UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

COURSE OUTLINE SCS 3253 Data Mining

INSTRUCTOR:

DATE/TIME: 3 hour class /once per week

13 meetings in total

REQUIRED TEXT(S): Hands-On Machine Learning with Scikit-Learn and

TensorFlow: Concepts, Tools, and Techniques to Build
Intelligent Systems, Aurélien Géron. O'Reilly Media (2017)

RECOMMENDED TEXT(S): 1. The Elements of Statistical Learning: Data Mining,

Inference and Prediction. Trevor Hastie, Robert Tibshirani,
Jerome Friedman. Springer (2017)
https://web.stanford.edu/~hastie/ElemStatLearn/

2. Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning

Christopher M. Bishop , Springer (2011)

3. Machine Learning: A Probabilistic Perspective

Kevin P. Murphy , The MIT Press (2012)

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Recent practical and theoretical developments in Machine

Learning have helped companies maintain a competitive
edge in the world of data. In this course, we will explore
different techniques that will provide the practitioner the
understanding to properly implement effective analytical
techniques. We will emphasize the implications and
appropriate usage of different methodologies.
This course follows a hands-on approach by giving intuitions,
notions, and concrete examples to implement applications
capable of learning from data.
The tools used are production ready Python frameworks.

PREREQUISITE(S): 3250 Foundations of Data Science

3251 Statistics for Data Science
Working knowledge of Python is required.

RECOMMENDATIONS: COMPUTER REQUIREMENTS:

Laptop Computer with the following Specifications:
1
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

System Type: 64 bit operating system, X64-based processor;

Windows 7/8/10, Mac OS X or Linux; Processor: Intel ® i5-
3230M CPU @ 2.6 GHz or better; Installed Memory (RAM): 8
GB or more

CERTIFICATE(S): -Certificate in Data Science Fundamentals

ASSOCIATION(S): Courses 3250 Foundations of Data Science, 3251 Statistics

for Data Science and 3253 Analytic Techniques for Data
Mining will broadly cover the curriculum for the Certified
Analytic Professional (CAP) examination conducted by
INFORMS.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of this course, learners will be able to:
● Apply practical code examples, including machine
learning theory and algorithm details
● Learn about modern practical machine learning
frameworks and best practices
● Explore the machine learning landscape
● Learn a range of techniques, starting with simple
linear regression and progressing to neural networks
● Explore several training models, including support
vector machines, decision trees, random forests, and
ensemble methods
COURSE PLAN
Week Module Topics Readings/Assignments/ Activities
1 – Introduction to ● Course Logistics ● Chap 1
Machine Learning ● Types of Machine Learning
● Machine Learning Main Challenges

2 – End to End ● Getting data, visualizing it and ● Chap 2

Machine Learning sharing insights
Project ● Prepare data for training:
preprocess it, divide into
train/test/validation
● Select a model, train, tune
hyperparams Present solution
● Deploy, monitor and maintain
3 – Classification ● Train a Binary Classifier ● Chap 3
● Performance measures

2
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

● Multiclass classification
● Error Analysis
● Multilabel classification
4 – Clustering & Un- ● Define Unsupervised Learning ● http://scikit-
Supervised Learning ● Clustering: ideas and objective learn.org/stable/modules/
● Clustering algorithms: k-means, clustering.html
agglomerative, DBSCAN
● Performance measures
5 – Training Models ● Linear Regression ● Chap 4
& Feature Selection ● Gradient Descent
● Polynomial regression
● Learning Curves
● Regularized Models
6 – Support Vector ● Linear SVM Classification ● Chap 5
Machines ● Non-linear SVM Classification
● SVM Regression

7 – Decision Trees ● Training and Visualizing a Decision ● Chap 6

Tree
● Making Predictions
● Estimating probabilities
● Computational Complexity
● Performance considerations
8 – Ensemble ● Voting Classifiers ● Chap 7
Learning & Learning ● Bagging and Pasting
Forests ● Random Subspaces
● Random Forest
● Boosting and stacking
9 – Dimensionality ● The Curse of Dimentionality ● Chap 8
Reductions ● PCA, Kernel PCA
● LLE

10 – Introduction to ● Introduction to TF ● Chap 9

Tensor Flows ● Graph and Session
● Linear Regression with TF
● Saving models
● Scopes and Modularity
11 – Introduction to ● Biological Inspirations ● Chap 10
Neural Networks & ● Training a Deep Neural Network
Training Deep using TensorFlow
Neural Networks ● Fine Tuning Hyper Parameters

12,13 – Term ● Learners present their term project ● Hand in projects

Project to their classmates ● Send PPT and code before
Presentations class
3
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

DELIVERY FORMAT
The following provides a high-level description of the main course delivery formats provided
by the School.
Please note that your instructor will provide you with a detailed overview of the course
venue, learning materials, learning activities and group interaction at the start of your course.
If you have any questions about this course, please contact the School at 416-978-2400 or
email learn@utoronto.ca to discuss the course delivery format for the course you’re
interested in.

DELIVERY DESCRIPTION
FORMAT
Classroom ● Location of Instruction: All classes held on campus with instructor-led
+ lectures and class discussions.
Online ● Course Administration and Learning Materials: Course materials are
Resources provided in paper-based format (text, readings) and/or as digital online
resources through the Blackboard Learning Management System.
● Communication & Interactivity: Interactions between learners and
instructor and between learners directly are conducted primarily in class.
Some learning activities, ad hoc or project-based interaction may be
conducted on the Blackboard Learning Management System. E-mail is
typically used for ad hoc or project-based interaction outside of class.
Occasionally other social media and communication applications may be
used for interaction outside class.

GRADING AND EVALUATION:

Assignments 50%
Term Project 40%
Class Participation 10%

There will be assignments each week. The assignments will primarily be programming tasks to
build skills in working with data and machine learning algorithms using Python. Learners will
work on a group term project to complete and present in the last (or second last) class. There
is no midterm for this course. Class participation mark will be awarded for active involvement
in discussions, creative contributions and insightful commenting as made in class or via the
online Blackboard Discussion Forum.

Learners can expect to receive feedback and marks, if applicable, before the course end date
for all of their submitted assignment(s) and term project. However, it is the sole responsibility
of learners to make sure that they do get these marks from their Instructor and have all
related questions answered before the course ends.
4
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

If you are unable to submit a term project for whatever reason (e.g. medical, work conflicts,
family emergencies) you can write an Alternate Examination. The Alternate Examination
Application form can be downloaded from our website: http://learn.utoronto.ca/how-to-
register/forms-applications. Please complete the form, and along with the fee of $150.00,
submit it to the Registration Office.

SCS GRADING SCALE: A 80% to 100% Excellent

B 70% to 79% Good
C 60% to 69% Adequate
D 50% to 59% Marginal
FX Less than 50% Inadequate/Incomplete

FINAL GRADE: To view your final grade, please log into the “My Access –
Student Login” located on our website,
www.learn.utoronto.ca/login. Please note that your final
grade will not be posted on Blackboard.

Once your exam has been written or the course has finished,
if you have any questions concerning your grades or final
mark, please contact the School directly at
scs.business@utoronto.ca or 416-978-2412

CERTIFICATE: To receive your certificate upon completion of all

requirements, please complete the Certificate Request Form
available at http://learn.utoronto.ca/how-to-
register/certificate-request-form

ACADEMIC CONSULTATION:
Most issues and questions can be addressed during class or
by e-mail. Unless urgent information is required, the
instructor will respond to your e-mail questions during the
next class. If confidentiality is required, a learner and the
instructor can arrange a mutually convenient time to
address questions – either before or after class, or by
telephone.

NOTE(S): In the event that we have to cancel your class at the last
moment due to weather, the illness of the instructor, etc.,
please ensure that you have provided a daytime phone
number or email in your student profile, so that we are able
to notify you immediately.

5
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

CODE OF CONDUCT: All School of Continuing Studies learners are required to

comply with the University of Toronto Code of Student
Conduct available at
http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/Assets/Governing
+Council+Digital+Assets/Policies/PDF/ppjul012002.pdf
Learners are also required to comply with the Code of
Behaviour on Academic Matters, available at
http://www.governingcouncil.utoronto.ca/Assets/Governing
+Council+Digital+Assets/Policies/PDF/ppjun011995.pdf

ACADEMIC HONESTY: If you are using the ideas of others in your written work
please see information regarding:

Guidelines for properly citing your sources:

‘Writing at the University of Toronto’ website at
http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/using-
sources/documentation

Plagiarism:
http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/using-sources/how-
not-to-plagiarize

AUDIO/VIDEO RECORDINGS: You are not permitted to record lectures without the written
consent of your instructor(s).

ACCOMMODATION FOR
A DISABILITY: If you require accommodation for a disability, please contact
Student Services at 416-978-2400 or email
learn@utoronto.ca to arrange this service.