Table of Contents for
Introduction to Machine Learning with Python

Version ebook / Retour

Cover image for bash Cookbook, 2nd Edition Introduction to Machine Learning with Python by Sarah Guido Published by O'Reilly Media, Inc., 2016
  1. Cover
  2. nav
  3. Introduction to Machine Learning with Python
  4. Introduction to Machine Learning with Python
  5. Preface
  6. 1. Introduction
  7. 2. Supervised Learning
  8. 3. Unsupervised Learning and Preprocessing
  9. 4. Representing Data and Engineering Features
  10. 5. Model Evaluation and Improvement
  11. 6. Algorithm Chains and Pipelines
  12. 7. Working with Text Data
  13. 8. Wrapping Up
  14. Index
  15. About the Authors
  16. Colophon

Colophon

The animal on the cover of Introduction to Machine Learning with Python is a hellbender salamander (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis), an amphibian native to the eastern United States (ranging from New York to Georgia). It has many colorful nicknames, including “Allegheny alligator,” “snot otter,” and “mud-devil.” The origin of the name “hellbender” is unclear: one theory is that early settlers found the salamander’s appearance unsettling and supposed it to be a demonic creature trying to return to hell.

The hellbender salamander is a member of the giant salamander family, and can grow as large as 29 inches long. This is the third-largest aquatic salamander species in the world. Their bodies are rather flat, with thick folds of skin along their sides. While they do have a single gill on each side of the neck, hellbenders largely rely on their skin folds to breathe: gas flows in and out through capillaries near the surface of the skin.

Because of this, their ideal habitat is in clear, fast-moving, shallow streams, which provide plenty of oxygen. The hellbender shelters under rocks and hunts primarily by sense of smell, though it is also able to detect vibrations in the water. Its diet is made up of crayfish, small fish, and occasionally the eggs of its own species. The hellbender is also a key member of its ecosystem as prey: predators include various fish, snakes, and turtles.

Hellbender salamander populations have decreased significantly in the last few decades. Water quality is the largest issue, as their respiratory system makes them very sensitive to polluted or murky water. An increase in agriculture and other human activity near their habitat means greater amounts of sediment and chemicals in the water. In an effort to save this endangered species, biologists have begun to raise the amphibians in captivity and release them when they reach a less vulnerable age.

Many of the animals on O’Reilly covers are endangered; all of them are important to the world. To learn more about how you can help, go to animals.oreilly.com.

The cover image is from Wood’s Animate Creation. The cover fonts are URW Typewriter and Guardian Sans. The text font is Adobe Minion Pro; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is Dalton Maag’s Ubuntu Mono.