Decision Tree

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‭Decision Tree:‬

‭●‬ ‭Definition:‬
‭●‬ ‭A decision tree is a supervised machine learning algorithm used for both‬
‭classification and regression tasks. It predicts the value of a target‬
‭variable based on several input features.‬
‭●‬ ‭Structure:‬
‭●‬ ‭It consists of a tree-like structure where each internal node represents a‬
‭decision based on the value of a feature, each branch represents an‬
‭outcome of the decision, and each leaf node represents the predicted‬
‭value of the target variable.‬
‭●‬ ‭Working:‬
‭●‬ ‭Splitting:‬
‭●‬ ‭The decision tree algorithm starts by selecting the best feature to‬
‭split the dataset into smaller subsets. The goal is to maximize the‬
‭homogeneity (or purity) of the subsets regarding the target variable.‬
‭●‬ ‭Recursion:‬
‭●‬ ‭This splitting process is applied recursively to each subset, creating‬
‭a binary tree until a stopping criterion is met (e.g., maximum depth,‬
‭minimum number of samples per leaf).‬
‭●‬ ‭Prediction:‬
‭●‬ ‭Once the tree is constructed, to make a prediction for a new‬
‭instance, it traverses the tree from the root node to a leaf node‬
‭based on the feature values of the instance. The predicted value at‬
‭the leaf node is then assigned as the predicted value for the‬
‭instance.‬
‭●‬ ‭Classification vs. Regression:‬
‭●‬ ‭In classification tasks, each leaf node represents a class label.‬
‭●‬ ‭In regression tasks, each leaf node represents a numerical value.‬
‭●‬ ‭Advantages:‬
‭●‬ ‭Easy to understand and interpret.‬
‭●‬ ‭Handles both numerical and categorical data.‬
‭●‬ ‭Requires minimal data preprocessing.‬
‭●‬ ‭Can capture non-linear relationships between features and target variable.‬
‭●‬ ‭Disadvantages:‬
‭●‬ ‭Prone to overfitting, especially with deep trees.‬
‭●‬ ‭Can be unstable, sensitive to small variations in the data.‬
‭●‬ ‭Biased towards features with more levels.‬
‭Example:‬
‭ onsider a decision tree for predicting whether a person will buy a product based on‬
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‭their age, income, and gender. The tree may split the dataset based on age first, then‬
‭income, and finally gender, resulting in a set of rules like "If age < 30 and income > $50k,‬
‭then predict 'Yes'."‬

‭ our explanation effectively describes the structure and functioning of decision trees,‬
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‭highlighting their versatility in handling both classification and regression tasks. Well‬
‭done!‬

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