Archived Announcements

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Current announcements are available here.

Announcements for Study and Final Exam Period (Thur, 14 Dec - Mon, 18 Dec)

  • The final exam will be on Mon, 18 Dec, from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm at Johnson Track. Logistics are detailed at final exam. Solutions to the practice exams have also been released.

  • Our last regular office hours were held on Wed, 13 Dec.

  • As of 14 Dec, the optimal allocation of late day extensions have been computed and applied to all assignments; your Progress Page should now reflect those.

  • The end-of-term subject evaluations are open until Mon, 18 Dec at 9am. We'd love to hear your thoughts on 6.390: this provides valuable feedback for us and other students, for future semesters!

Announcements for Week 14 (Mon, 11 Dec - Wed, 13 Dec)

  • Our last class session of the semester is on Mon, 11 Dec. Instead of our usual recitations, we have a special 6.390 all-sections lecture by Prof. Simon Johnson, co-author of a recent book Power and Progress with Prof. Daron Acemoglu. The lecture will be on Mon, 11 Dec 3-4:30 pm in 10-250. You can read a short executive summary on ideas from the book about what and who we should want our AI technology to benefit.

  • 20-day extensions are applicable up through the end of the day on Wed, 13 Dec.

  • Our last regular office hours will be held on Wed, 13 Dec.

  • The final exam will be on Mon, 18 Dec, from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm at Johnson Track. Logistics are detailed at final exam. Solutions to the practice exams have also been released.

  • The end-of-term subject evaluations are open until Mon, 18 Dec at 9am. We'd love to hear your thoughts on 6.390: this provides valuable feedback for us and other students, for future semesters!

Announcements for Week 13 (Mon, 4 Dec - Fri, 8 Dec)

  • Key dates and alerts as we approach the end of the semester:

    • Lab13 will be due on Fri, 8 Dec (last test date as set by the Registrar). You should be able to complete the lab and get a check-off in the regular lab session on Wed, 6 Dec.
    • Mark your calendar for Mon, 11 Dec, for our last class session of the semester! Instead of our usual recitations, we will have a special 6.390 all-sections lecture by Prof. Simon Johnson, co-author of a recent book Power and Progress with Prof. Daron Acemoglu. The lecture will be on Mon, 11 Dec 3-4:30 pm in 10-250. You can read a short executive summary on ideas from the book about what and who we should want our AI technology to benefit.
    • 20-day extensions are applicable up through the end of the day on Wed, 13 Dec.
    • Our last regular office hours will be held on Wed, 13 Dec.

  • The final exam will be on Mon, 18 Dec, from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm at Johnson Track. Logistics are detailed at final exam. Solutions to the practice exams have also been released.

  • The deadline for requesting accommodations or a conflict exam is Wed, 6 Dec. Note that if you have a conflict with another MIT exam, the Registrar will schedule one of those into a conflict exam. We do not have an opportunity for any final exam before 18 Dec.

  • The end-of-term subject evaluations open on Mon, 4 Dec. We'd love to hear your thoughts on 6.390: this provides valuable feedback for us and other students, for future semesters!

Announcements for Week 12 (Mon, 27 Nov - Fri, 1 Dec)

  • Please mark your calendar for Mon, 11 Dec, for a special 6.390 all-sections lecture that day, instead of our usual recitations. We will wrap up the semester with a lecture by Prof. Simon Johnson, co-author of a recent book, Power and Progress, with Prof. Daron Acemoglu. The lecture will be at 3-4:30 pm in 10-250. You can read a short executive summary on ideas from the book about what and who we should want our AI technology to benefit.

  • The final exam will be on Mon, 18 Dec, from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm at Johnson Track. Practice exams (with solutions) and other logistics are detailed at final exam.

  • The deadline for requesting accommodations or a conflict exam is Wed, 6 Dec. Note that if you have a conflict with another MIT exam, the Registrar will schedule one of those into a conflict exam. We do not have an opportunity for any final exam before 18 Dec.

  • Heads-up:

    • 20-day extensions are applicable up through the end of the day on Wed, Dec. 13.
    • Our last regular office hours will be held on Wed, Dec. 13.

Announcements for Week 11 (Mon, 20 Nov - Fri, 24 Nov)

  • Thanksgiving week! Some key things to note:

    • All recitations, lab sessions, and assignments will follow a normal schedule, including in-class labs on Wed, Nov 22.
    • Homework 10 (from last week) is due Wed, Nov 22 at 11pm.
    • Homework 11 will be slightly smaller than a typical homework, and will be due the week after Thanksgiving on Wed, Nov 29 as usual.
    • We will not have office hours on Wed, Nov 22 or Thur, Nov 23. Regular office hours will resume on Sun, Nov 26.

  • Drop Date is Wed, Nov 22.

Announcements for Week 10 (Mon, 13 Nov - Fri, 17 Nov)

  • This week follows a normal schedule, with Homework 10 due as usual on Wed, Nov 22.

  • Looking ahead to the Thanksgiving week:

    • All recitations, lab sessions, and assignments will follow a normal schedule, including labs on Wed, Nov 22.
    • Homework 11 will be slightly smaller than a typical homework, and will be due the Wednesday after Thanksgiving.
    • We will not have office hours on Wed, Nov 22 or Thur, Nov 23. Regular office hours will resume on Sun, Nov 26.

  • Drop Date is Wed, Nov 22.

Announcements for Week 9 (Mon, 6 Nov - Fri, 10 Nov)

  • Fri, 10 Nov is the Veterans Day Institute Holiday, which does not impact our regular weekly calendar as below.

  • The solutions to the midterm exam can now be found here.

Announcements for Week 8 (Mon, 10 Oct - Fri, 3 Nov)

  • Remember that Homework 7 (released the week before the midterm) is due on Wed, 1 Nov.

Midterm Results

  • The midterm grades have been released on Gradescope. You will need to log in with your MIT email for Gradescope access (this applies to cross-registered students as well). The median score is 81.2, the mean is 78.3, and the standard deviation is 13.8. Well done!

  • Regrade requests must be made on Gradescope, and must include a clear statement and justification for reconsideration for specific questions(s) and part(s) that you seek a regrade on. Our grading review in response to a regrade request can result in no change, addition of points, or reduction of points; we may also review grading on the rest of your midterm to correct for other grading mistakes, if any.

  • Requests for midterm regrades will open on Monday, Oct. 30 at 9am, and close on Friday, Nov. 3 at 11pm.

  • A blank copy of the midterm can be found here.

Announcements for Midterm Week (Mon, 23 Oct - Fri, 27 Oct)

  • Reminder: the midterm exam will be on Wed, 25 Oct, from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Practice exams (with solutions) and other logistics are detailed at midterm logistics.

  • The deadline (Wed, 11 Oct) for requesting accommodations or a conflict exam has passed. If you have a remaining 6.390 midterm conflict, please coordinate with the staff of the conflicting exam or event to arrange alternatives for that exam or event.

  • All regular office hours will be held as usual this week, except there will be no office hours on Wed, Oct 25.

  • There is no recitation on Mon, 23 Oct, and no lab on Wed, 25 Oct, so that you have time to prepare for the midterm. Other due date adjustments (for week 7 homework) are shown on the calendar below.

Announcements for Week 7 (Mon, 16 Oct - Fri, 20 Oct)

  • Reminder: the midterm exam will be on Wed, 25 October, from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Practice exams (now with solutions) and other logistics are detailed at midterm logistics.

  • You have been assigned a room for your midterm exam: please review midterm exam room for where to go for your midterm exam. This page can also be used to change your exam room, contingent on capacity.

  • Note that the homework for week 7 will be due a week later than usual due to the midterm. Consult the calendar below to make sure you don't miss this or any other due date.

Announcements for Week 6 (Mon, 9 Oct - Fri, 13 Oct)

  • Due to the Mon, 9 Oct holiday for Indigenous Peoples's Day, there will be no 6.390 office hours on Sun, 8 Oct or Mon, 9 Oct. The Tues, 10 Oct office hours will follow our usual times.

  • The midterm exam will be on Wed, 25 October, from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. You should review midterm logistics, including for deadlines for requesting conflict exam or accommodations, and to access practice midterms.

  • You have been assigned a room for your midterm exam: please review midterm exam room for where to go for your midterm exam. This page can also be used to change your exam room, contingent on capacity.

  • Please note the (unusual) due dates in the calendar below, for the MIT Institute holiday on Mon, 9 Oct and student class holiday on Tues, 10 Oct.

Announcements for Week 5 (Mon, 2 Oct - Fri, 6 Oct)

  • The midterm exam will be on Wednesday, 25 October, from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. You should review midterm logistics, including about deadline for requesting conflict exam or accommodations, and practice midterms.

  • Pro tip: we've changed the assignments pages so that question explanations (when available) will automatically show when you "View Answer" after you are done submitting your own answer. These are a good way to check your understanding, even if you got the answer right!

Announcements for Week 4 (Mon, 25 Sep - Fri, 29 Sep)

  • The Registrar has posted the MIT Final Exams Schedule. The 6.390 final will be held on Monday, 18 December 2023, from 1:30 PM to 4:30 PM Eastern Time, at Johnson Track. The Registrar will also schedule a Conflict Exam for 6.390, and will announce that schedule after Drop Date. For cross-registered 6.390 students who have a schedule conflict with the 18 Dec final exam, we expect to make the 6.390 conflict exam time (as scheduled by the MIT Registrar) available to them as well. Note that all final exams (regular and conflict) will only be held during final exam week, Mon, 18 Dec through Fri, 22 Dec.

  • For both regular Monday and Wednesday class meetings, you may attend your assigned section only. If you need to change your permanent section assignment, or if you need a one-time temporary section change, please email 6.390-personal@mit.edu with that request.

Announcements for Week 3 (Mon, 18 Sep - Fri, 22 Sep)

  • For both regular Monday and Wednesday class meetings, you may attend your assigned section only. If you need to change your permanent section assignment, or if you need a one-time temporary section change, please email 6.390-personal@mit.edu with that request.
  • Tip: Use the Progress page for keeping track of assignments completed and partial progress.

Announcements for Week 2 (Mon, 11 Sep - Fri, 15 Sep)

  • Tip: Keep an eye out for 6.390 announcements on the 6.390 Home Page. Below the announcements is a moving window of the previous week, current week (highlighted by side bar), and next week's assignments and due dates. You can see the whole semester plan on the full Calendar.

  • Use the Progress page for keeping track of assignments completed and partial progress.

  • If you missed the Lab for week 1 on Wed, 6 Sep, do not worry; you can still work the questions on the lab and have a checkoff in Office Hours for full credit before the lab checkoff due (Mon, 11 Sept at 11pm).

  • For both Monday and Wednesday class meetings, you may attend your assigned section only. If you need to change your permanent section assignment, you can self-switch with "Section Signup" through Canvas, subject to section capacity constraints. Self-switching is open until 15 Sep, 11:59pm; changes made on Canvas will be synced to our site here periodically (with a variable delay).

Announcements for Week 1 (Wed, 6 Sep - Fri, 8 Sep)

  • After the first class meeting, you may attend your assigned section only. If you need to change your permanent section assignment, you will be able to self-switch with "Section Signup" through Canvas, subject to section capacity constraints. Self-switching will be open between 6 Sep, 5:00pm and 15 Sep, 11:59pm; changes made on Canvas will be synced to our site here periodically (with a variable delay).

  • Office hours start on Sunday, 10 Sep. If you need help before then, please post on Piazza.

  • Lab 1 checkoffs: If you did not complete the checkoff during the lab session on Wednesday, 6 Sep, you can get that checkoffs in office hours on Sunday, 10 Sep and Monday, 11 Sep before the Monday night due date.

First Class Meeting

Our first class meeting is a lab on Wednesday, 6 Sep. Depending on when you registered for 6.390, the Registrar likely scheduled you into a section. Our section times/rooms can be found here. If at all possible, please attend the section you are scheduled into by the Registrar for this first session (this helps ensure that everyone will have a seat/table). If you registered later and don't have a section, please come to Section 1, 3, 5, or 7, on Sept. 6 to get started.

Later on Wednesday, 6 Sep, we will make available a self-switching mechanism you can use to change your recitation/lab section, which will be open until the end of the week of 11 Sep. You do not need to contact us to request a change in section; you should use the self-switch mechanism instead.

Office Hours

Office hours start on Sunday, 10 Sep. If you need help before then, please post on Piazza.

Pre-semester Information

👋 Hi there! Welcome to 6.390 -- we're very much looking forward to working with you all this fall!

1. Course Overview

6.390 introduces principles, algorithms, and applications of machine learning from the point of view of modeling and prediction. Topics include e.g. formulation of learning problems; representation, over-fitting, generalization; classification, regression, reinforcement learning, sequence learning, clustering; classical and neural-network methods.

2. Prerequisites

Concretely, things we expect you to know (we use these constantly, but don’t teach them explicitly):

Programming

  • Intermediate Python, including the notion of classes.
  • Exposure to algorithms – ability to understand & discuss pseudo-code, and implement in Python.

Linear Algebra

  • Fundamental matrix manipulations, e.g., transpose, multiplication, and inverse.
  • Points and planes in high-dimensional space.
  • Basic matrix calculus, e.g., gradients.

6.1010 [6.009] or 6.1210 [6.006] can serve as the programming prerequisite. 18.06, 18.C06, 18.03, or 18.700 can serve as the linear algebra prerequisite.

3. Useful Background

Things it helps to have prior exposure to, but we don’t expect (we use these in 6.390, but will discuss as we go):

  • numpy (Python package for matrix/linear algebra).
  • pytorch (Python package for neural networks).
  • Basic discrete probability, e.g., random variables, conditioning, and expectation.

4. Class Meeting and Sections

We will be meeting on Mondays and Wednesdays. The specific section times will be announced closer to the start of the semester.

Our first class meeting will be on Wednesday, Sept. 6. If you pre-registered for 6.390, the Registrar will likely schedule you into a section during the registration week. Towards the end of that week, we'll provide info here on where to see your assigned section and what-to-do if you don't have one.

5. Course Number Change

Since fall22, all MIT EECS (Course 6) subjects have been renumbered (rationale and details can be found here). This subject used to be called 6.036; moving forward, we'll refer to it internally as 6.390 ("six three-nine-oh"). But for registration purposes, please register for 6.3900 (note the extra zero).

6. Cross-registration

  • This site is our course site and it uses MIT Kerberos for authentication. Cross-registered students will receive their Kerberos once the registration goes through; however, the process can take a while. We therefore strongly encourage you to cross register early if possible, to avoid delayed access to course materials.

  • We follow MIT's calendar, and do not have additional extensions or accommodations based on home university calendar. Especially important will be for you to plan ahead for our two in-person exams. We'll have a midterm exam (Wed, 25 Oct). We'll also have a final exam during MIT's final exam period, Monday, Dec. 19 through Friday, Dec. 22; the final is to be scheduled by the Registrar.

  • If you're not familiar with MIT campus, you might find the whereis site helpful.

7. Listeners

Due to capacity and other constraints, we will not accept Listener registrants in 6.390 this semester.

8. Other Questions?

Feel free to drop us an email at 6.390-inquiry@mit.edu. We'd love to hear from you!