Home | Severin Perez

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ideas • data • ramblings

I write about data, technology, the future, and whatever else is on my mind. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy the blog, and forgive me for the occasional rant. Feel free to reach out and say hello any time.

Latest posts

Are You the Keymaster?

In this article we'll talk about statistical, graph-based, algorithmic, and machine learning techniques to identify keywords and keyphrases in texts. A keyword is a word that represents the most important ideas in a text. Keywords are useful for information retrieval systems, extractive summarization, classification tasks, and more. Keywords also provide a useful means of quickly comparing texts, with the idea that texts with very similar keywords are likely to be similar in their totality.

February 15, 2025
39 min read

keyword extraction machine learning
How Does a Computer Learn to Read?

Believe it or not, computers are illiterate. Despite appearances, a computer can't 'read' a word, understand it's meaning, and place it in context next to adjacent words. To a computer, the words you read on the monitor are just a way of transmitting data to you. The computer itself is operating on a much lower level of abstraction, because it can only store information as bits--ones and zeros that must be strung together to represent something more complex.

February 8, 2025
26 min read

machine learning
All About Entropy

In this article, we're going to do a deep dive into the idea of entropy, one of the most important concepts in information theory, and a critical tool in text analytics. We'll review how to calculate entropy, some nuances related to measuring entropy in texts, and of course, lots of code along the way.

February 1, 2025
37 min read

information theory
Designing Our AI Future

If one term has captured the popular imagination of late, it’s artificial intelligence (AI). Depending on whom you ask, it’s either the panacea for humanity’s woes, or a harbinger of the end times. And yet, how many of us can truly say that we understand AI? Can either the optimists or the pessimists actually justify their positions? What does the AI future actually look like?

May 2, 2021
12 min read

ai future
Asking the Right Question

At its core, decision-making is about answering questions. Should we launch this product? Should I order take-out for dinner? Should I go on this date? These are conditional questions that reflect some number of possible futures. The decision occurs when you select one of the futures and take the action that it prescribes.

January 2, 2021
7 min read

questions decision making

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Welcome

Latest posts

Are You the Keymaster?

How Does a Computer Learn to Read?

All About Entropy

Designing Our AI Future

Asking the Right Question