New Books in Technology

Anil Ananthaswamy, "Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Maths Behind Modern AI" (Dutton, 2024)


Listen Later

Machine learning systems are making life-altering decisions for us: approving mortgage loans, determining whether a tumor is cancerous, or deciding if someone gets bail. They now influence developments and discoveries in chemistry, biology, and physics—the study of genomes, extrasolar planets, even the intricacies of quantum systems. And all this before large language models such as ChatGPT came on the scene.
We are living through a revolution in machine learning-powered AI that shows no signs of slowing down. This technology is based on relatively simple mathematical ideas, some of which go back centuries, including linear algebra and calculus, the stuff of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century mathematics. It took the birth and advancement of computer science and the kindling of 1990s computer chips designed for video games to ignite the explosion of AI that we see today. In this enlightening book, Anil Ananthaswamy explains the fundamental math behind machine learning, while suggesting intriguing links between artificial and natural intelligence. Might the same math underpin them both?
As Ananthaswamy resonantly concludes, to make safe and effective use of artificial intelligence, we need to understand its profound capabilities and limitations, the clues to which lie in the math that makes machine learning possible.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/technology

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

New Books in TechnologyBy New Books Network

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

2 ratings


More shows like New Books in Technology

View all
The New Yorker: Fiction by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker: Fiction

3,351 Listeners

New Books in Philosophy by New Books Network

New Books in Philosophy

111 Listeners

New Books in History by Marshall Poe

New Books in History

211 Listeners

New Books in Military History by Marshall Poe

New Books in Military History

161 Listeners

New Books in Political Science by New Books Network

New Books in Political Science

64 Listeners

New Books in Science, Technology, and Society by New Books Network

New Books in Science, Technology, and Society

32 Listeners

New Books in Islamic Studies by Marshall Poe

New Books in Islamic Studies

31 Listeners

EconTalk by Russ Roberts

EconTalk

4,261 Listeners

New Books in Psychoanalysis by Marshall Poe

New Books in Psychoanalysis

188 Listeners

New Books in African American Studies by New Books Network

New Books in African American Studies

165 Listeners

New Books in Environmental Studies by Marshall Poe

New Books in Environmental Studies

23 Listeners

New Books in Literary Studies by New Books Network

New Books in Literary Studies

23 Listeners

New Books in Intellectual History by New Books Network

New Books in Intellectual History

60 Listeners

The Quanta Podcast by Quanta Magazine

The Quanta Podcast

524 Listeners

Science Weekly by The Guardian

Science Weekly

415 Listeners

Team Human by Douglas Rushkoff

Team Human

373 Listeners

Today in Focus by The Guardian

Today in Focus

994 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

3,199 Listeners

Theory & Philosophy by David Guignion

Theory & Philosophy

375 Listeners

Tech Won't Save Us by Paris Marx

Tech Won't Save Us

552 Listeners

Acid Horizon by Acid Horizon

Acid Horizon

198 Listeners

The Rest Is History by Goalhanger

The Rest Is History

14,382 Listeners

Ones and Tooze by Foreign  Policy

Ones and Tooze

349 Listeners

The Rest Is Politics by Goalhanger

The Rest Is Politics

3,124 Listeners

Macrodose by Planet B Productions

Macrodose

25 Listeners