Advanced Learning Theory (CS880)

Fall 2019




This course is a graduate introduction to the information-theoretic and computational aspects of machine learning. Our focus will be on the design and analysis of statistically and computationally efficient learning and inference algorithms in a variety of well-defined models.

The course is targeted towards graduate students who want to gain familiarity with mathematical and algorithmic tools for the analysis of large datasets. Advanced undergraduate students with sufficient mathematical maturity are welcome (subject to instructor's approval).

Course Information

Prerequisites

Mathematical maturity. Solid background in algorithms, linear algebra, and undergraduate probability/statistics.

Course Outline

The course will have a significant dynamic component, depending on the audience interests and current research in the area. Here is a rough outline of the course material:

Lectures

Course Evaluation

Homework Assignments: There will be 3 homework assignments that will count for 30% of the grade. The assignments will be proof-based and are intended to be challenging. Collaboration and discussion among students is allowed, though students must write up their solutions independently.

Course Project: A major part of the course (50% of the grade) is a research project on a topic related to algorithmic aspects of learning theory. Projects can be completed individually or in groups of two students.

The goal of the project is to become an expert in an area related to the class material, and potentially contribute to the state of the art. There are two aspects to the course project. The first is a literature review: Students must decide on a topic and a list of papers, understand these papers in depth, and write a survey presentation of the results in their own words. The second aspect is to identify a research problem/direction on the chosen topic, think about it, and describe the progress they make.

Students must consult with the instructor during the first half of the course for help in forming project teams, selecting a suitable project topic, and selecting a suitable set of research papers. Students will be graded on the project proposal (10%), the progress report (10%), and the final report (20%). Each student will give a project presentation (10%) during the last week of classes.

The remaining part of the grade will be based on class participation (10%) and scribing one or more lecture notes (10%).

Possible project topics can be found here.

Readings

There is no required textbook for the course. A list of readings will be given during the semester.
A few online books on the topic that we will occasionally use as references are: