Bayes theorem for beginners

Noufal Ibrahim (~nibrahim)


Description:

This is a workshop that will discuss the theory that would not die from three angles.

  1. We'll discuss the mathematics behind Bayes theorem and the surrounding ideas of probability so that you can get a good understanding of what it is.
  2. We'll discuss how Bayes theorem can be used as a mental model while evaluating possible courses of action. This will also touch on different formulations of the theorem and how it backs several "scientific virtues" like falsifiability, precision etc. We will also try to make famous statements like "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence" a little more precise mathematically and explore fallacies like motivated scepticism.
  3. Finally, we will implement a naive bayesian classifier from scratch (without any libraries) to understand how the theorem can be used for machine learning classifiers. Data will be provided.

At the end of the day, the expectation is that you will walk away with some improved knowledge on Bayes Theorem and few a mental tools to filter your view of the world.

Prerequisites:

  1. High school math
  2. Basic probability - You should know what things like probability, expectation, distributions etc. are.
  3. Basic Python (looping, data structures etc.)

Content URLs:

Not yet ready. Will put them up online shortly.

Speaker Info:

Noufal Ibrahim is a veteran technologist and trainer. He was the founder of PyCon India in 2009 and the chair of the first two editions of the conference. He also keynoted the event in Delhi in 2017.

He is currently the co-founder and directory of a Hamon Technologies. A software consultancy based in Kerala. He is also the co-founder of Pipal Academy which delivers high quality corporate trainings to clients. He also runs The Lycaeum which is a mentoring program for fresh grads and young professionals.

Speaker Links:

  1. http://nibrahim.net.in - Personal website
  2. https://hamon.in - Current company
  3. https://pipal.in - Training company
  4. http://thelycaeum.in/ - The Lycaeum mentoring program
  5. https://github.com/nibrahim
  6. https://twitter.com/noufalibrahim

Section: Data Science, Machine Learning and AI
Type: Workshop
Target Audience: Intermediate
Last Updated: