Machine Learning with R: Expert techniques for predictive modeling to solve all your data analysis problems, Edition 2

Brett Lantz

Jul 2015 · Packt Publishing Ltd

About this ebook

Build machine learning algorithms, prepare data, and dig deep into data prediction techniques with RAbout This BookHarness the power of R for statistical computing and data scienceExplore, forecast, and classify data with RUse R to apply common machine learning algorithms to real-world scenariosWho This Book Is For

Perhaps you already know a bit about machine learning but have never used R, or perhaps you know a little R but are new to machine learning. In either case, this book will get you up and running quickly. It would be helpful to have a bit of familiarity with basic programming concepts, but no prior experience is required.

What You Will LearnHarness the power of R to build common machine learning algorithms with real-world data science applicationsGet to grips with techniques in R to clean and prepare your data for analysis and visualize your resultsDiscover the different types of machine learning models and learn what is best to meet your data needs and solve data analysis problemsClassify your data with Bayesian and nearest neighbour methodsPredict values using R to build decision trees, rules, and support vector machinesForecast numeric values with linear regression and model your data with neural networksEvaluate and improve the performance of machine learning modelsLearn specialized machine learning techniques for text mining, social network data, and big dataIn Detail

Machine learning, at its core, is concerned with transforming data into actionable knowledge. This makes machine learning well suited to the present-day era of big data. Given the growing prominence of R's cross-platform, zero-cost statistical programming environment, there has never been a better time to start applying machine learning to your data. Machine learning with R offers a powerful set of methods to quickly and easily gain insight from your data to both, veterans and beginners in data analytics.

Want to turn your data into actionable knowledge, predict outcomes that make real impact, and have constantly developing insights? R gives you access to all the power you need to master exceptional machine learning techniques.

The second edition of Machine Learning with R provides you with an introduction to the essential skills required in data science. Without shying away from technical theory, it is written to provide focused and practical knowledge to get you building algorithms and crunching your data, with minimal previous experience.

With this book, you'll discover all the analytical tools you need to gain insights from complex data and learn to to choose the correct algorithm for your specific needs. Through full engagement with the sort of real-world problems data-wranglers face, you'll learn to apply machine learning methods to deal with common tasks, including classification, prediction, forecasting, market analysis, and clustering. Transform the way you think about data; discover machine learning with R.

Style and approach

How can we use machine learning to transform data into action? This book uses a series of simple steps to show you. Using practical examples, the book illustrates how to prepare data for analysis, choose a machine learning method, and measure its success.

About the author

Brett Lantz has used innovative data methods to understand human behavior for more than 10 years. A sociologist by training, he was first enchanted by machine learning while studying a large database of teenagers' social networking website profiles. Since then, he has worked on the interdisciplinary studies of cellular telephone calls, medical billing data, and philanthropic activity, among others.