Weak learners are simple models that perform slightly better than random guessing. They are often used as the building blocks in Model Ensembling methods to create a strong predictive model.

Characteristics

  • Simplicity: Weak learners are typically simple models, such as Decision Tree stumps, which split the data based on a single feature.
  • Performance: Individually, they may not perform well, but when combined, they can produce a powerful ensemble model.

Role in Model Ensembling

Weak learners are a crucial component of Model Ensembling techniques, such as boosting and bagging, where multiple weak learners are combined to improve overall model performance.

Learning Rate

  • The learning rate is a Hyperparameterthat controls the contribution of each weak learner to the final ensemble model.
  • A smaller learning rate means that each weak learner has a smaller impact, often requiring more learners to achieve good performance.