Supervised Machine Learning for Science
Supervised Machine Learning for Science
How to stop worrying and love your black box
About the Book
Machine learning has revolutionized science, from folding proteins and predicting tornadoes to studying human nature. While science has always had an intimate relationship with prediction, machine learning amplified this focus. But can this hyper-focus on prediction be justified? Can a machine learning model be part of a scientific model? Or are we on the wrong track?
In this book, we explore and justify supervised machine learning in science. However, a naive application of supervised learning won’t get you far because machine learning in raw form is unsuitable for science. After all, it lacks interpretability, causality, uncertainty quantification, and many more desirable attributes. Yet, we already have all the puzzle pieces needed to improve machine learning, from incorporating domain knowledge to creating robust, interpretable, and causal models. The problem is that the solutions are scattered everywhere.
In this book, we bring together the philosophical justification and the solutions that make supervised machine learning a powerful tool for science.
The book consists of two parts:
- Part 1 justifies the use of machine learning in science.
- Part 2 discusses how to integrate machine learning into science.
Reader Testimonials
Bemah, Ibrahim
Mining, Geology and Civil Engineering Practitioner and Researcher University of South Australia
Supervised Machine Learning for Science by Christoph and Timo is essential for professionals in high-stakes fields like mining and civil engineering. The book addresses the need for responsible, interpretable machine learning, focusing on domain knowledge, causality, and uncertainty—bridging advanced analytics with the accountability our work demands.
Carolina Natel de Moura
Postdoctoral Researcher at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and trainer at the Digital Research Academy
This book was invaluable as I prepared ML training materials for PhD students. It covers both the basics and real-world challenges, presenting complex topics in an accessible way. Ideal for beginners and experienced ML practitioners alike, it's the best guide I’ve found for researchers aiming to achieve their scientific goals with ML.
Table of Contents
- Summary
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Bare-Bones Supervised Machine Learning
- Justifying Machine Learning For Science
- 3 The Role of Prediction in Science
- 4 Justification to Use Machine Learning
- 5 Machine Learning and Other Scientific Goals: A Clash
- 6 Bare-Bones Machine Learning is Insufficient
- Integrating Machine Learning Into Science
- 7 Generalization
- 8 Domain Knowledge
- 9 Interpretability
- 10 Causality
- 11 Robustness
- 12 Uncertainty
- 13 Reproducibility
- 14 Reporting
- 15 The Future of Science in the Age of Machine Learning
- Acknowledgments
- Citing this Book
- About the Authors
- References
The Leanpub 60 Day 100% Happiness Guarantee
Within 60 days of purchase you can get a 100% refund on any Leanpub purchase, in two clicks.
Now, this is technically risky for us, since you'll have the book or course files either way. But we're so confident in our products and services, and in our authors and readers, that we're happy to offer a full money back guarantee for everything we sell.
You can only find out how good something is by trying it, and because of our 100% money back guarantee there's literally no risk to do so!
So, there's no reason not to click the Add to Cart button, is there?
See full terms...
Earn $8 on a $10 Purchase, and $16 on a $20 Purchase
We pay 80% royalties on purchases of $7.99 or more, and 80% royalties minus a 50 cent flat fee on purchases between $0.99 and $7.98. You earn $8 on a $10 sale, and $16 on a $20 sale. So, if we sell 5000 non-refunded copies of your book for $20, you'll earn $80,000.
(Yes, some authors have already earned much more than that on Leanpub.)
In fact, authors have earnedover $14 millionwriting, publishing and selling on Leanpub.
Learn more about writing on Leanpub
Free Updates. DRM Free.
If you buy a Leanpub book, you get free updates for as long as the author updates the book! Many authors use Leanpub to publish their books in-progress, while they are writing them. All readers get free updates, regardless of when they bought the book or how much they paid (including free).
Most Leanpub books are available in PDF (for computers) and EPUB (for phones, tablets and Kindle). The formats that a book includes are shown at the top right corner of this page.
Finally, Leanpub books don't have any DRM copy-protection nonsense, so you can easily read them on any supported device.
Learn more about Leanpub's ebook formats and where to read them