STSCI 4720
Applied Neural Networks
Neural networks form the backbone of modern artificial intelligence methodologies. This course will survey various neural networks architectures with a heavy emphasis on practical application to their specific data use cases. Students will explore how neural networks generalize classical statistical models and function estimation techniques, and how statistical principles inform model design, optimization, and evaluation. Topics include feedforward architectures, stochastic gradient descent, regularization and model selection, convolutional and recurrent networks, and an introduction to attention-based models.
Topics
- Demonstrate a practical working knowledge of neural network architectures.
- Interpret neural network outputs using sensitivity and diagnostic tools.
- Evaluate model complexity and performance through regularization, cross-validation, and bias–variance analysis.
- Produce quantitative analyses of data in Python through the implementation of neural networks using PyTorch.
- Evaluate model complexity and performance through regularization, cross-validation, and bias–variance analysis.
Official roster learning outcomes
Prerequisites & course information
CS 1110 or CS 1112; STSCI 2150.
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026-2027
- Catalogue entry ↗
Catalogue variants
- Applied Neural Networks · 2.0 · Undergraduate