Effective theory building and manifold learning.

Manifold learning and effective model building are generally viewed as fundamentally different types of procedure. After all, in one we build a simplified model of the data, in the other, we construct a simplified model of the another model. Nonetheless, I argue that certain kinds of high-dimensiona...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Synthese Vol. 205; no. 1; pp. 1 - 34
Autor principal: Freeborn, David Peter Wallis
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Springer Nature Jan2025
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:Manifold learning and effective model building are generally viewed as fundamentally different types of procedure. After all, in one we build a simplified model of the data, in the other, we construct a simplified model of the another model. Nonetheless, I argue that certain kinds of high-dimensional effective model building, and effective field theory construction in quantum field theory, can be viewed as special cases of manifold learning. I argue that this helps to shed light on all of these techniques. First, it suggests that the effective model building procedure depends upon a certain kind of algorithmic compressibility requirement. All three approaches assume that real-world systems exhibit certain redundancies, due to regularities. The use of these regularities to build simplified models is essential for scientific progress in many different domains.