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Best wishes to you all and thanks so much for your heroic efforts this semester
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+The goal of transfer learning is to transfer the model or knowledge +obtained from a source task to the target task, in order to resolve +the issues of insufficient training data in the target task. The +rationality of doing so lies in that usually the source and target +tasks have inter-correlations, and therefore either the features, +samples, or models in the source task might provide useful information +for us to better solve the target task. Transfer learning is a hot +research topic in recent years, with many problems still waiting to be +solved in this space. + +
+Lecture on transfer learning. + +
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+The conventional deep generative model has a potential problem: the +model tends to generate extreme instances to maximize the +probabilistic likelihood, which will hurt its performance. Adversarial +learning utilizes the adversarial behaviors (e.g., generating +adversarial instances or training an adversarial model) to enhance the +robustness of the model and improve the quality of the generated +data. In recent years, one of the most promising unsupervised learning +technologies, generative adversarial networks (GAN), has already been +successfully applied to image, speech, and text. + +
+Lecture on adversial learning. + +
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+Dual learning is a new learning paradigm, the basic idea of which is +to use the primal-dual structure between machine learning tasks to +obtain effective feedback/regularization, and guide and strengthen the +learning process, thus reducing the requirement of large-scale labeled +data for deep learning. The idea of dual learning has been applied to +many problems in machine learning, including machine translation, +image style conversion, question answering and generation, image +classification and generation, text classification and generation, +image-to-text, and text-to-image. + +
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+Distributed computation will speed up machine learning algorithms, +significantly improve their efficiency, and thus enlarge their +application. When distributed meets machine learning, more than just +implementing the machine learning algorithms in parallel is required. + +
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+Meta learning is an emerging research direction in machine +learning. Roughly speaking, meta learning concerns learning how to +learn, and focuses on the understanding and adaptation of the learning +itself, instead of just completing a specific learning task. That is, +a meta learner needs to be able to evaluate its own learning methods +and adjust its own learning methods according to specific learning +tasks. + +
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+While there has been much progress in machine learning, there are also challenges. + +
+For example, the mainstream machine learning technologies are +black-box approaches, making us concerned about their potential +risks. To tackle this challenge, we may want to make machine learning +more explainable and controllable. As another example, the +computational complexity of machine learning algorithms is usually +very high and we may want to invent lightweight algorithms or +implementations. Furthermore, in many domains such as physics, +chemistry, biology, and social sciences, people usually seek elegantly +simple equations (e.g., the Schrödinger equation) to uncover the +underlying laws behind various phenomena. In the field of machine +learning, can we reveal simple laws instead of designing more complex +models for data fitting? Although there are many challenges, we are +still very optimistic about the future of machine learning. As we look +forward to the future, here are what we think the research hotspots in +the next ten years will be. + +
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+Machine learning, especially deep learning, evolves rapidly. The +ability gap between machine and human on many complex cognitive tasks +becomes narrower and narrower. However, we are still in the very early +stage in terms of explaining why those effective models work and how +they work. + +
+What is missing: the gap between correlation and causation Most +machine learning techniques, especially the statistical ones, depend +highly on data correlation to make predictions and analyses. In +contrast, rational humans tend to reply on clear and trustworthy +causality relations obtained via logical reasoning on real and clear +facts. It is one of the core goals of explainable machine learning to +transition from solving problems by data correlation to solving +problems by logical reasoning. + +
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+Quantum machine learning is an emerging interdisciplinary research +area at the intersection of quantum computing and machine learning. + +
+Quantum computers use effects such as quantum coherence and quantum +entanglement to process information, which is fundamentally different +from classical computers. Quantum algorithms have surpassed the best +classical algorithms in several problems (e.g., searching for an +unsorted database, inverting a sparse matrix), which we call quantum +acceleration. + +
+When quantum computing meets machine learning, it can be a mutually +beneficial and reinforcing process, as it allows us to take advantage +of quantum computing to improve the performance of classical machine +learning algorithms. In addition, we can also use the machine learning +algorithms (on classic computers) to analyze and improve quantum +computing systems. + +
+Lecture on Quantum ML. + +
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+Many quantum machine learning algorithms are based on variants of +quantum algorithms for solving linear equations, which can efficiently +solve N-variable linear equations with complexity of O(log2 N) under +certain conditions. The quantum matrix inversion algorithm can +accelerate many machine learning methods, such as least square linear +regression, least square version of support vector machine, Gaussian +process, and more. The training of these algorithms can be simplified +to solve linear equations. The key bottleneck of this type of quantum +machine learning algorithms is data input—that is, how to initialize +the quantum system with the entire data set. Although efficient +data-input algorithms exist for certain situations, how to efficiently +input data into a quantum system is as yet unknown for most cases. + +
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+In quantum reinforcement learning, a quantum agent interacts with the +classical environment to obtain rewards from the environment, so as to +adjust and improve its behavioral strategies. In some cases, it +achieves quantum acceleration by the quantum processing capabilities +of the agent or the possibility of exploring the environment through +quantum superposition. Such algorithms have been proposed in +superconducting circuits and systems of trapped ions. + +
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+Dedicated quantum information processors, such as quantum annealers +and programmable photonic circuits, are well suited for building deep +quantum networks. The simplest deep quantum network is the Boltzmann +machine. The classical Boltzmann machine consists of bits with tunable +interactions and is trained by adjusting the interaction of these bits +so that the distribution of its expression conforms to the statistics +of the data. To quantize the Boltzmann machine, the neural network can +simply be represented as a set of interacting quantum spins that +correspond to an adjustable Ising model. Then, by initializing the +input neurons in the Boltzmann machine to a fixed state and allowing +the system to heat up, we can read out the output qubits to get the +result. + +
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+Machine learning aims to imitate how humans +learn. While we have developed successful machine learning algorithms, +until now we have ignored one important fact: humans are social. Each +of us is one part of the total society and it is difficult for us to +live, learn, and improve ourselves, alone and isolated. Therefore, we +should design machines with social properties. Can we let machines +evolve by imitating human society so as to achieve more effective, +intelligent, interpretable “social machine learning”? + +
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+Early computer scientist Alan Kay said, The best way to predict the +future is to create it. Therefore, all machine learning +practitioners, whether scholars or engineers, professors or students, +need to work together to advance these important research +topics. Together, we will not just predict the future, but create it. + +
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