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Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

cis.upenn.edu

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Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#61

Post by raxxorrax »

meuk wrote: post #42

Whoah, this covers a lot. I was expecting some linear algebra, calculus, and discrete math, but there's actually some stuff in there I don't know after doing a masters in math.

Thought the same. 2000 pages - Basics was probably an understatement...

Just looked at a few pages and it seems really illustrative. I am just a light-weight mathematician as a computer scientist, but I really would have liked such a comprehensive script for studying. I hate it when profs reduce everything to minimal definitions and expect studends to make sense of it. There are countless books but it is always a gamble that they focus on the topic at hand and don't suffer from the same problems.

This even gives you "motivational examples" which are extremely helpful for comprehension in my opinion.

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#64

Post by aashu_dwivedi »

_russelldb wrote: post #60
Wurdan wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe the person you're replying to was attempting to help people like me, who haven't had a math lesson since leaving high school (in my case over 16 years ago) and whose level of math is roughly "You want me to multiply something? Let me get my phone." So while the book in question might not be the best resource, it probably is a better starting point than the linked doc.

I wish someone would put together the "basic math" resource for people like that. I didn't do any maths beyond 16. I was an maths idiot at school (me? the teacher? I dunno) but since then I've worked 20 years in programming and had to learn more and more maths just to make a living. However, my maths is a rickety hodge-podge house, with no real foundations. I can't be a total idiot, because I've done some decent work…

I've just finished the coursera's Mathematics for Machine Learning: Linear Algebra (https://www.coursera.org/learn/linear-algebra-machine-learni...) and I'd say its very good for beginners

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#65

Post by duckqlz »

jointpdf wrote: post #25

“Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML. Memorizing every definition and theorem in this book would be neither necessary nor sufficient for that purpose. Keep in mind it can take an hour, and sometimes way more, to really absorb a single page of a math book like this (do the math). This is mor…

> “Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML.

To me basics mean that if you study this entire book you won’t be able to understand ML otherwise it would say comprehensive. Furthermore the math presented in this book are all taught in 1st year courses for most CS programs I’ve encountered.

> Keep in mind it can take an hour, and sometimes way more, to really absorb a single page of a math.

Learning is a personal experience and happens at differing rates for different people. While I do agree this book is rather terse and would serve as a good reference any added explanations around the proofs would force a split to multiple publications so I can see why the authors chose to present it in the way they did.

Overall I have found this text easy to digest and well formulated and thank the authors and poster.

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#66

Post by jimmcslim »

_russelldb wrote: post #60
Wurdan wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe the person you're replying to was attempting to help people like me, who haven't had a math lesson since leaving high school (in my case over 16 years ago) and whose level of math is roughly "You want me to multiply something? Let me get my phone." So while the book in question might not be the best resource, it probably is a better starting point than the linked doc.

I wish someone would put together the "basic math" resource for people like that. I didn't do any maths beyond 16. I was an maths idiot at school (me? the teacher? I dunno) but since then I've worked 20 years in programming and had to learn more and more maths just to make a living. However, my maths is a rickety hodge-podge house, with no real foundations. I can't be a total idiot, because I've done some decent work…

Sometimes I feel doing a refresher in basic algebra and geometry/trig...

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#67

Post by plopilop »

duckqlz wrote: post #65
jointpdf wrote: post #25

“Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML. Memorizing every definition and theorem in this book would be neither necessary nor sufficient for that purpose. Keep in mind it can take an hour, and sometimes way more, to really absorb a single page of a math book like this (do the math). This is mor…

> “Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML. To me basics mean that if you study this entire book you won’t be able to understand ML otherwise it would say comprehensive. Furthermore the math presented in this book are all taught in 1st year courses for most CS programs I’ve encountered. > Keep…

> Furthermore the math presented in this book are all taught in 1st year courses for most CS programs I’ve encountered.

From what I see this book is much more complete than a first year course, or even the whole curriculum of a classical CS education.

I'm quite familiar with math, but I never encountered wavelet theory, Gauss-Seidel method, Rayleigh-Ritz theorem, and many more. My knowledge about other subjects such as Hermitian spaces, quaternions, finite elements is quite superficial.

And I've only listed elements of Part I.

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#68

Post by mtreis86 »

graycat wrote: post #28
SKILNER wrote: post #17

Very first sentence of 2.1 is full of notation, symbols and terms that I, as a prospective student, might not understand. So many teachers seem incapable of stepping outside their sphere of knowledge and seeing what they know and others do not. And so much work went into this.

Here's what he is doing. He wants to start with the set of real numbers, intuitively the points on the line, usually denoted by R, maybe typed in some special font. Then he wants to define, say, addition of real numbers. So, given two real numbers, x and y, that might be equal, he wants to define x + y. So, here he wants to regard addition, that is, +, as an operation . Then, as is usual for defining operations, he w…

Is there a book that explains things in the manner you have? I enjoy math but have trouble reading it.

Re: Math Basics for Computer Science and Machine Learning [pdf]

#69

Post by jefft255 »

duckqlz wrote: post #65
jointpdf wrote: post #25

“Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML. Memorizing every definition and theorem in this book would be neither necessary nor sufficient for that purpose. Keep in mind it can take an hour, and sometimes way more, to really absorb a single page of a math book like this (do the math). This is mor…

> “Math Basics” is quite the misnomer—it gives the impression that one would need to study all of the contents of this book to be an effective practitioner in CS or ML. To me basics mean that if you study this entire book you won’t be able to understand ML otherwise it would say comprehensive. Furthermore the math presented in this book are all taught in 1st year courses for most CS programs I’ve encountered. > Keep…

Which CS program? I think you’re more than exaggerating. They don’t teach topology, FEM and abstract algebra in “most” CS program. These are just three random examples; most of the book is wayyy more advanced than what I would expect to learn in freshman CS.
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