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Machine Learning with R - Second Edition

By : Brett Lantz
Book Image

Machine Learning with R - Second Edition

By: Brett Lantz

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Machine Learning with R - Second Edition
Brett Lantz
Jul, 2015 | 452 pages
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Table of Contents (19 chapters)
Machine Learning with R Second Edition
Machine Learning with R Second Edition
Credits
Credits
About the Author
About the Author
About the Reviewers
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Preface
Free Chapter
1
Introducing Machine Learning
Introducing Machine Learning
The origins of machine learning
Uses and abuses of machine learning
How machines learn
Machine learning in practice
Machine learning with R
Summary
2
Managing and Understanding Data
Managing and Understanding Data
R data structures
Managing data with R
Exploring and understanding data
Summary
3
Lazy Learning – Classification Using Nearest Neighbors
Lazy Learning – Classification Using Nearest Neighbors
Understanding nearest neighbor classification
Example – diagnosing breast cancer with the k-NN algorithm
Summary
4
Probabilistic Learning – Classification Using Naive Bayes
Probabilistic Learning – Classification Using Naive Bayes
Understanding Naive Bayes
Example – filtering mobile phone spam with the Naive Bayes algorithm
Summary
5
Divide and Conquer – Classification Using Decision Trees and Rules
Divide and Conquer – Classification Using Decision Trees and Rules
Understanding decision trees
Example – identifying risky bank loans using C5.0 decision trees
Understanding classification rules
Example – identifying poisonous mushrooms with rule learners
Summary
6
Forecasting Numeric Data – Regression Methods
Forecasting Numeric Data – Regression Methods
Understanding regression
Example – predicting medical expenses using linear regression
Understanding regression trees and model trees
Example – estimating the quality of wines with regression trees and model trees
Summary
7
Black Box Methods – Neural Networks and Support Vector Machines
Black Box Methods – Neural Networks and Support Vector Machines
Understanding neural networks
Example – Modeling the strength of concrete with ANNs
Understanding Support Vector Machines
Example – performing OCR with SVMs
Summary
8
Finding Patterns – Market Basket Analysis Using Association Rules
Finding Patterns – Market Basket Analysis Using Association Rules
Understanding association rules
Example – identifying frequently purchased groceries with association rules
Summary
9
Finding Groups of Data – Clustering with k-means
Finding Groups of Data – Clustering with k-means
Understanding clustering
Example – finding teen market segments using k-means clustering
Summary
10
Evaluating Model Performance
Evaluating Model Performance
Measuring performance for classification
Estimating future performance
Summary
11
Improving Model Performance
Improving Model Performance
Tuning stock models for better performance
Improving model performance with meta-learning
Summary
12
Specialized Machine Learning Topics
Specialized Machine Learning Topics
Working with proprietary files and databases
Working with online data and services
Working with domain-specific data
Improving the performance of R
Summary
Index
Index

Exploring and understanding data

After collecting data and loading it into R's data structures, the next step in the machine learning process involves examining the data in detail. It is during this step that you will begin to explore the data's features and examples, and realize the peculiarities that make your data unique. The better you understand your data, the better you will be able to match a machine learning model to your learning problem.

The best way to learn the process of data exploration is with an example. In this section, we will explore the usedcars.csv dataset, which contains actual data about used cars recently advertised for sale on a popular U.S. website.

Tip

The usedcars.csv dataset is available for download on the Packt Publishing support page for this book. If you are following along with the examples, be sure that this file has been downloaded and saved to your R working directory.

Since the dataset is stored in the CSV form, we can use the read.csv() function to load...

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