What is Tensors in Machine Learning.
3 min readJun 9, 2023
Brief introduction about tensors.
A Tensor is a multi-dimensional array of numbers arranged in a specific order. The order of a tensor refers to the number of indices required to specify each element in the array. For example, a scalar can be thought of as a zeroth-order tensor, a vector is a first-order tensor, and a matrix is a second-order tensor.
Important notes on Tensors in Machine Learning:
1. Introduction:
- Tensors are fundamental data structures in machine learning.
- They are multi-dimensional arrays used to represent and manipulate data.
- Tensors enable efficient computation and storage of complex data structures.
2. Rank and Shape of Tensors:
- Tensors have rank, which refers to the number of indices required to access elements.
- Rank-0 tensor: Scalar (single value)
- Rank-1 tensor: Vector (sequence of values)
- Rank-2 tensor: Matrix (2D array of values)
- Higher-rank tensors: Generalize to more dimensions
- Shape of a tensor describes the size of each dimension.
3. Tensor Operations:
- Tensor addition and subtraction: Performed element-wise for tensors of the same shape.
- Scalar multiplication and division: Each element is multiplied or divided by the scalar.
- Tensor dot product: Multiply corresponding elements and sum the results.
- Tensor transpose: Rearranges the dimensions of a tensor.
- Tensor reshaping: Changes the shape of a tensor while preserving the total number of elements.
4. Tensors in Neural Networks:
- Tensors are used to represent input data, model parameters, and intermediate results.
- Images, videos, and audio are represented as multi-dimensional tensors.
- Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) use tensors for input and convolution operations.
- Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) process sequential data with tensor representations.
5. Tensor Libraries and Frameworks:
- Popular libraries like TensorFlow and PyTorch provide efficient tensor operations.
- These libraries optimize computations on tensors using GPUs and distributed systems.
- Tensors can be easily manipulated and transformed using built-in functions.
6. Tensor Broadcasting:
- Broadcasting allows operations between tensors with different shapes.
- Smaller tensors are automatically expanded to match the shape of larger tensors.
- Broadcasting reduces the need for explicit tensor reshaping.
7. Gradient Tensors and Automatic Differentiation:
- Tensors can store gradients, enabling automatic differentiation for training models.
- During backpropagation, gradients flow through the computation graph of tensors.
- Gradients are calculated with respect to tensor variables using chain rule.
8. Tensor Compression and Optimization:
- Tensors can be compressed to reduce memory usage and improve efficiency.
- Techniques like tensor decomposition and quantization are used for compression.
- Optimization algorithms exploit tensor structures to speed up computations.
9. Applications of Tensors in Machine Learning:
- Image and video recognition: Tensors represent pixels and frames.
- Natural language processing: Tensors encode text and sequences.
- Generative models: Tensors store latent variables and generate new samples.
10. Conclusion:
- Tensors are essential for representing and manipulating data in machine learning.
- They enable efficient computation, optimization, and automatic differentiation.
- Understanding tensors is crucial for working with modern machine learning frameworks and algorithms.