Project description
Exploring compositional approximation for neural networks
Although neural networks are well established in many scientific fields, their methods often do not have the mathematical foundation to stand behind the accuracy of solutions they produce. It may be possible to improve the reliability of outcomes in scientific machine learning when knowledge of the ground truth being sought satisfies a partial differential equation. From an approximation theory perspective, it is beneficial to understand when and why such knowledge should be exploited. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the CompAS project will compare compositional approximation and classical superpositional approximation on a fundamental structural level. It aims to identify cases where compositional approximation provides an advantage over superpositional approximation, and then develop ways to characterise these cases.
Objective
Neural networks have firmly established themselves as powerful tools in many scientific domains, e.g. for protein folding, recovering images of black holes, or solving Schrödinger equations. Although empirically highly successful, neural network based methods very often lack the mathematical foundation to be able to guarantee the accuracy of the solution they produce. While this lack of reliability constitutes a major issue for many applications, I believe that, for scientific machine learning in particular, there is a promising path towards overcoming these issues, as there usually exists knowledge of the ground truth one would like to learn, e.g. that it must satisfy some partial differential equation. The goal of this project is understanding, from an approximation theory perspective, when and why such knowledge may be exploited.
A defining property of neural networks is that they consist of a composition of simple building blocks. From the view of approximation theory this is a major paradigm shift, as it classically focuses on superpositional approximation, i.e. based on taking linear combinations of simple building blocks. This project aims to understand, on a fundamental structural level, how compositional approximation differs from classical superpositional approximation. Specifically it will first prove the existence of cases, in which compositional approximation provides a fundamental advantage over superpositional approximation, and subsequently develop ways to characterize these cases.
On one hand this will significantly deepen the comprehension of this paradigm-shift in approximation theory, on the other hand it will establish a foundation for the development of provably accurate neural networks based machine learning algorithms.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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1010 Wien
Austria
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