Machine Learning and Theory Ladenness -- A Phenomenological Account

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Termine, Alberto, Ratti, Emanuele, Facchini, Alessandro
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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_version_ 1866914256391241728
author Termine, Alberto
Ratti, Emanuele
Facchini, Alessandro
author_facet Termine, Alberto
Ratti, Emanuele
Facchini, Alessandro
contents We provide an analysis of theory ladenness in machine learning in science, where "theory", that we call "domain theory", refers to the domain knowledge of the scientific discipline where ML is used. By constructing an account of ML models based on a comparison with phenomenological models, we show, against recent trends in philosophy of science, that ML model-building is mostly indifferent to domain theory, even if the model remains theory laden in a weak sense, which we call theory infection. These claims, we argue, have far-reaching consequences for the transferability of ML across scientific disciplines, and shift the priorities of the debate on theory ladenness in ML from descriptive to normative.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2409_11277
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Machine Learning and Theory Ladenness -- A Phenomenological Account
Termine, Alberto
Ratti, Emanuele
Facchini, Alessandro
Artificial Intelligence
I.2.0
We provide an analysis of theory ladenness in machine learning in science, where "theory", that we call "domain theory", refers to the domain knowledge of the scientific discipline where ML is used. By constructing an account of ML models based on a comparison with phenomenological models, we show, against recent trends in philosophy of science, that ML model-building is mostly indifferent to domain theory, even if the model remains theory laden in a weak sense, which we call theory infection. These claims, we argue, have far-reaching consequences for the transferability of ML across scientific disciplines, and shift the priorities of the debate on theory ladenness in ML from descriptive to normative.
title Machine Learning and Theory Ladenness -- A Phenomenological Account
topic Artificial Intelligence
I.2.0
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.11277