Their discussion ranges from the history of the field's intellectual foundations to the most recent developments and applications.Reinforcement learning, one of the most active research areas in artificial intelligence, is a computational approach to learning whereby an agent tries to maximize the total amount of reward it receives when interacting with a complex, uncertain environment. In Reinforcement Learning, Richard Sutton and Andrew Barto provide a clear and simple account of the key ideas and algorithms of reinforcement learning. Their discussion ranges from the history of the field's intellectual foundations to the most recent developments and applications. The only necessary mathematical background is familiarity with elementary concepts of probability.The book is divided into three parts. Part I defines the reinforcement learning problem in terms of Markov decision processes. Part II provides basic solution methods: dynamic programming, Monte Carlo methods, and temporal-difference learning. Part III presents a unified view of the solution methods and incorporates artificial neural networks, eligibility traces, and planning; the two final chapters present case studies and consider the future of reinforcement learning.

    In this practical guide, data strategy consultant Max Shron shows you how to put the why before the how, through an often-overlooked set of analytical skills.Thinking with Data helps you learn techniques for turning data into knowledge you can use. You’ll learn a framework for defining your project, including the data you want to collect, and how you intend to approach, organize, and analyze the results. You’ll also learn patterns of reasoning that will help you unveil the real problem that needs to be solved.Learn a framework for scoping data projectsUnderstand how to pin down the details of an idea, receive feedback, and begin prototypingUse the tools of arguments to ask good questions, build projects in stages, and communicate resultsExplore data-specific patterns of reasoning and learn how to build more useful argumentsDelve into causal reasoning and learn how it permeates data workPut everything together, using extended examples to see the method of full problem thinking in action

    QFT is the only physics theory that makes sense and that dispels or resolves the paradoxes of relativity and quantum mechanics that have confused and mystified so many people.

    Distinguishing agents (e.g., molecules, cells, animals, and species) from their interactions (e.g., chemical reactions, immune system responses, sexual reproduction, and evolution), Flake argues that it is the computational properties of interactions that account for much of what we think of as beautiful and interesting. From this basic thesis, Flake explores what he considers to be today's four most interesting computational topics: fractals, chaos, complex systems, and adaptation.Each of the book's parts can be read independently, enabling even the casual reader to understand and work with the basic equations and programs. Yet the parts are bound together by the theme of the computer as a laboratory and a metaphor for understanding the universe. The inspired reader will experiment further with the ideas presented to create fractal landscapes, chaotic systems, artificial life forms, genetic algorithms, and artificial neural networks.

    All test questions are answered and explained. It also provides extensive subject review covering all test topics. Topics reviewed include research methods, the biological basis of behavior, sensation and perception, states of consciousness, learning, cognition, personality, abnormal psychology, and treatment of disorders. This manual also presents an overview of the test, extra multiple-choice practice questions, test-taking tips, and an analysis of the test’s essay question with a sample essay.

    You'd like to learn how to do more work with SQL inside the database before pushing data across the network to your applications. You'd like to take your SQL skills to the next level.Let's face it, SQL is a deceptively simple language to learn, and many database developers never go far beyond the simple statement: SELECT columns FROM table WHERE conditions. But there is so much more you can do with the language. In the SQL Cookbook, experienced SQL developer Anthony Molinaro shares his favorite SQL techniques and features. You'll learn about:Window functions, arguably the most significant enhancement to SQL in the past decade. If you're not using these, you're missing outPowerful, database-specific features such as SQL Server's PIVOT and UNPIVOT operators, Oracle's MODEL clause, and PostgreSQL's very useful GENERATE_SERIES functionPivoting rows into columns, reverse-pivoting columns into rows, using pivoting to facilitate inter-row calculations, and double-pivoting a result setBucketization, and why you should never use that term in Brooklyn.How to create histograms, summarize data into buckets, perform aggregations over a moving range of values, generate running-totals and subtotals, and other advanced, data warehousing techniquesThe technique of walking a string, which allows you to use SQL to parse through the characters, words, or delimited elements of a stringWritten in O'Reilly's popular Problem/Solution/Discussion style, the SQL Cookbook is sure to please. Anthony's credo is: When it comes down to it, we all go to work, we all have bills to pay, and we all want to go home at a reasonable time and enjoy what's still available of our days. The SQL Cookbook moves quickly from problem to solution, saving you time each step of the way.

    Standards are emerging to meet the demands for cryptographic protection in most areas of data communications. Public-key cryptographic techniques are now in widespread use, especially in the financial services industry, in the public sector, and by individuals for their personal privacy, such as in electronic mail. This Handbook will serve as a valuable reference for the novice as well as for the expert who needs a wider scope of coverage within the area of cryptography. It is a necessary and timely guide for professionals who practice the art of cryptography. The Handbook of Applied Cryptography provides a treatment that is multifunctional: It serves as an introduction to the more practical aspects of both conventional and public-key cryptographyIt is a valuable source of the latest techniques and algorithms for the serious practitionerIt provides an integrated treatment of the field, while still presenting each major topic as a self-contained unitIt provides a mathematical treatment to accompany practical discussionsIt contains enough abstraction to be a valuable reference for theoreticians while containing enough detail to actually allow implementation of the algorithms discussedNow in its third printing, this is the definitive cryptography reference that the novice as well as experienced developers, designers, researchers, engineers, computer scientists, and mathematicians alike will use.

    This connectedness is found in many incarnations: in the rapid growth of the Internet, in the ease with which global communication takes place, and in the ability of news and information as well as epidemics and financial crises to spread with surprising speed and intensity. These are phenomena that involve networks, incentives, and the aggregate behavior of groups of people; they are based on the links that connect us and the ways in which our decisions can have subtle consequences for others. This introductory undergraduate textbook takes an interdisciplinary look at economics, sociology, computing and information science, and applied mathematics to understand networks and behavior. It describes the emerging field of study that is growing at the interface of these areas, addressing fundamental questions about how the social, economic, and technological worlds are connected.

    With Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) programming, you can take advantage of numerous Excel options such as: creating new worksheet functions; automating tasks and operations; creating new appearances, toolbars, and menus; designing custom dialog boxes and add-ins; and much more. This guide is not for rank Excel amateurs. It-s for intermediate to advanced Excel users who want to learn VBA programming (or whose bosses want them to learn VBA programming). You need to know your way around Excel before you start creating customized short cuts or systems for speeding through Excel functions. If you-re an intermediate or advanced Excel user, Excel VBA For Dummies helps you take your skills (and your spreadsheets) to the next level. It includes: An introduction to the VBA language A hands-on, guided, step-by-step walk through developing a useful VBA macro, including recording, testing, and changing it, and testing it The essential foundation, including the Visual Basic Editor (VBE) and its components, modules, Excel object model, subroutines and functions, and the Excel macro recorder The essential VBA language elements, including comments, variables and constants, and labels Working with Range objects and discovering useful Range objective properties and methods Using VBA and worksheet functions, including a list and examples Programming constructions, including the GoTo statement, the If-Then structure, Select Case, For-Next loop, Do-While loop, and Do-Until loop Automatic procedures and Workbook events, including a table and event-handler procedures Error-handling and bug extermination techniques, and using the Excel debugging tools Creating custom dialog boxes, also known as UserForms, with a table of the toolbox controls and their capabilities, how-to for the dialog box controls, and UserForm techniques and tricks Customizing the Excel toolbars Using VBA code to modify the Excel menu system Creating worksheet functions and working with various types of arguments Creating Excel add-ins such as new worksheet functions you can use in formulas or new commands or utilities Author John Walkenbach is a leading authority on spreadsheet software and the author of more than 40 spreadsheet books including Excel 2003 Bible and Excel 2003 Power Programming with VBA. While this guide includes tons of examples and screenshots, Walkenbach knows there-s no substitute for hands-on learning. The book is complete with: A dedicated companion Web site that includes bonus chapters plus all sample programs to save you a lot of typing and let you play around and experiment with various changes Information to help you make the most of Excel-s built-in Help system so you can find out other stuff you may need to know What are you waiting for? Sure, learning to do VBA programming takes a little effort, but it-s a Very Big Accomplishment.

    Today, ML algorithms accomplish tasks that - until recently - only expert humans could perform. And finance is ripe for disruptive innovations that will transform how the following generations understand money and invest.In the book, readers will learn how to:Structure big data in a way that is amenable to ML algorithms Conduct research with ML algorithms on big data Use supercomputing methods and back test their discoveries while avoiding false positives Advances in Financial Machine Learning addresses real life problems faced by practitioners every day, and explains scientifically sound solutions using math, supported by code and examples. Readers become active users who can test the proposed solutions in their individual setting.Written by a recognized expert and portfolio manager, this book will equip investment professionals with the groundbreaking tools needed to succeed in modern finance.

    You might think the problem is your brain. It seems to have a mind of its own, a mind that doesn't always want to take in the dry, technical stuff you're forced to study. The fact is your brain craves novelty. It's constantly searching, scanning, waiting for something unusual to happen. After all, that's the way it was built to help you stay alive. It takes all the routine, ordinary, dull stuff and filters it to the background so it won't interfere with your brain's real work--recording things that matter. How does your brain know what matters? It's like the creators of the Head First approach say, suppose you're out for a hike and a tiger jumps in front of you, what happens in your brain? Neurons fire. Emotions crank up. Chemicals surge. That's how your brain knows.And that's how your brain will learn Java. Head First Java combines puzzles, strong visuals, mysteries, and soul-searching interviews with famous Java objects to engage you in many different ways. It's fast, it's fun, and it's effective. And, despite its playful appearance, Head First Java is serious stuff: a complete introduction to object-oriented programming and Java. You'll learn everything from the fundamentals to advanced topics, including threads, network sockets, and distributed programming with RMI. And the new. second edition focuses on Java 5.0, the latest version of the Java language and development platform. Because Java 5.0 is a major update to the platform, with deep, code-level changes, even more careful study and implementation is required. So learning the Head First way is more important than ever. If you've read a Head First book, you know what to expect--a visually rich format designed for the way your brain works. If you haven't, you're in for a treat. You'll see why people say it's unlike any other Java book you've ever read.By exploiting how your brain works, Head First Java compresses the time it takes to learn and retain--complex information. Its unique approach not only shows you what you need to know about Java syntax, it teaches you to think like a Java programmer. If you want to be bored, buy some other book. But if you want to understand Java, this book's for you.

    You'll quickly learn the language's fundamentals, then move onto persistence, exception handling, web development, SQLite, data wrangling, and Google App Engine. You'll also learn how to write mobile apps for Android, all thanks to the power that Python gives you.We think your time is too valuable to waste struggling with new concepts. Using the latest research in cognitive science and learning theory to craft a multi-sensory learning experience, Head First Python uses a visually rich format designed for the way your brain works, not a text-heavy approach that puts you to sleep.

    This book gives you a solid understanding of statistics without being too simple, yet without the numbing complexity of most college texts. You get a firm grasp of the fundamentals and a hands-on understanding of how to apply them before moving on to the more advanced material that follows. Each chapter presents you with easy-to-follow descriptions illustrated by graphics, formulas, and plenty of solved examples. Before you know it, you'll learn to apply statistical reasoning and statistical techniques, from basic concepts of probability and hypothesis testing to multivariate analysis. Organized into four distinct sections, Statistics in a Nutshell offers you:Introductory material: Different ways to think about statistics Basic concepts of measurement and probability theoryData management for statistical analysis Research design and experimental design How to critique statistics presented by others Basic inferential statistics: Basic concepts of inferential statistics The concept of correlation, when it is and is not an appropriate measure of association Dichotomous and categorical data The distinction between parametric and nonparametric statistics Advanced inferential techniques: The General Linear Model Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and MANOVA Multiple linear regression Specialized techniques: Business and quality improvement statistics Medical and public health statistics Educational and psychological statistics Unlike many introductory books on the subject, Statistics in a Nutshell doesn't omit important material in an effort to dumb it down. And this book is far more practical than most college texts, which tend to over-emphasize calculation without teaching you when and how to apply different statistical tests. With Statistics in a Nutshell, you learn how to perform most common statistical analyses, and understand statistical techniques presented in research articles. If you need to know how to use a wide range of statistical techniques without getting in over your head, this is the book you want.

    D.S. Malik is ideal for a one-semester course focused on data structures. Clearly written with the student in mind, this text focuses on Data Structures and includes advanced topics in C++ such as Linked Lists and the Standard Template Library (STL). This student-friendly text features abundant Programming Examples and extensive use of visual diagrams to reinforce difficult topics. Students will find Dr. Malik's use of complete programming code and clear display of syntax, explanation, and example easy to read and conducive to learning.

    Fortunately, results from the relatively new science of human visual perception provide valuable guidance. In Visual Thinking for Design, Colin Ware takes what we now know about perception, cognition, and attention and transforms it into concrete advice that designers can directly apply. He demonstrates how designs can be considered as tools for cognition - extensions of the viewer’s brain in much the same way that a hammer is an extension of the user’s hand. Experienced professional designers and students alike will learn how to maximize the power of the information tools they design for the people who use them.• Presents visual thinking as a complex process that can be supported in every stage using specific design techniques.• Provides practical, task-oriented information for designers and software developers charged with design responsibilities.• Includes hundreds of examples, many in the form of integrated text and full-color diagrams.• Steeped in the principles of “active vision,” which views graphic designs as cognitive tools.