What Is Machine Learning?

Abstract

Machine learning as a field grew out of the need to get computers to solve problems that are difficult to program as a sequence of instructions. Take, for example, that we want a computer to perform the task of recognizing faces in an image. One will realize that it is incredibly complicated, if not impossible to develop a precise instruction set that will satisfactorily perform this task. However, by drawing from the observation that humans improve on performing complex functions from past experiences, we can then attempt to develop algorithms and methods that enable the computer to establish a system for solving complex tasks based off prior experiences without being explicitly programmed. The set of methods and algorithms for discovering patterns in data is what is known as machine learning.