The RL Perceptron: Generalisation Dynamics of Policy Learning in High Dimensions

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Patel, Nishil, Lee, Sebastian, Mannelli, Stefano Sarao, Goldt, Sebastian, Saxe, Andrew
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2023
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author Patel, Nishil
Lee, Sebastian
Mannelli, Stefano Sarao
Goldt, Sebastian
Saxe, Andrew
author_facet Patel, Nishil
Lee, Sebastian
Mannelli, Stefano Sarao
Goldt, Sebastian
Saxe, Andrew
contents Reinforcement learning (RL) algorithms have proven transformative in a range of domains. To tackle real-world domains, these systems often use neural networks to learn policies directly from pixels or other high-dimensional sensory input. By contrast, much theory of RL has focused on discrete state spaces or worst-case analysis, and fundamental questions remain about the dynamics of policy learning in high-dimensional settings. Here, we propose a solvable high-dimensional model of RL that can capture a variety of learning protocols, and derive its typical dynamics as a set of closed-form ordinary differential equations (ODEs). We derive optimal schedules for the learning rates and task difficulty - analogous to annealing schemes and curricula during training in RL - and show that the model exhibits rich behaviour, including delayed learning under sparse rewards; a variety of learning regimes depending on reward baselines; and a speed-accuracy trade-off driven by reward stringency. Experiments on variants of the Procgen game "Bossfight" and Arcade Learning Environment game "Pong" also show such a speed-accuracy trade-off in practice. Together, these results take a step towards closing the gap between theory and practice in high-dimensional RL.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2306_10404
institution arXiv
publishDate 2023
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The RL Perceptron: Generalisation Dynamics of Policy Learning in High Dimensions
Patel, Nishil
Lee, Sebastian
Mannelli, Stefano Sarao
Goldt, Sebastian
Saxe, Andrew
Machine Learning
Disordered Systems and Neural Networks
Reinforcement learning (RL) algorithms have proven transformative in a range of domains. To tackle real-world domains, these systems often use neural networks to learn policies directly from pixels or other high-dimensional sensory input. By contrast, much theory of RL has focused on discrete state spaces or worst-case analysis, and fundamental questions remain about the dynamics of policy learning in high-dimensional settings. Here, we propose a solvable high-dimensional model of RL that can capture a variety of learning protocols, and derive its typical dynamics as a set of closed-form ordinary differential equations (ODEs). We derive optimal schedules for the learning rates and task difficulty - analogous to annealing schemes and curricula during training in RL - and show that the model exhibits rich behaviour, including delayed learning under sparse rewards; a variety of learning regimes depending on reward baselines; and a speed-accuracy trade-off driven by reward stringency. Experiments on variants of the Procgen game "Bossfight" and Arcade Learning Environment game "Pong" also show such a speed-accuracy trade-off in practice. Together, these results take a step towards closing the gap between theory and practice in high-dimensional RL.
title The RL Perceptron: Generalisation Dynamics of Policy Learning in High Dimensions
topic Machine Learning
Disordered Systems and Neural Networks
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.10404