Search icon CANCEL
Subscription
0
Cart icon
Your Cart (0 item)
Close icon
You have no products in your basket yet
Save more on your purchases! discount-offer-chevron-icon
Savings automatically calculated. No voucher code required.
Arrow left icon
Explore Products
Best Sellers
New Releases
Books
Videos
Audiobooks
Learning Hub
Newsletter Hub
Free Learning
Arrow right icon
timer SALE ENDS IN
0 Days
:
00 Hours
:
00 Minutes
:
00 Seconds
Mastering Reinforcement Learning with Python
Mastering Reinforcement Learning with Python

Mastering Reinforcement Learning with Python: Build next-generation, self-learning models using reinforcement learning techniques and best practices

Arrow left icon
Profile Icon Enes Bilgin
Arrow right icon
NZ$71.99
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.4 (12 Ratings)
Paperback Dec 2020 544 pages 1st Edition
eBook
NZ$51.99 NZ$57.99
Paperback
NZ$71.99
Subscription
Free Trial
Arrow left icon
Profile Icon Enes Bilgin
Arrow right icon
NZ$71.99
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.4 (12 Ratings)
Paperback Dec 2020 544 pages 1st Edition
eBook
NZ$51.99 NZ$57.99
Paperback
NZ$71.99
Subscription
Free Trial
eBook
NZ$51.99 NZ$57.99
Paperback
NZ$71.99
Subscription
Free Trial

What do you get with Print?

Product feature icon Instant access to your digital copy whilst your Print order is Shipped
Product feature icon Paperback book shipped to your preferred address
Product feature icon Redeem a companion digital copy on all Print orders
Product feature icon Access this title in our online reader with advanced features
Product feature icon DRM FREE - Read whenever, wherever and however you want
Product feature icon AI Assistant (beta) to help accelerate your learning
OR
Modal Close icon
Payment Processing...
tick Completed

Shipping Address

Billing Address

Shipping Methods
Table of content icon View table of contents Preview book icon Preview Book

Mastering Reinforcement Learning with Python

Chapter 1: Introduction to Reinforcement Learning

Reinforcement Learning (RL) aims to create Artificial Intelligence (AI) agents that can make decisions in complex and uncertain environments, with the goal of maximizing their long-term benefit. These agents learn how to do it through interacting with their environments, which mimics the way we as humans learn from experience. As such, RL has an incredibly broad and adaptable set of applications, with the potential to disrupt and revolutionize global industries.

This book will give you an advanced level understanding of this field. We will go deeper into the theory behind the algorithms you may already know, and cover state-of-the art RL. Moreover, this is a practical book. You will see examples inspired by real-world industry problems and learn expert tips along the way. By its conclusion, you will be able to model and solve your own sequential decision-making problems using Python.

So, let's start our journey with refreshing your mind on RL concepts and get you set up for the advanced material upcoming in the following chapters. Specifically, this chapter covers:

  • Why reinforcement learning?
  • The three paradigms of ML
  • RL application areas and success stories
  • Elements of a RL problem
  • Setting up your RL environment

Why reinforcement learning?

Creating intelligent machines that make decisions at or superior to human level is a dream of many scientist and engineers, and one which is gradually becoming closer to reality. In the seven decades since the Turing test, AI research and development has been on a roller coaster. The expectations were very high initially: In the 1960s, for example, Herbert Simon (who later received the Nobel Prize in Economics) predicted that machines would be capable of doing any work humans can do within twenty years. It was this excitement that attracted big government and corporate funding flowing into AI research, only to be followed by big disappointments and a period called the "AI winter." Decades later, thanks to the incredible developments in computing, data, and algorithms, humankind is again very excited, more than ever before, in its pursuit of the AI dream. 

Note

If you're not familiar with Alan Turing's instrumental work on the foundations of AI in 1950, it's worth learning more about the Turing Test here: https://youtu.be/3wLqsRLvV-c

The AI dream is certainly one of grandiosity. After all, the potential in intelligent autonomous systems is enormous. Think about how we are limited in terms of specialist medical doctors in the world. It takes years and significant intellectual and financial resources to educate them, which many countries don't have at sufficient levels. In addition, even after years of education, it is nearly impossible for a specialist to stay up-to-date with all of the scientific developments in her field, learn from the outcomes of the tens of thousands of treatments around the world, and effectively incorporate all this knowledge into practice.

Conversely, an AI model could process and learn from all this data and combine it with a rich set of information about a patient (medical history, lab results, presenting symptoms, health profile) to make diagnosis and suggest treatments. Such a model could serve even in the most rural parts of the world (as far as an internet connection and computer are available) and direct the local health personnel about the treatment. No doubt that it would revolutionize international healthcare and improve the lives of millions of people.

Note

AI is already transforming the healthcare industry. In a recent article, Google published results from an AI system surpassing human experts in breast cancer prediction using mammography readings (McKinney et al. 2020). Microsoft is collaborating with one of India's largest healthcare providers to detect cardiac illnesses using AI (Agrawal, 2018). IBM Watson for Clinical Trial Matching uses natural language processing to recommend potential treatments for patients from medical databases (https://youtu.be/grDWR7hMQQQ).

On our quest to develop AI systems that are at or superior to human level, which is -sometimes controversially- called Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), it makes sense to develop a model that can learn from its own experience - without necessarily needing a supervisor. RL is the computational framework that enables us to create such intelligent agents. To better understand the value of RL, it is important to compare it with the other ML paradigms, which we'll look into next.

Left arrow icon Right arrow icon
Download code icon Download Code

Key benefits

  • Understand how large-scale state-of-the-art RL algorithms and approaches work
  • Apply RL to solve complex problems in marketing, robotics, supply chain, finance, cybersecurity, and more
  • Explore tips and best practices from experts that will enable you to overcome real-world RL challenges

Description

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a field of artificial intelligence (AI) used for creating self-learning autonomous agents. Building on a strong theoretical foundation, this book takes a practical approach and uses examples inspired by real-world industry problems to teach you about state-of-the-art RL. Starting with bandit problems, Markov decision processes, and dynamic programming, the book provides an in-depth review of the classical RL techniques, such as Monte Carlo methods and temporal-difference learning. After that, you will learn about deep Q-learning, policy gradient algorithms, actor-critic methods, model-based methods, and multi-agent reinforcement learning. Then, you'll be introduced to some of the key approaches behind the most successful RL implementations, such as domain randomization and curiosity-driven learning. As you advance, you’ll explore many novel algorithms with advanced implementations using modern Python libraries such as TensorFlow and Ray’s RLlib package. You’ll also find out how to implement RL in areas such as robotics, supply chain management, marketing, finance, smart cities, and cybersecurity while assessing the trade-offs between different approaches and avoiding common pitfalls. By the end of this book, you’ll have mastered how to train and deploy your own RL agents for solving RL problems.

Who is this book for?

This book is for expert machine learning practitioners and researchers looking to focus on hands-on reinforcement learning with Python by implementing advanced deep reinforcement learning concepts in real-world projects. Reinforcement learning experts who want to advance their knowledge to tackle large-scale and complex sequential decision-making problems will also find this book useful. Working knowledge of Python programming and deep learning along with prior experience in reinforcement learning is required.

What you will learn

  • Model and solve complex sequential decision-making problems using RL
  • Develop a solid understanding of how state-of-the-art RL methods work
  • Use Python and TensorFlow to code RL algorithms from scratch
  • Parallelize and scale up your RL implementations using Ray s RLlib package
  • Get in-depth knowledge of a wide variety of RL topics
  • Understand the trade-offs between different RL approaches
  • Discover and address the challenges of implementing RL in the real world
Estimated delivery fee Deliver to New Zealand

Standard delivery 10 - 13 business days

NZ$20.95

Premium delivery 5 - 8 business days

NZ$74.95
(Includes tracking information)

Product Details

Country selected
Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Dec 18, 2020
Length: 544 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781838644147
Category :
Languages :
Tools :

What do you get with Print?

Product feature icon Instant access to your digital copy whilst your Print order is Shipped
Product feature icon Paperback book shipped to your preferred address
Product feature icon Redeem a companion digital copy on all Print orders
Product feature icon Access this title in our online reader with advanced features
Product feature icon DRM FREE - Read whenever, wherever and however you want
Product feature icon AI Assistant (beta) to help accelerate your learning
OR
Modal Close icon
Payment Processing...
tick Completed

Shipping Address

Billing Address

Shipping Methods
Estimated delivery fee Deliver to New Zealand

Standard delivery 10 - 13 business days

NZ$20.95

Premium delivery 5 - 8 business days

NZ$74.95
(Includes tracking information)

Product Details

Publication date : Dec 18, 2020
Length: 544 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781838644147
Category :
Languages :
Tools :

Packt Subscriptions

See our plans and pricing
Modal Close icon
$19.99 billed monthly
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Simple pricing, no contract
$199.99 billed annually
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just NZ$7 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts
$279.99 billed in 18 months
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just NZ$7 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts

Frequently bought together


Stars icon
Total NZ$ 285.97
Modern Computer Vision with PyTorch
NZ$96.99
Deep Reinforcement Learning Hands-On
NZ$116.99
Mastering Reinforcement Learning with Python
NZ$71.99
Total NZ$ 285.97 Stars icon

Table of Contents

23 Chapters
Section 1: Reinforcement Learning Foundations Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 1: Introduction to Reinforcement Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 2: Multi-Armed Bandits Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 3: Contextual Bandits Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 4: Makings of a Markov Decision Process Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 5: Solving the Reinforcement Learning Problem Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Section 2: Deep Reinforcement Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 6: Deep Q-Learning at Scale Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 7: Policy-Based Methods Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 8: Model-Based Methods Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 9: Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Section 3: Advanced Topics in RL Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 10: Introducing Machine Teaching Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 11: Achieving Generalization and Overcoming Partial Observability Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 12: Meta-Reinforcement Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 13: Exploring Advanced Topics Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Section 4: Applications of RL Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 14: Solving Robot Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 15: Supply Chain Management Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 16: Personalization, Marketing, and Finance Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 17: Smart City and Cybersecurity Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 18: Challenges and Future Directions in Reinforcement Learning Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Other Books You May Enjoy Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Top Reviews
Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.4
(12 Ratings)
5 star 66.7%
4 star 25%
3 star 0%
2 star 0%
1 star 8.3%
Filter icon Filter
Top Reviews

Filter reviews by




Ismail Kose Sep 04, 2021
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
It’s a very good reference book for beginners and experienced engineers.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Hossein Khadivi Heris Mar 15, 2021
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
The book provides good level of details on foundation of RL, practical tools and libraries, and step by step guides on solving some applied problems. You need to have some knowledge in statistics and probability to understand the topics discussed in the book. Some programming skills in python is also required but you do not need to be an advanced python programmer to benefit from the book.There are links to many useful external resources and blog posts to help you gain deeper knowledge in topics discussed at each chapter. Many advanced topics such as Machine teaching is covered that has industrial relevance (example: Microsoft's project bonsai). Most importantly, the challenges of applying RL and the limitations of RL for some applications are discussed. Being aware of the limitations can save you a lot of time in your solution formulations.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Amazon Customer Jan 21, 2021
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
The flow of the book is great, it is easy to follow the book and the python codes concurrently. I strongly recommend the book everyone including the ones with no strong background in machine/reinforcement learning.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Claus Horn Mar 07, 2021
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This is a book for practitioners. It is well written and covers a wide range of topics from the basics of RL and Markov decision processes to multi-agent systems. It focuses on modern methods of deep RL including model-based approaches, notably also an introduction to machine teaching. Very nice is also part 4, with a lot of application examples from robotics, supply chain management, marketing and cybersecurity. I definitely recommend it for everyone interested in developing their own real-world RL solutions.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Matt Nov 28, 2022
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Must have if you are into applied RL.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Get free access to Packt library with over 7500+ books and video courses for 7 days!
Start Free Trial

FAQs

What is the digital copy I get with my Print order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

When you buy any Print edition of our Books, you can redeem (for free) the eBook edition of the Print Book you’ve purchased. This gives you instant access to your book when you make an order via PDF, EPUB or our online Reader experience.

What is the delivery time and cost of print book? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Shipping Details

USA:

'

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the US within 10-15 business days

Premium: Trackable Delivery to most addresses in the US within 3-8 business days

UK:

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 7-9 business days.
Shipments are not trackable

Premium: Trackable delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 3-4 business days!
Add one extra business day for deliveries to Northern Ireland and Scottish Highlands and islands

EU:

Premium: Trackable delivery to most EU destinations within 4-9 business days.

Australia:

Economy: Can deliver to P. O. Boxes and private residences.
Trackable service with delivery to addresses in Australia only.
Delivery time ranges from 7-9 business days for VIC and 8-10 business days for Interstate metro
Delivery time is up to 15 business days for remote areas of WA, NT & QLD.

Premium: Delivery to addresses in Australia only
Trackable delivery to most P. O. Boxes and private residences in Australia within 4-5 days based on the distance to a destination following dispatch.

India:

Premium: Delivery to most Indian addresses within 5-6 business days

Rest of the World:

Premium: Countries in the American continent: Trackable delivery to most countries within 4-7 business days

Asia:

Premium: Delivery to most Asian addresses within 5-9 business days

Disclaimer:
All orders received before 5 PM U.K time would start printing from the next business day. So the estimated delivery times start from the next day as well. Orders received after 5 PM U.K time (in our internal systems) on a business day or anytime on the weekend will begin printing the second to next business day. For example, an order placed at 11 AM today will begin printing tomorrow, whereas an order placed at 9 PM tonight will begin printing the day after tomorrow.


Unfortunately, due to several restrictions, we are unable to ship to the following countries:

  1. Afghanistan
  2. American Samoa
  3. Belarus
  4. Brunei Darussalam
  5. Central African Republic
  6. The Democratic Republic of Congo
  7. Eritrea
  8. Guinea-bissau
  9. Iran
  10. Lebanon
  11. Libiya Arab Jamahriya
  12. Somalia
  13. Sudan
  14. Russian Federation
  15. Syrian Arab Republic
  16. Ukraine
  17. Venezuela
What is custom duty/charge? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customs duty are charges levied on goods when they cross international borders. It is a tax that is imposed on imported goods. These duties are charged by special authorities and bodies created by local governments and are meant to protect local industries, economies, and businesses.

Do I have to pay customs charges for the print book order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

The orders shipped to the countries that are listed under EU27 will not bear custom charges. They are paid by Packt as part of the order.

List of EU27 countries: www.gov.uk/eu-eea:

A custom duty or localized taxes may be applicable on the shipment and would be charged by the recipient country outside of the EU27 which should be paid by the customer and these duties are not included in the shipping charges been charged on the order.

How do I know my custom duty charges? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

The amount of duty payable varies greatly depending on the imported goods, the country of origin and several other factors like the total invoice amount or dimensions like weight, and other such criteria applicable in your country.

For example:

  • If you live in Mexico, and the declared value of your ordered items is over $ 50, for you to receive a package, you will have to pay additional import tax of 19% which will be $ 9.50 to the courier service.
  • Whereas if you live in Turkey, and the declared value of your ordered items is over € 22, for you to receive a package, you will have to pay additional import tax of 18% which will be € 3.96 to the courier service.
How can I cancel my order? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Cancellation Policy for Published Printed Books:

You can cancel any order within 1 hour of placing the order. Simply contact customercare@packt.com with your order details or payment transaction id. If your order has already started the shipment process, we will do our best to stop it. However, if it is already on the way to you then when you receive it, you can contact us at customercare@packt.com using the returns and refund process.

Please understand that Packt Publishing cannot provide refunds or cancel any order except for the cases described in our Return Policy (i.e. Packt Publishing agrees to replace your printed book because it arrives damaged or material defect in book), Packt Publishing will not accept returns.

What is your returns and refunds policy? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Return Policy:

We want you to be happy with your purchase from Packtpub.com. We will not hassle you with returning print books to us. If the print book you receive from us is incorrect, damaged, doesn't work or is unacceptably late, please contact Customer Relations Team on customercare@packt.com with the order number and issue details as explained below:

  1. If you ordered (eBook, Video or Print Book) incorrectly or accidentally, please contact Customer Relations Team on customercare@packt.com within one hour of placing the order and we will replace/refund you the item cost.
  2. Sadly, if your eBook or Video file is faulty or a fault occurs during the eBook or Video being made available to you, i.e. during download then you should contact Customer Relations Team within 14 days of purchase on customercare@packt.com who will be able to resolve this issue for you.
  3. You will have a choice of replacement or refund of the problem items.(damaged, defective or incorrect)
  4. Once Customer Care Team confirms that you will be refunded, you should receive the refund within 10 to 12 working days.
  5. If you are only requesting a refund of one book from a multiple order, then we will refund you the appropriate single item.
  6. Where the items were shipped under a free shipping offer, there will be no shipping costs to refund.

On the off chance your printed book arrives damaged, with book material defect, contact our Customer Relation Team on customercare@packt.com within 14 days of receipt of the book with appropriate evidence of damage and we will work with you to secure a replacement copy, if necessary. Please note that each printed book you order from us is individually made by Packt's professional book-printing partner which is on a print-on-demand basis.

What tax is charged? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Currently, no tax is charged on the purchase of any print book (subject to change based on the laws and regulations). A localized VAT fee is charged only to our European and UK customers on eBooks, Video and subscriptions that they buy. GST is charged to Indian customers for eBooks and video purchases.

What payment methods can I use? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

You can pay with the following card types:

  1. Visa Debit
  2. Visa Credit
  3. MasterCard
  4. PayPal
What is the delivery time and cost of print books? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Shipping Details

USA:

'

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the US within 10-15 business days

Premium: Trackable Delivery to most addresses in the US within 3-8 business days

UK:

Economy: Delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 7-9 business days.
Shipments are not trackable

Premium: Trackable delivery to most addresses in the U.K. within 3-4 business days!
Add one extra business day for deliveries to Northern Ireland and Scottish Highlands and islands

EU:

Premium: Trackable delivery to most EU destinations within 4-9 business days.

Australia:

Economy: Can deliver to P. O. Boxes and private residences.
Trackable service with delivery to addresses in Australia only.
Delivery time ranges from 7-9 business days for VIC and 8-10 business days for Interstate metro
Delivery time is up to 15 business days for remote areas of WA, NT & QLD.

Premium: Delivery to addresses in Australia only
Trackable delivery to most P. O. Boxes and private residences in Australia within 4-5 days based on the distance to a destination following dispatch.

India:

Premium: Delivery to most Indian addresses within 5-6 business days

Rest of the World:

Premium: Countries in the American continent: Trackable delivery to most countries within 4-7 business days

Asia:

Premium: Delivery to most Asian addresses within 5-9 business days

Disclaimer:
All orders received before 5 PM U.K time would start printing from the next business day. So the estimated delivery times start from the next day as well. Orders received after 5 PM U.K time (in our internal systems) on a business day or anytime on the weekend will begin printing the second to next business day. For example, an order placed at 11 AM today will begin printing tomorrow, whereas an order placed at 9 PM tonight will begin printing the day after tomorrow.


Unfortunately, due to several restrictions, we are unable to ship to the following countries:

  1. Afghanistan
  2. American Samoa
  3. Belarus
  4. Brunei Darussalam
  5. Central African Republic
  6. The Democratic Republic of Congo
  7. Eritrea
  8. Guinea-bissau
  9. Iran
  10. Lebanon
  11. Libiya Arab Jamahriya
  12. Somalia
  13. Sudan
  14. Russian Federation
  15. Syrian Arab Republic
  16. Ukraine
  17. Venezuela