Book Image

Bayesian Analysis with Python

Book Image

Bayesian Analysis with Python

Overview of this book

The purpose of this book is to teach the main concepts of Bayesian data analysis. We will learn how to effectively use PyMC3, a Python library for probabilistic programming, to perform Bayesian parameter estimation, to check models and validate them. This book begins presenting the key concepts of the Bayesian framework and the main advantages of this approach from a practical point of view. Moving on, we will explore the power and flexibility of generalized linear models and how to adapt them to a wide array of problems, including regression and classification. We will also look into mixture models and clustering data, and we will finish with advanced topics like non-parametrics models and Gaussian processes. With the help of Python and PyMC3 you will learn to implement, check and expand Bayesian models to solve data analysis problems.
Table of Contents (15 chapters)
Bayesian Analysis with Python
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Chapter 1. Thinking Probabilistically - A Bayesian Inference Primer

 

Probability theory is nothing but common sense reduced to calculation.

 
 --Pierre-Simon Laplace

In this chapter, we will learn the core concepts of Bayesian statistics and some of the instruments in the Bayesian toolbox. We will use some Python code in this chapter, but this chapter will be mostly theoretical; most of the concepts in this chapter will be revisited many times through the rest of the book. This chapter, being intense on the theoretical side, may be a little anxiogenic for the coder in you, but I think it will ease the path to effectively applying Bayesian statistics to your problems.

In this chapter, we will cover the following topics:

  • Statistical modeling

  • Probabilities and uncertainty

  • Bayes' theorem and statistical inference

  • Single parameter inference and the classic coin-flip problem

  • Choosing priors and why people often don't like them, but should

  • Communicating a Bayesian analysis

  • Installing all Python packages