{"id":9756,"date":"2020-06-04T14:00:10","date_gmt":"2020-06-04T19:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/%year%\/%monthnum%\/%day%\/what-is-machine-learning-and-how-does-it-work\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T01:14:20","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T06:14:20","slug":"what-is-machine-learning-and-how-does-it-work","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2020\/06\/04\/what-is-machine-learning-and-how-does-it-work\/","title":{"rendered":"What is machine learning, and how does it work?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Methods 101: What is machine learning, and how does it work?\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/A4KIW4O8bYM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At Pew Research Center, we collect and analyze data in a variety of ways. Besides asking people what they think through surveys, we also regularly study things like <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2019\/05\/23\/men-appear-twice-as-often-as-women-in-news-photos-on-facebook\">images<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/internet\/2019\/07\/25\/a-week-in-the-life-of-popular-youtube-channels\/\">videos<\/a> and even the text of <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2020\/04\/29\/few-u-s-sermons-mention-abortion-though-discussion-varies-by-religious-affiliation-and-congregation-size\/\">religious sermons<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a digital world full of ever-expanding datasets like these, it\u2019s not always possible for humans to analyze such vast troves of information themselves. That\u2019s why our researchers have increasingly made use of a method called machine learning. Broadly speaking, machine learning uses computer programs to identify patterns across thousands or even millions of data points. In many ways, these techniques automate tasks that researchers have done by hand for years.<!--more--><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Our latest video explainer \u2013 part of our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLZ9z-Af5ISavJpPlvdMU4T-etIDOUmldk\">Methods 101 series<\/a> \u2013 explains the basics of machine learning and how it allows researchers at the Center to analyze data on a large scale. To learn more about how we\u2019ve used machine learning and other computational methods in our research, including <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/politics\/2018\/07\/18\/taking-sides-on-facebook-how-congressional-outreach-changed-under-president-trump\/\">the analysis<\/a> mentioned in this video, you can explore <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/topics\/data-labs\/\">recent reports from our Data Labs team<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-style-callout has-ui-beige-very-light-background-color has-background is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\"><h4 id=\"watch-our-other-methods-101-videos\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Watch our other Methods 101 videos:<\/h4><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2017\/05\/12\/methods-101-random-sampling\/\">How can a survey of 1,000 people tell you what the whole U.S. thinks?<\/a><\/strong><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2018\/03\/21\/how-do-you-write-survey-questions-that-accurately-measure-public-opinion\/\"><strong>How do you write survey questions that accurately measure public opinion?<\/strong><\/a><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2018\/08\/06\/what-are-nonprobability-surveys\/\"><strong>What are nonprobability surveys?<\/strong><\/a><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2019\/02\/07\/phone-vs-online-surveys-why-do-respondents-answers-sometimes-differ-by-mode\/\"><strong>Phone vs. online surveys: Why do respondents\u2019 answers sometimes differ by mode?<\/strong><\/a><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2019\/07\/16\/how-is-polling-done-around-the-world\/\">How is polling done around the world?<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our latest Methods 101 video explains the basics of machine learning and how it allows our researchers to analyze data on a large 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