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Clustering

As explained in The AI Pocket Book

An unsupervised learning method that groups similar data points into clusters.

Clustering groups similar data points without supplying a correct answer. It is an unsupervised learning method for exploring data and finding patterns. section 1.27

Grouping patients

Group patients by their medical records to create representative patient profiles. Two, three, or five clusters could all be plausible because no uniquely correct grouping exists. section 1.27

Treat clustering results as exploratory rather than automatically authoritative:

  • Choose the number of clusters without a conclusive answer. section 1.27
  • Compare models with heuristics such as plotting a metric curve and selecting its knee or elbow, but recognize that these rules are not definitive. section 1.27

How The AI Pocket Book covers it

How deep it goes
Defines grouping and illustrates ambiguity, but does not explain clustering algorithms or internal mechanics.
Examples
Uses patient medical records, alternative cluster counts, and the knee or elbow curve heuristic.
What it assumes
Assumes no labeled right outputs and establishes the distinction from supervised learning.
What you can do after
Apply clustering to explore data while judging its groupings as non-unique and difficult to validate.
How it connects
Connects clustering with unsupervised learning and contrasts it with supervised learning.

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This explainer was generated by Manning's knowledge graph from the text of The AI Pocket Book. The section links point to the parts of the book it draws on.