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Understanding Backpropagation in Data Science

 

Backpropagation is a fundamental concept in machine learning and artificial intelligence. It is an algorithm that enables the training of neural networks by adjusting the weights of each neuron based on the error rate between predicted output and actual output. In this blog post, we will discuss how backpropagation works, its algorithm, an example to illustrate it, and its significance in data science. Understanding the backpropagation in data mining begins with understanding data science; you can get an insight into the same through our Data Science Training.

Neural Network

A neural network is an information processing paradigm motivated by the human nervous system. Artificial neurons in neural networks are mathematical functions generated from biological neurons, just as there are biological neurons in the human nervous system. Approximately 10 billion neurons in the human brain are linked to around 10,000 others. A synapse transmits signals between neurons and modulates the impact of those signals on the receiving cell.

 

What is Backpropagation?

Backpropagation is a method for training a neural network that involves repeatedly comparing the network's predictions for a set of training tuples against the actual value of the target. The objective value may be a discrete integer (in the case of issues involving regression), or it could be the label of the training tuple (in the case of problems involving classification) (for prediction). The network's weights are changed in response to each training pair to lower the mean squared error between the predicted and actual values. In other words, the modifications are applied "backward," or from the output layer to the lower hidden levels, and then from those layers to the first hidden layer (hence the name backpropagation). Even though it is not guaranteed, the weights will converge in most instances, and the learning process will end. A brief explanation of the algorithm may be found in the algorithm. If this is your first time learning about neural networks, the language used to explain the processes involved may initially seem odd to you. On the other hand, having a comprehensive understanding of the process demonstrates the inherent straightforwardness of the procedure's phases. To know more about backpropagation and how it is related to data science, and how to pursue a career in data science, refer to our data science career path.

Types of Backpropagation

  1. Static Backpropagation: Static backpropagation is a popular technique used in deep learning to train neural networks. It involves computing gradients of the loss function with respect to the weights and biases of the network, which are then used to update these parameters during training. The advantage of static backpropagation is that it allows for efficient computation of gradients using techniques such as automatic differentiation, which can greatly speed up training times. Research has shown that static backpropagation can be effective in various applications, including image recognition, natural language processing, and speech recognition. For example, a study by Google researchers found that static backpropagation achieved state-of-the-art performance on several benchmark datasets for image classification tasks. Static backpropagation remains an important tool in the deep learning toolbox and is likely to continue playing a key role in future research and development efforts.

  2. Recurrent Backpropagation: Recurrent Backpropagation is a powerful tool for training recurrent neural networks (RNNs) to perform complex tasks such as language modeling, speech recognition, and image captioning. This algorithm builds on the basic backpropagation algorithm used for feedforward neural networks by adding an additional step that accounts for the temporal dependencies in RNNs. Specifically, recurrent backpropagation involves computing gradients over time using information from previous timesteps in the sequence. This approach has been shown to be highly effective for training RNNs with long-term dependencies, which are notoriously difficult to learn using other methods. For example, a study conducted by Graves et al. (2013) found that recurrent backpropagation significantly outperformed traditional gradient descent algorithms on several benchmark datasets for speech recognition and handwriting recognition tasks. These findings demonstrate the importance of incorporating temporal information into deep learning algorithms when working with sequential data like text or audio signals.

How Does Backpropagation Work?

Neural network learning for classification or prediction using the backpropagation algorithm.

Input: D, a data set consisting of the training tuples and their associated target values; l, the learning rate; and network, a multilayer feed-forward network. 

Output: A trained neural network.

Method:

Initialize all weights and biases in network; 
while terminating condition is not satisfied { 
for each training tuple X in D {  
// Propagate the inputs forward: 
for each input layer unit j { 
Oj = Ij ; // output of an input unit is its actual input value 
for each hidden or output layer unit j { 
Ij = ∑iwi jOi +θj ; //compute the net input of unit j with respect to the previous layer, i 
Oj = 1 1+e −I j ; } // compute the output of each unit j 
// Backpropagate the errors: 
for each unit j in the output layer 
Errj = Oj(1−Oj)(Tj −Oj); // compute the error 
for each unit j in the hidden layers, from the last to the first hidden layer 
Errj = Oj(1−Oj)∑k Errkwjk; // compute the error with respect to the next higher layer, k 
for each weight wi j in network { 
∆wi j = (l)ErrjOi ; // weight increment  
wi j = wi j +∆wi j; } // weight update 
for each bias θj in network { 
∆θj = (l)Errj ; // bias increment 
θj = θj +∆θj ; } // bias update 
} } 

Weights are seeded with tiny random numbers (e.g., between -1.0 and 1.0 or -0.5 and 0.5) to get the network started. As will be seen below, a bias is connected to each unit. Similarly, tiny random numbers are used to initiate the preferences.

The Following Procedures are Applied to Each Tuple X in The Training Data.

The network's input layer is the first to receive the training tuple. The inputs are unaltered as they go through the input devices. If j is an input unit, then Oj should be equal to Ij. Then, the sum of the hidden layer's and the output layer's net inputs and outputs is determined. To calculate the net information to a unit in the hidden or output layers, we use a linear combination of the inputs to that unit. 

Each such team takes in information from several other units whose outputs are coupled to their own from the layer above. Each link has a value assigned to it. One multiplies the quantity of each input to the unit by its relative importance to arrive at the net information for the team.

We write to calculate the net input, Ij, to a unit j in the hidden or output layer.
 

                                                        Ij = I wi jOi + j,

Where wi j is the weight of the link from unit I in the previous layer to unit j, Oi is the output of unit I from the previous layer, and j is the bias of the unit. The bias is a threshold that controls the unit's activity level.The activation function is applied to each unit's net input in the hidden and output layers. The action represented by the function stands for activation.