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FFNN,GD,Backpropagation

Backpropagation is a crucial algorithm for training deep neural networks, allowing efficient computation of gradients for optimization through gradient descent. It emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, addressing the limitations of earlier methods by utilizing the chain rule of calculus to propagate errors backward through the network. This innovation has significantly advanced the field of deep learning, enabling the development of complex models and modern techniques such as CNNs and RNNs.

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3 views

FFNN,GD,Backpropagation

Backpropagation is a crucial algorithm for training deep neural networks, allowing efficient computation of gradients for optimization through gradient descent. It emerged in the 1970s and 1980s, addressing the limitations of earlier methods by utilizing the chain rule of calculus to propagate errors backward through the network. This innovation has significantly advanced the field of deep learning, enabling the development of complex models and modern techniques such as CNNs and RNNs.

Uploaded by

BENAZIR AE
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Backpropagation: The Backbone of Neural

Network Training
 Backpropagation, short for “backward
propagation of errors,” is a fundamental
algorithm in the training of deep neural
networks.
 It efficiently computes the gradients of the
loss function with respect to the network’s
parameters, enabling the use of gradient
descent methods to optimize these
parameters.
1. The Evolution of the Multilayer Perceptron
or Feed Forward Neural Networks
The development of backpropagation is
deeply intertwined with the history of neural
networks. In the 1960s, researchers
encountered the XOR problem, a classic
example of a non-linearly separable dataset,
which highlighted the limitations of single-
layer perceptrons. This challenge spurred the
development of the Multilayer Perceptron
(MLP), a class of feedforward neural networks
capable of modeling complex, non-linear
relationships.
The Structure of an MLP
 An MLP consists of an input layer, one or
more hidden layers, and an output layer.
 Each layer contains nodes (neurons) that
are connected to nodes in adjacent layers
through weighted connections.
A 3-layer Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) Model.
 A 3-layer MLP, for instance, can be
represented mathematically as a
composite function:

Where:
 W⁽ˡ⁾ and b⁽ˡ⁾ are the weight matrix and bias
vector for layer l.
 a⁽ˡ⁾ is the activation output of all neurons
at layer l.
 g⁽ˡ⁾ is the activation function for
layer l (e.g., sigmoid, tanh, ReLU, Softmax).

A 3-layer MLP network as shown above can


be represented mathematically as a
composite function:

2. Gradient Descent
 The objective of training a neural network

that minimizes a cost function ℒ(θ) over


is to find the optimal set of parameters θ*

the training dataset.


 The cost function, also known as the loss
function, measures the discrepancy
between the network’s predictions and
the actual targets.
 This optimization problem can be
formalized as:
where θ = {W⁽¹⁾,b⁽¹⁾,W⁽²⁾,b⁽²⁾, …,W⁽ᴸ⁾,b⁽ᴸ⁾}
represents all the network parameters
(weights and biases).
 Initially, researchers used gradient descent
to train MLPs.
 Gradient descent is an optimization
algorithm that adjusts the weights of the
network to minimize the error between
the predicted output and the actual
output.
However, gradient descent was not efficient
for training deep neural networks, as it
required manual computation of the
gradient and was prone to getting stuck in
local minima.
3. The Need for Backpropagation
A major challenge in training deep neural
networks is the efficient computation of
gradients. A naive approach would involve
perturbing each parameter individually and

ℒ(θ). This method is computationally


observing the change in the cost function

prohibitive, especially for networks with


millions of parameters.

The breakthrough came with the


development of backpropagation in the 1970s
and 1980s. Backpropagation leverages the
chain rule of calculus and the layered
structure of neural networks to compute
gradients efficiently. By reducing the
computational complexity from exponential
to linear in the number of parameters,
backpropagation made the training of deep
networks feasible.
Key contributors to the development and
popularization of backpropagation include
Seppo Linnainmaa, Paul Werbos, David
Rumelhart, Geoffrey Hinton, and Ronald
Williams. Their work marked a turning point
in neural network research, enabling the
training of deep models and laying the
foundation for modern deep learning.
4. The Chain Rule in Backpropagation
The chain rule is a fundamental concept in
calculus that allows us to compute the
derivative of a composite function. In the
context of backpropagation, the chain rule is
used to propagate the error backward
through the network.
For a composite function y = g(f(x)),
where y = g(z) and z = f(x), the chain rule
states:

Backpropagation applies the chain rule layer


by layer, starting from the output layer and
moving backward to the input layer. This
systematic approach enables the efficient
computation of gradients, making it possible
to train deep neural networks with many
layers and parameters.
5. The Backpropagation Algorithm
The backpropagation algorithm consists of
two main phases: the forward pass and the
backward pass. These phases work together
to compute gradients efficiently, enabling the
optimization of network parameters.
This efficiency arises because the gradients of
the weights and biases can be determined
using the chain rule, and these partial
derivatives can be effectively pre-computed
through forward and backward passes.

5.1 Forward Pass:


During the forward pass, activations aⱼ⁽ˡ⁾ are
computed layer by layer, starting from the
input layer and moving to the output layer.
These activations represent the outputs of the
neurons in each layer and are used to
compute the network’s final prediction.
Mathematically, the activation aⱼ⁽ˡ⁾ of
neuron j in layer l is computed as:
An important observation is that the
activations aⱼ⁽ˡ⁻¹⁾ from the previous layer l−1
are also equal to the partial derivatives of the
net input zᵢ⁽ˡ⁾ with respect to the
weights wᵢ,ⱼ⁽ˡ⁾. Specifically:

This relationship is crucial because it allows


the activations computed during the forward
pass to be reused in the backward pass for
efficient gradient computation.
By storing these activations, the
backpropagation algorithm avoids redundant
calculations, significantly improving
computational efficiency.
5.2 Backward Pass:
The backward pass begins at the output layer
and moves backward through the network. It

the partial derivatives of the cost function ℒ


computes delta terms δᵢ⁽ˡ⁾, which represent

with respect to the net inputs zᵢ⁽ˡ⁾. These delta


terms are propagated through the network in
reverse order, allowing the algorithm to
compute gradients for all layers.
For hidden layers l:

where g⁽ˡ⁾′() is the derivative of the activation


function for layer l.
For the output layer L:
Therefore, the backpropagation process
begins by calculating the error terms δᵢ⁽ᴸ⁾ for
the output layer L. It then systematically
computes the error terms δₖ⁽ˡ⁾ for each
preceding layer l, using the error terms δₖ⁽ˡ⁺¹⁾
from the layer immediately above it.

5.3 Gradient Computation:


Using the activations from the forward pass
and the delta terms from the backward pass,
the gradients of the cost function with respect
to the weights and biases are computed as:
6. Training Neural Networks with
Backpropagation
The training process using gradient descent
with backpropagation involves the following
steps:
The efficiency of backpropagation stems from
its ability to reuse computed values and avoid
redundant calculations through the clever
application of the chain rule. This makes it
significantly faster than naive gradient
computation methods.
7. Impact of Backpropagation
Backpropagation has revolutionized the field
of artificial neural networks. It has enabled
the training of complex models that can learn
and generalize from large datasets, leading to
breakthroughs in computer vision, natural
language processing, speech recognition, and
more. The widespread adoption of
backpropagation has also spurred the
development of advanced techniques such as
convolutional neural networks (CNNs),
recurrent neural networks (RNNs), and
Transformers.
Today, gradients are automatically computed
using PyTorch’s automatic differentiation
(AutoGrad) feature. AutoGrad simplifies the
process of implementing backpropagation by
automatically calculating the gradients of
neural network parameters with respect to
the loss function. This allows researchers and
developers to focus more on designing and
experimenting with neural network
architectures rather than manually computing
gradients, thereby accelerating innovation
and improving the efficiency of model
training.

8. Conclusion
Backpropagation is the backbone of modern
deep learning, providing a computationally
efficient method for training complex neural
networks. By leveraging the chain rule and the
layered structure of networks, it enables the
application of gradient-based optimization
techniques to find optimal parameters.
Understanding backpropagation is essential
for anyone working in deep learning, as it
underpins many of the field’s most powerful
techniques. Its historical significance,
mathematical elegance, and practical utility
make it an indispensable tool in the deep
learning toolkit.

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