. Retrieved June 12, 2017, from
https://mattmazur.com/2015/03/17/a-step-by-step-backpropagation-example/
Michael Chui, James Manyika, and Mehdi Miremadi. (n.d.). Where machines could replace humans--and
http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/digital-mckinsey/our-insights/where-machines-could
-replace-humans-and-where-they-cant-yet
Ray, S., N., Blog, G., & Gupta, D. (2017, May 04). Essentials of Machine Learning Algorithms (with
https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2015/08/common-machine-learning-algorithms/
A Tour of Machine Learning Algorithms. (2017, February 21). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from
http://machinelearningmastery.com/a-tour-of-machine-learning-algorithms/
Functions and Applications of Machine Learning
The future of computing. (2016, March 12). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21694528-era-predictable-improvement-computer-hardw
are-ending-what-comes-next-future