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Data Science Interview Questions and

Answers
Last Updated : 19 Mar, 2024
Data Science Interview Questions – Explore the Data Science
Interview Questions and Answers for beginners and experienced
professionals looking for new opportunities in data science.

We all know that data science is a field where data scientists mine raw
data, analyze it, and extract useful insights from it. The article outlines
the frequently asked questionas during the data science interview.
Practising all the below questions will help you to explore your career
as a data scientist.

Table of Content

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 Basic Data Science Interview Questions For Fresher
Intermediate Data Science Interview Questions
Data Science Interview Questions for Experienced

What is Data Science?

Data science is a field that extracts knowledge and insights from
structured and unstructured data by using scientific methods,
algorithms, processes, and systems. It combines expertise from various
domains, such as statistics, computer science, machine learning, data
engineering, and domain-specific knowledge, to analyze and interpret
complex data sets.

Furthermore, data scientists use a combination of multiple languages,

such as Python and R. They are also frequent users of data analysis
tools like pandas, NumPy, and scikit-learn, as well as machine learning
libraries.

After exploring the brief of data science, let’s dig into the data science
interview questions and answers.

Basic Data Science Interview Questions For Fresher

Q.1 What is marginal probability?

A key idea in statistics and probability theory is marginal probability,

which is also known as marginal distribution. With reference to a
certain variable of interest, it is the likelihood that an event will occur,
without taking into account the results of other variables. Basically, it
treats the other variables as if they were “marginal” or irrelevant and
concentrates on one.

Marginal probabilities are essential in many statistical analyses,

including estimating anticipated values, computing conditional
probabilities, and drawing conclusions about certain variables of
interest while taking other variables’ influences into account.

Q.2 What are the probability axioms?

The fundamental rules that control the behaviour and characteristics

of probabilities in probability theory and statistics are referred to as
the probability axioms, sometimes known as the probability laws or
probability principles.

There are three fundamental axioms of probability:

1. Non-Negativity Axiom
2. Normalization Axiom
3. Additivity Axiom

Q.3 What is conditional probability?

The event or outcome occurring based on the existence of a prior event

or outcome is known as conditional probability. It is determined by
multiplying the probability of the earlier occurrence by the increased
lprobability of the later, or conditional, event.

Q.4 What is Bayes’ Theorem and when is it used in data science?

The Bayes theorem predicts the probability that an event connected to

any condition would occur. It is also taken into account in the situation
of conditional probability. The probability of “causes” formula is
another name for the Bayes theorem.

In data science, Bayes’ Theorem is used primarily in:

1. Bayesian Inference
2. Machine Learning
3. Text Classification
4. Medical Diagnosis
5. Predictive Modeling

When working with ambiguous or sparse data, Bayes’ Theorem is very

helpful since it enables data scientists to continually revise their
assumptions and come to more sensible conclusions.

Q.5 Define variance and conditional variance.

A statistical concept known as variance quantifies the spread or

dispersion of a group of data points within a dataset. It sheds light on
how widely individual data points depart from the dataset’s mean
(average). It assesses the variability or “scatter” of data.

Conditional Variance

A measure of the dispersion or variability of a random variable under

certain circumstances or in the presence of a particular event, as the
name implies. It reflects a random variable’s variance that is dependent
on the knowledge of another random variable’s variance.

Q.6 Explain the concepts of mean, median, mode, and standard

deviation.

Mean: The mean, often referred to as the average, is calculated by

summing up all the values in a dataset and then dividing by the total
number of values.

Median: When data are sorted in either ascending or descending

order, the median is the value in the middle of the dataset. The median
is the average of the two middle values when the number of data
points is even.
In comparison to the mean, the median is less impacted by extreme
numbers, making it a more reliable indicator of central tendency.

Mode: The value that appears most frequently in a dataset is the

mode. One mode (unimodal), several modes (multimodal), or no mode
(if all values occur with the same frequency) can all exist in a dataset.

Standard deviation: The spread or dispersion of data points in a

dataset is measured by the standard deviation. It quantifies the
variance between different data points.

Q.7 What is the normal distribution and standard normal

distribution?

The normal distribution, also known as the Gaussian distribution or

bell curve, is a continuous probability distribution that is characterized
by its symmetric bell-shaped curve. The normal distribution is defined
by two parameters: the mean (μ) and the standard deviation (σ). The
mean determines the center of the distribution, and the standard
deviation determines the spread or dispersion of the distribution. The
distribution is symmetric around its mean, and the bell curve is
centered at the mean. The probabilities for values that are further from
the mean taper off equally in both directions. Similar rarity applies to
extreme values in the two tails of the distribution. Not all symmetrical
distributions are normal, even though the normal distribution is
symmetrical.

The standard normal distribution, also known as the Z distribution, is a

special case of the normal distribution where the mean (μ) is 0 and the
standard deviation (σ) is 1. It is a standardized form of the normal
distribution, allowing for easy comparison of scores or observations
from different normal distributions.
Q.8 What is SQL, and what does it stand for?

SQL stands for Structured Query [Link] is a specialized

programming language used for managing and manipulating relational
databases. It is designed for tasks related to database management,
data retrieval, data manipulation, and data definition.

Q.9 Explain the differences between SQL and NoSQL databases.

Both SQL (Structured Query Language) and NoSQL (Not Only SQL)
databases, differ in their data structures, schema, query languages,
and use cases. The following are the main variations between SQL and
NoSQL databases.

SQL NoSQL

NoSQL databases use a number of

SQL databases are relational
different types of data models,
databases, they organise and store
such as document-based (like
data using a structured schema
JSON and BSON), key-value pairs,
with tables, rows, and columns.
column families, and graphs.

SQL databases have a set schema,

NoSQL databases frequently
thus before inserting data, we
employ a dynamic or schema-less
must establish the structure of our
approach, enabling you to insert
[Link] schema may need to be
data without first creating a
changed, which might be a difficult
predetermined schema.
process.

SQL is a strong and standardised

query language that is used by
The query languages or APIs used
SQL databases. Joins,
by NoSQL databases are
aggregations, and subqueries are
frequently tailored to the data
only a few of the complicated
model.
processes supported by SQL
 SQL NoSQL

queries.

Q.10 What are the primary SQL database management systems

(DBMS)?

Relational database systems, both open source and commercial, are

the main SQL (Structured Query Language) database management
systems (DBMS), which are widely used for managing and processing
structured data. Some of the most popular SQL database management
systems are listed below:

1. MySQL
2. Microsoft SQL Server
3. SQLite
4. PostgreSQL
5. Oracle Database
6. Amazon RDS

Q.11 What is the ER model in SQL?

The structure and relationships between the data entities in a

database are represented by the Entity-Relationship (ER) model, a
conceptual framework used in database architecture. The ER model is
frequently used in conjunction with SQL for creating the structure of
relational databases even though it is not a component of the SQL
language itself.

Q.12 What is data transformation?

The process of transforming data from one structure, format, or

representation into another is referred to as data transformation. In
order to make the data more suited for a given goal, such as analysis,
visualisation, reporting, or storage, this procedure may involve a
variety of actions and changes to the data. Data integration, cleansing,
and analysis depend heavily on data transformation, which is a
common stage in data preparation and processing pipelines.

Q.13 What are the main components of a SQL query?

A relational database’s data can be retrieved, modified, or managed via

a SQL (Structured Query Language) query. The operation of a SQL
query is defined by a number of essential components, each of which
serves a different function.

1. SELECT
2. FROM
3. WHERE
4. GROUP BY
5. HAVING
6. ORDER BY
7. LIMIT
8. JOIN

Q.14 What is a primary key?

A relational database table’s main key, also known as a primary

keyword, is a column that is unique for each record. It is a distinctive
[Link] primary key of a relational database must be unique.
Every row of data must have a primary key value and none of the rows
can be null.

Q.15 What is the purpose of the GROUP BY clause, and how is it

used?

In SQL, the GROUP BY clause is used to create summary rows out of

rows that have the same values in a set of specified columns. In order
to do computations on groups of rows as opposed to individual rows, it
is frequently used in conjunction with aggregate functions like SUM,
COUNT, AVG, MAX, or MIN. we may produce summary reports and
perform more in-depth data analysis using the GROUP BY clause.

Q.16 What is the WHERE clause used for, and how is it used to
filter data?

In SQL, the WHERE clause is used to filter rows from a table or result
set according to predetermined criteria. It enables us to pick only the
rows that satisfy particular requirements or follow a pattern. A key
element of SQL queries, the WHERE clause is frequently used for data
retrieval and manipulation.

Q.17 How do you retrieve distinct values from a column in SQL?

Using the DISTINCT keyword in combination with the SELECT

command, we can extract distinct values from a column in SQL. By
filtering out duplicate values and returning only unique values from
the specified column, the DISTINCT keyword is used.

Q.18 What is the HAVING clause?

To filter query results depending on the output of aggregation

functions, the HAVING clause, a SQL clause, is used along with the
GROUP BY clause. The HAVING clause filters groups of rows after
they have been grouped by one or more columns, in contrast to the
WHERE clause, which filters rows before they are grouped.

Q.19 How do you handle missing or NULL values in a database

table?

Missing or NULL values can arise due to various reasons, such as

incomplete data entry, optional fields, or data extraction processes.

1. Replace NULL with Placeholder Values

2. Handle NULL Values in Queries
3. Use Default Values
Q.20 What is the difference between supervised and unsupervised
machine learning?

The difference between Supervised Learning and Unsupervised

Learning are as follow:

Category Supervised Unsupervised

Learning Learning

Definition Supervised learning Unsupervised Learning

refers to that part of is used when we do
machine learning not have labeled data
where we know what and we are not sure
the target variable is about our target
and it is labeled. variable

Objective The objective here is to

The objective of discover patterns
supervised learning is among the features of
to predict an outcome the dataset and group
or classify the data similar features
together

Algorithms Some of the algorithm

Some of the algorithms
types are:
are :
1. Regression (Linear,
1. Dimensionality
Logistic, etc.)
reduction (Principle
2. Classification
Component
(Decision Tree
Analysis, etc.)
Classifier, Support
2. Clustering (KMeans,
Vector Classifier,
DBSCAN, etc.)
etc.)
 Category Supervised Unsupervised
Learning Learning

Evaluation metrics Supervised learning

Unsupervised Learning
uses evaluation
uses evaluation metrics
metrics like:
like:
1. Mean Squared
1. Silhouette
Error
2. Inertia
2. Accuracy

Use cases Anomaly detection,

Predictive modeling,
Customer
Spam detection
segmentation

Q.21 What is linear regression, and What are the different

assumptions of linear regression algorithms?

Linear Regression – It is type of Supervised Learning where we

compute a linear relationship between the predictor and response
variable. It is based on the linear equation concept given by:

y^ = β1 x + βo , where

y^ = response / dependent variable

β1 = slope of the linear regression
βo = intercept for linear regression
x = predictor / independent variable(s)

There are 4 assumptions we make about a Linear regression problem:

Linear relationship : This assumes that there is a linear relationship

between predictor and response variable. This means that, which
changing values of predictor variable, the response variable
changes linearly (either increases or decreases).
Normality : This assumes that the dataset is normally distributed,
 i.e., the data is symmetric about the mean of the dataset.
Independence : The features are independent of each other, there is
no correlation among the features/predictor variables of the dataset.
Homoscedasticity : This assumes that the dataset has equal
variance for all the predictor variables. This means that the amount
of independent variables have no effect on the variance of data.

Q.22 Logistic regression is a classification technique, why its name

is regressions, not logistic classifications?

While logistic regression is used for classification, it still maintains a

regression structure underneath. The key idea is to model the
probability of an event occurring (e.g., class 1 in binary classification)
using a linear combination of features, and then apply a logistic
(Sigmoid) function to transform this linear combination into a
probability between 0 and 1. This transformation is what makes it
suitable for classification tasks.

In essence, while logistic regression is indeed used for classification, it

retains the mathematical and structural characteristics of a regression
model, hence the name.

Q.23 What is the logistic function (sigmoid function) in logistic

regression?

Sigmoid Function: It is a mathematical function which is characterized

by its S- shape curve. Sigmoid functions have the tendency to squash
a data point to lie within 0 and 1. This is why it is also called
Squashing function, which is given as:
Some of the properties of Sigmoid function is:

Range: [0,1]

Q.24 What is overfitting and how can be overcome this?

Overfitting refers to the result of analysis of a dataset which fits so

closely with training data that it fails to generalize with unseen/future
data. This happens when the model is trained with noisy data which
causes it to learn the noisy features from the training as well.

To avoid Overfitting and overcome this problem in machine learning,

one can follow the following rules:

Feature selection : Sometimes the training data has too many

features which might not be necessary for our problem statement.
In that case, we use only the necessary features that serve our
purpose
Cross Validation : This technique is a very powerful method to
overcome overfitting. In this, the training dataset is divided into a
set of mini training batches, which are used to tune the model.
Regularization : Regularization is the technique to supplement the
loss with a penalty term so as to reduce overfitting. This penalty
term regulates the overall loss function, thus creating a well trained
model.
Ensemble models : These models learn the features and combine
the results from different training models into a single prediction.
Q.25 What is a support vector machine (SVM), and what are its key
components?

Support Vector machines are a type of Supervised algorithm which can

be used for both Regression and Classification problems. In SVMs, the
main goal is to find a hyperplane which will be used to segregate
different data points into classes. Any new data point will be classified
based on this defined hyperplane.

Support Vector machines are highly effective when dealing with high
dimensionality space and can handle non linear data very well. But if
the number of features are greater than number of data samples, it is
susceptible to overfitting.

The key components of SVM are:

Kernels Function: It is a mapping function used for data points to

convert it into high dimensionality feature space.
Hyperplane: It is the decision boundary which is used to
differentiate between the classes of data points.
Margin: It is the distance between Support Vector and Hyperplane
C: It is a regularization parameter which is used for margin
maximization and misclassification minimization.

Q.26 Explain the k-nearest neighbors (KNN) algorithm.

The k-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) algorithm is a simple and versatile

supervised machine learning algorithm used for both classification
and regression tasks. KNN makes predictions by memorizing the data
points rather than building a model about it. This is why it is also
called “lazy learner” or “memory based” model too.

KNN relies on the principle that similar data points tend to belong to
the same class or have similar target values. This means that, In the
training phase, KNN stores the entire dataset consisting of feature
vectors and their corresponding class labels (for classification) or
target values (for regression). It then calculates the distances between
that point and all the points in the training dataset. (commonly used
distance metrics are Euclidean distance and Manhattan distance).

(Note : Choosing an appropriate value for k is crucial. A small k may

result in noisy predictions, while a large k can smooth out the decision
boundaries. The choice of distance metric and feature scaling also
impact KNN’s performance.)

Q.27 What is the Naïve Bayes algorithm, what are the different
assumptions of Naïve Bayes?

The Naïve Bayes algorithm is a probabilistic classification algorithm

based on Bayes’ theorem with a “naïve” assumption of feature
independence within each class. It is commonly used for both binary
and multi-class classification tasks, particularly in situations where
simplicity, speed, and efficiency are essential.

The main assumptions that Naïve Bayes theorem makes are:

1. Feature independence – It assumes that the features involved in

Naïve Bayes algorithm are conditionally independent, i.e., the
presence/ absence of one feature does not affect any other feature
2. Equality – This assumes that the features are equal in terms of
importance (or weight).
3. Normality – It assumes that the feature distribution is Normal in
nature, i.e., the data is distributed equally around its mean.

Q.28 What are decision trees, and how do they work?

Decision trees are a popular machine learning algorithm used for both
classification and regression tasks. They work by creating a tree-like
structure of decisions based on input features to make predictions or
decisions. Lets dive into its core concepts and how they work briefly:

Decision trees consist of nodes and edges.

The tree starts with a root node and branches into internal nodes
that represent features or attributes.
 These nodes contain decision rules that split the data into subsets.
Edges connect nodes and indicate the possible decisions or
outcomes.
Leaf nodes represent the final predictions or decisions.

The objective is to increase data homogeneity, which is often

measured using standards like mean squared error (for regression) or
Gini impurity (for classification). Decision trees can handle a variety of
attributes and can effectively capture complex data relationships. They
can, however, overfit, especially when deep or complex. To reduce
overfitting, strategies like pruning and restricting tree depth are
applied.

Q.29 Explain the concepts of entropy and information gain in

decision trees.

Entropy: Entropy is the measure of randomness. In terms of Machine

learning, Entropy can be defined as the measure of randomness or
impurity in our dataset. It is given as:

, where

= probability of an event “i”.

Information gain: It is defined as the change in the entropy of a feature

given that there’s an additional information about that feature. If there
are more than one features involved in Decision tree split, then the
weighted average of entropies of the additional features is taken.

Information gain =

, where

E = Entropy

Q.30 What is the difference between the bagging and boosting

model?

Category Bagging Model Boosting model

Definition Bagging, or Bootstrap

aggregating, is an Boosting method is
ensemble modelling where multiple weak
method where learners are used
predictions from together to get a
different models are stronger model with
combined together to more robust
give the aggregated predictions.
result

Agenda This is used when

This is used when
dealing with models
dealing with models
with high bias
that have high
(underfitting) and
variance (overfitting).
variance as well.

Robustness to Noise It is more sensitive to

and Sensitivity This is more robust presence of outliers
due to averaging and and that makes it a bit
this makes it less less robust as
sensitive compared to bagging
models
 Category Bagging Model Boosting model

Model running and The models are run in

The models are run in
dependence sequential method
parallel and are
where the base model
typically independent
is dependent.

Examples Random Forest,

AdaBoost, Gradient
Bagged Decision
Boosting, XGBoost
Trees

Q.31 Describe random forests and their advantages over single-

decision trees.

Random Forests are an ensemble learning technique that combines

multiple decision trees to improve predictive accuracy and reduce
overfitting. The advantages it has over single decision trees are:

Improved Generalization: Single decision trees are prone to

overfitting, especially when they become deep and complex.
Random Forests mitigate this issue by averaging predictions from
multiple trees, resulting in a more generalized model that performs
better on unseen data
Better Handling of High-Dimensional Data : Random Forests are
effective at handling datasets with a large number of features. They
select a random subset of features for each tree, which can improve
the performance when there are many irrelevant or noisy features
Robustness to Outliers: Random Forests are more robust to
outliers because they combine predictions from multiple trees,
which can better handle extreme cases

Q.32 What is K-Means, and how will it work?

K-Means is an unsupervised machine learning algorithm used for
clustering or grouping similar data points together. It aims to partition
a dataset into K clusters, where each cluster represents a group of
data points that are close to each other in terms of some similarity
measure. The working of K-means is as follow:

Choose the number of clusters K

For each data point in the dataset, calculate its distance to each of
the K centroids and then assign each data point to the cluster
whose centroid is closest to it
Recalculate the centroids of the K clusters based on the current
assignment of data points.
Repeat the above steps until a group of clusters are formed.

Q.33 What is a confusion matrix? Explain with an example.

Confusion matrix is a table used to evaluate the performance of a

classification model by presenting a comprehensive view of the
model’s predictions compared to the actual class labels. It provides
valuable information for assessing the model’s accuracy, precision,
recall, and other performance metrics in a binary or multi-class
classification problem.

A famous example demonstration would be Cancer Confusion matrix:

Actual

Cancer Not Cancer

True Positive False Positive

Cancer
Predicted (TP) (FP)

False True Negative

Not Cancer
Negative (FN) (TN)
 TP (True Positive) = The number of instances correctly predicted as
the positive class
TN (True Negative) = The number of instances correctly predicted
as the negative class
FP (False Positive) = The number of instances incorrectly predicted
as the positive class
FN (False Negative) = The number of instances incorrectly
predicted as the negative class

Q.34 What is a classification report and explain the parameters

used to interpret the result of classification tasks with an example.

A classification report is a summary of the performance of a

classification model, providing various metrics that help assess the
quality of the model’s predictions on a classification task.

The parameters used in a classification report typically include:

Precision: Precision is the ratio of true positive predictions to the

total predicted positives. It measures the accuracy of positive
predictions made by the model.

Precision = TP/(TP+FP)

Recall (Sensitivity or True Positive Rate): Recall is the ratio of true

positive predictions to the total actual positives. It measures the
model’s ability to identify all positive instances correctly.

Recall = TP / (TP + FN)

Accuracy: Accuracy is the ratio of correctly predicted instances

(both true positives and true negatives) to the total number of
instances. It measures the overall correctness of the model’s
predictions.

Accuracy = (TP + TN) / (TP + TN + FP + FN)

 F1-Score: The F1-Score is the harmonic mean of precision and
recall. It provides a balanced measure of both precision and recall
and is particularly useful when dealing with imbalanced datasets.

F1-Score = 2 * (Precision * Recall) / (Precision + Recall)

where,

TP = True Positive
TN = True Negative
FP = False Positive
FN = False Negative

Intermediate Data Science Interview Questions

Q.35 Explain the uniform distribution.

A fundamental probability distribution in statistics is the uniform

distribution, commonly referred to as the rectangle distribution. A
constant probability density function (PDF) across a limited range
characterises it. In simpler terms, in a uniform distribution, every value
within a specified range has an equal chance of occurring.

Q.36 Describe the Bernoulli distribution.

A discrete probability distribution, the Bernoulli distribution is focused

on discrete random variables. The number of heads you obtain while
tossing three coins at once or the number of pupils in a class are
examples of discrete random variables that have a finite or countable
number of potential values.

Q.37 What is the binomial distribution?

The binomial distribution is a discrete probability distribution that

describes the number of successes in a fixed number of independent
Bernoulli trials, where each trial has only two possible outcomes:
success or failure. The outcomes are often referred to as “success” and
“failure,” but they can represent any dichotomous outcome, such as
heads or tails, yes or no, or defective or non-defective.

The fundamental presumptions of a binomial distribution are that each

trial has exactly one possible outcome, each trial has an equal chance
of success, and each trial is either independent of the others or
mutually exclusive.

Q.38 Explain the exponential distribution and where it’s commonly

used.

The probability distribution of the amount of time between events in

the Poisson point process is known as the exponential distribution.
The gamma distribution is thought of as a particular instance of the
exponential distribution. Additionally, the geometric distribution’s
continuous analogue is the exponential distribution.

Common applications of the exponential distribution include:

1. Reliability Engineering
2. Queueing Theory
3. Telecommunications
4. Finance
5. Natural Phenomena
6. Survival Analysis

Q.39 Describe the Poisson distribution and its characteristics.

The Poisson distribution is a probability distribution that describes the

number of events that occur within a fixed interval of time or space
when the events happen at a constant mean rate and are independent
of the time since the last event.

Key characteristics of the Poisson distribution include:

1. Discreteness: The Poisson distribution is used to model the number

 of discrete events that occur within a fixed interval.
2. Constant Mean Rate: The events occur at a constant mean rate per
unit of time or space.
3. Independence: The occurrences of events are assumed to be
independent of each other. The probability of multiple events
occurring in a given interval is calculated based on the assumption
of independence.

Q40. Explain the t-distribution and its relationship with the normal
distribution.

The t-distribution, also known as the Student’s t-distribution, is used

in statistics for inferences about population means when the sample
size is small and the population standard deviation is unknown. The
shape of the t-distribution is similar to the normal distribution, but it
has heavier tails.

Relationship between T-Distribution and Normal Distribution: The t-

distribution converges to the normal distribution as the degrees of
freedom increase. In fact, when the degrees of freedom become very
large, the t-distribution approaches the standard normal distribution
(normal distribution with mean 0 and standard deviation 1). This is a
result of the Central Limit Theorem.

Q.41 Describe the chi-squared distribution.

The chi-squared distribution is a continuous probability distribution

that arises in statistics and probability theory. It is commonly denoted
as χ2 (chi-squared) and is associated with degrees of freedom. The
chi-squared distribution is particularly used to model the distribution
of the sum of squared independent standard normal random
[Link] is also used to determine if data series are independent,
the goodness of fit of a data distribution, and the level of confidence in
the variance and standard deviation of a random variable with a
normal distribution.
Q.42 What is the difference between z-test, F-test, and t-test?

The z-test, t-test, and F-test are all statistical hypothesis tests used in
different situations and for different purposes. Here’s a overview of
each test and the key differences between them.

z-test t-test F-test

When we want to When we want to The F-test is used to

compare a sample compare a sample compare the variances
mean to a known mean to a known or of two or more
population mean and assumed population samples. It is
we know the mean but don’t know commonly used in
population standard what the population analysis of variance
deviation, we use the standard deviation is (ANOVA) and
z-test. we use the t-test. regression analysis.

When we dealing
The two-sample F-
with large sample The t-test follows a t-
test, which analyses
sizes or when we distribution, which
the variances of two
known the population has different shapes
independent samples,
standard deviation it depending on the
is the most popular of
is most frequently degrees of freedom.
the F-test’s variants.
used.

The z-test follows a One set of degrees of

The sample standard
standard normal freedom corresponds
deviation (s)
distribution when to each sample’s
determines the test
certain assumptions degrees of freedom in
statistic for the t-test.
are met. the F-distribution.

In summary, the choice between a z-test, t-test, or F-test depends on

the specific research question and the characteristics of the data.
Q.43 What is the central limit theorem, and why is it significant in
statistics?

The Central Limit Theorem states that, regardless of the shape of the
population distribution, the distribution of the sample means
approaches a normal distribution as the sample size [Link] is
true even if the population distribution is not normal. The larger the
sample size, the closer the sampling distribution of the sample mean
will be to a normal distribution.

Q.44 Describe the process of hypothesis testing, including null and

alternative hypotheses.

Hypothesis testing is a statistical method used to make inferences

about population parameters based on sample [Link] is a systematic
way of evaluating statements or hypotheses about a population using
observed sample [Link] identify which statement is best supported
by the sample data, it compares two statements about a population
that are mutually exclusive.

Null hypothesis(H0): The null hypothesis (H0) in statistics is the

default assumption or assertion that there is no association
between any two measured cases or any two groups. In other
words, it is a fundamental assumption or one that is founded on
knowledge of the problem.
Alternative hypothesis(H1): The alternative hypothesis, or H1, is
the null-hypothesis-rejecting hypothesis that is utilised in
hypothesis testing.

Q.45 How do you calculate a confidence interval, and what does it

represent?

A confidence interval (CI) is a statistical range or interval estimate for a

population parameter, such as the population mean or population
proportion, based on sample data. to calculate confidence interval
these are the following steps.

1. Collect Sample Data

2. Choose a Confidence Level
3. Select the Appropriate Statistical Method
4. Calculate the Margin of Error (MOE)
5. Calculate the Confidence Interval
6. Interpret the Confidence Interval

Confidence interval represents a range of values within which we

believe, with a specified level of confidence (e.g., 95%), that the true
population parameter lies.

Q.46 What is a p-value in Statistics?

The term “p-value,” which stands for “probability value,” is a key one in
statistics and hypothesis testing. It measures the evidence
contradicting a null hypothesis and aids in determining whether a
statistical test’s findings are statistically significant. Here is a definition
of a p-value and how it is used in hypothesis testing.

Q.47 Explain Type I and Type II errors in hypothesis testing.

Rejecting a null hypothesis that is actually true in the population

results in a type I error (false-positive); failing to reject a null
hypothesis that is actually untrue in the population results in a type II
error (false-negative).

type I and type II mistakes cannot be completely avoided, the

investigator can lessen their risk by increasing the sample size (the
less likely it is that the sample will significantly differ from the
population).

Q.48 What is the significance level (alpha) in hypothesis testing?

A crucial metric in hypothesis testing that establishes the bar for

judging whether the outcomes of a statistical test are statistically
significant is the significance level, which is sometimes indicated as
(alpha). It reflects the greatest possible chance of committing a Type I
error, or mistakenly rejecting a valid null hypothesis.

The significance level in hypothesis testing.

1. Setting the Significance Level

2. Interpreting the Significance Level
3. Hypothesis Testing Using Significance Level
4. Choice of Significance Level

Q.49 How can you calculate the correlation coefficient between two
variables?

The degree and direction of the linear link between two variables are
quantified by the correlation coefficient. The Pearson correlation
coefficient is the most widely used method for determining the
correlation coefficient. The Pearson correlation coefficient can be
calculated as follows.

1. Collect Data
2. Calculate the Means
3. Calculate the Covariance
4. Calculate the Standard Deviations
5. Calculate the Pearson Correlation Coefficient (r)
6. Interpret the Correlation Coefficient.

Q.50 What is covariance, and how is it related to correlation?

Both covariance and correlation are statistical metrics that show how
two variables are related to one [Link], they serve slightly
different purposes and have different interpretations.

Covariance :Covariance measures the degree to which two

variables change together. It expresses how much the values of one
variable tend to rise or fall in relation to changes in the other
 variable.
Correlation : A standardised method for measuring the strength
and direction of a linear relationship between two variables is
correlation. It multiplies the standard deviations of the two
variables to scale the covariance.

Q.51 Explain how to perform a hypothesis test for comparing two

population means.

When comparing two population means, a hypothesis test is used to

determine whether there is sufficient statistical support to claim that
the means of the two distinct populations differ significantly. Tests we
can commonly use for include “paired t-test” or “two -sample t test”.
The general procedures for carrying out such a test are as follows.

1. Formulate Hypotheses
2. Choose the Significance Level
3. Collect Data
4. Define Test Statistic
5. Draw a Conclusion
6. Final Results

Q.52 Explain the concept of normalization in database design.

By minimising data duplication and enhancing data integrity,

normalisation is a method in database architecture that aids in the
effective organisation of data. It include dividing a big, complicated
table into smaller, associated tables while making sure that
connections between data elements are preserved. The basic objective
of normalisation is to reduce data anomalies, which can happen when
data is stored in an unorganised way and include insertion, update,
and deletion anomalies.

Q.53 What is database normalization?

Database denormalization is the process of intentionally introducing

redundancy into a relational database by merging tables or
incorporating redundant data to enhance query performance. Unlike
normalization, which minimizes data redundancy for consistency,
denormalization prioritizes query speed. By reducing the number of
joins required, denormalization can improve read performance for
complex queries. However, it may lead to data inconsistencies and
increased maintenance complexity. Denormalization is often employed
in scenarios where read-intensive operations outweigh the importance
of maintaining a fully normalized database structure. Careful
consideration and trade-offs are essential to strike a balance between
performance and data integrity.

Q.54 Define different types of SQL functions.

SQL functions can be categorized into several types based on their

functionality.

1. Scalar Functions
2. Aggregate Functions
3. Window Functions
4. Table-Valued Functions
5. System Functions
6. User-Defined Functions
7. Conversion Functions
8. Conditional Functions

Q.55 Explain the difference between INNER JOIN and LEFT JOIN.

INNER JOIN and LEFT JOIN are two types of SQL JOIN operations used
to combine data from multiple tables in a relational database. Here are
the some main differences between them.

INNER JOIN LEFT JOIN

 INNER JOIN LEFT JOIN

Only rows with a match in the

LEFT JOIN returns all rows from
designated columns between the
the left table and the matching
two tables being connected are
rows from the right table.
returned by an INNER JOIN.

Columns from the right table’s

A row is not included in the result
rows are returned with NULL
set if there is no match for it in
values if there is no match for that
either of the tables.
row.

It makes sure that every row from

When we want to retrieve data
the left table appears in the final
from both tables depending on a
product, even if there are no
specific criterion, INNER JOIN can
matches for that row in the right
be helpful.
table.

Q.56 What is a subquery, and how can it be used in SQL?

A subquery is a query that is nested within another SQL query, also

referred to as an inner query or nested query. On the basis of the
outcomes of another query, we can use it to get data from one or more
tables. SQL’s subqueries capability is employed for a variety of tasks,
including data retrieval, computations, and filtering.

Q.57 How do you perform mathematical calculations in SQL

queries?

In SQL, we can perform mathematical calculations in queries using

arithmetic operators and functions. Here are some common methods
for performing mathematical calculations.

1. Arithmetic Operators
2. Mathematical Functions
3. Aggregate Functions
4. Custom Expressions

Q.58 What is the purpose of the CASE statement in SQL?

The SQL CASE statement is a flexible conditional expression that may

be used to implement conditional logic inside of a query. we can
specify various actions or values based on predetermined criteria.

Q.59 What is the difference between a database and a data

warehouse?

Database: Consistency and real-time data processing are prioritised,

and they are optimised for storing, retrieving, and managing structured
data. Databases are frequently used for administrative functions like
order processing, inventory control, and customer interactions.

Data Warehouse: Data warehouses are made for processing analytical

data. They are designed to facilitate sophisticated querying and
reporting by storing and processing massive amounts of historical data
from various sources. Business intelligence, data analysis, and
decision-making all employ data warehouses.

Q.60 What is regularization in machine learning, State the

differences between L1 and L2 regularization

Regularization: Regularization is the technique to restrict the model

overfitting during training by inducing a penalty to the loss. The
penalty imposed on the loss function is added so that the complexity
of the model can be controlled, thus overcoming the issue of
overfitting in the model.

The following are the differences between L1 and L2 regularization:

 category L1 L2 Regularization
Regularization(Lasso) (Ridge)

Definition L2 regularization is
L1 regularization is the the technique where
technique where the the induced penalty
induced penalty term term changes some
changes some of the of the terms to be as
terms to be exactly zero near to zero as
possible.

Interpretability Selects a subset of most Selects all the

important ones while features but assigns
eliminating less important less weights to less
ones. important features.

Formula

where,

L2 = Ridge Loss
function

= Model loss

= regularization
where, controlling
L1 = Lasso Loss function parameter

w = weights of the
= Model loss model

= regularization
controlling parameter
 category L1 L2 Regularization
Regularization(Lasso) (Ridge)

w = weights of the model

Robustness Sensitive to outliers and More robust to the

noisy data as it can presence of Outliers
eliminate them and noisy data

Computational Computationally more Computationally

efficiency expensive less expensive.

Q.61 Explain the concepts of bias-variance trade-off in machine

learning.

When creating predictive models, the bias-variance trade-off is a key

concept in machine learning that deals with finding the right balance
between two sources of error, bias and variance. It plays a crucial role
in model selection and understanding the generalization performance
of a machine learning algorithm. Here’s an explanation of these
concepts:

Bias:Bias is simply described as the model’s inability to forecast the

real value due of some difference or inaccuracy. These differences
between actual or expected values and the predicted values are
known as error or bias error or error due to bias.
Variance: Variance is a measure of data dispersion from its mean
location. In machine learning, variance is the amount by which a
predictive model’s performance differs when trained on different
subsets of the training data. More specifically, variance is the
 model’s variability in terms of how sensitive it is to another subset
of the training dataset, i.e. how much it can adapt on the new
subset of the training dataset.

Low Bias High Bias

Low Variance Best fit (Ideal Scenario

Underfitting
)

High Variance Not capture the

Overfitting underlying patterns
(Worst Case)

As a Data Science Professional, Our focus should be to achieve the the

best fit model i.e Low Bias and Low Variance. A model with low bias
and low variance suggests that it can capture the underlying patterns
in the data (low bias) and is not overly sensitive to changes in the
training data (low variance). This is the perfect circumstance for a
machine learning model, since it can generalize effectively to new,
previously unknown data and deliver consistent and accurate
predictions. However, in practice, this is not achievable.

If the algorithm is too simplified (hypothesis with linear equation), it

may be subject to high bias and low variance, making it error-prone. If
algorithms fit too complicated a hypothesis (hypothesis with a high
degree equation), it may have a large variance and a low bias. In the
latter case, the new entries will underperform. There is, however,
something in between these two situations called as a Trade-off
or Bias Variance Trade-off. So, that An algorithm can’t be more
complex and less complex at the same time.

Q.62 How do we choose the appropriate kernel function in SVM?

A kernel function is responsible for converting the original data points

into a high dimensionality feature space. Choosing the appropriate
kernel function in a Support Vector Machine is a crucial step, as it
determines how well the SVM can capture the underlying patterns in
your data. Below mentioned are some of the ways to choose the
suitable kernel function:

If the dataset exhibits linear relationship

In this case, we should use Linear Kernel function. It is simple,

computationally efficient and less prone to overfitting. For example,
text classification, sentiment analysis, etc.

If the dataset requires probabilistic approach

The sigmoid kernel is suitable when the data resembles a sigmoid

function or when you have prior knowledge suggesting this shape. For
example, Risk assessment, Financial applications, etc.

If the dataset is Simple Non Linear in nature

In this case, use a Polynomial Kernel Function. Polynomial functions

are useful when we are trying to capture moderate level of non
linearity. For example, Image and Speech Recognition, etc.

If the dataset is Highly Non-Linear in Nature/ we do not know about

the underlying relationship
In that case, a Radial basis function is the best choice. RBF kernel can
handle highly complex dataset and is useful when you’re unsure about
the data’s underlying distribution. For example, Financial forecasting,
bioinformatics, etc.

Q.63 How does Naïve Bayes handle categorical and continuous

features?

Naive Bayes is probabilistic approach which assumes that the features

are independent of each other. It calculates probabilities associated
with each class label based on the observed frequencies of feature
values within each class in the training data. This is done by finding
the conditional probability of Feature given a class. (i.e., P(feature |
class)). To make predictions on categorical data, Naive Bayes
calculates the posterior probability of each class given the observed
feature values and selects the class with the highest probability as the
predicted class label. This is called as “maximum likelihood”
estimation.

Q.64 What is Laplace smoothing (add-one smoothing) and why is it

used in Naïve Bayes?

In Naïve Bayes, the conditional probability of an event given a class

label is determined as P(event| class). When using this in a
classification problem (let’s say a text classification), there could a
word which did not appear in the particular class. In those cases, the
probability of feature given a class label will be zero. This could create
a big problem when getting predictions out of the training data.

To overcome this problem, we use Laplace smoothing. Laplace

smoothing addresses the zero probability problem by adding a small
constant (usually 1) to the count of each feature in each class and to
the total count of features in each class. Without smoothing, if any
feature is missing in a class, the probability of that class given the
features becomes zero, making the classifier overly confident and
potentially leading to incorrect classifications

Q.65 What are imbalanced datasets and how can we handle them?

Imbalanced datasets are datasets in which the distribution of class

labels (or target values) is heavily skewed, meaning that one class has
significantly more instances than any other class. Imbalanced datasets
pose challenges because models trained on such data can have a bias
toward the majority class, leading to poor performance on the minority
class, which is often of greater interest. This will lead to the model not
generalizing well on the unseen data.

To handle imbalanced datasets, we can approach the following

methods:

Resampling (Method of either increasing or decreasing the

number of samples):
Up-sampling: In this case, we can increase the classes for
minority by either sampling without replacement or generating
synthetic examples. Some of the popular examples are SMOTE
(Synthetic Minority Over-sampling Technique), etc.
Down-sampling: Another case would be to randomly cut down
the majority class such that it is comparable to minority class.
Ensemble methods (using models which are capable of handling
imbalanced dataset inherently:
Bagging : Techniques like Random Forests, which can mitigate
the impact of class imbalance by constructing multiple decision
trees from bootstrapped samples
Boosting: Algorithms like AdaBoost and XGBoost can give more
importance to misclassified minority class examples in each
iteration, improving their representation in the final model

Q.66 What are outliers in the dataset and how can we detect and
remove them?
An Outlier is a data point that is significantly different from other data
points. Usually, Outliers are present in the extremes of the distribution
and stand out as compared to their out data point counterparts.

For detecting Outliers we can use the following approaches:

Visual inspection: This is the easiest way which involves plotting

the data points into scatter plot/box plot, etc.
statistics: By using measure of central tendency, we can determine
if a data point falls significantly far from its mean, median, etc.
making it a potential outlier.
Z-score: if a data point has very high Z-score, it can be identified as
Outlier

For removing the outliers, we can use the following:

Removal of outliers manually

Doing transformations like applying logarithmic transformation or
square rooting the outlier
Performing imputations wherein the outliers are replaced with
different values like mean, median, mode, etc.

Q.67 What is the curse of dimensionality And How can we

overcome this?

When dealing with a dataset that has high dimensionality (high

number of features), we are often encountered with various issues and
problems. Some of the issues faced while dealing with dimensionality
dataset are listed below:

Computational expense: The biggest problem with handling a

dataset with vast number of features is that it takes a long time to
process and train the model on it. This can lead to wastage of both
time and monetary resources.
Data sparsity: Many times data points are far from each other (high
sparsity). This makes it harder to find the underlying patterns
between features and can be a hinderance in proper analysis
 Visualising issues and overfitting: It is rather easy to visualize 2d
and 3d data. But beyond this order, it is difficult to properly
visualize our data. Furthermore, more data features can be
correlated and provide misleading information to the model training
and cause overfitting.

These issues are what are generally termed as “Curse of

Dimensionality”.

To overcome this, we can follow different approaches – some of which

are mentioned below:

Feature Selection: Many a times, not all the features are necessary.
It is the user’s job to select out the features that would be
necessary in solving a given problem statement.
Feature engineering: Sometimes, we may need a feature that is the
combination of many other features. This method can, in general,
reduces the features count in the dataset.
Dimensionality Reduction techniques: These techniques reduce
the number of features in a dataset while preserving as much useful
information as possible. Some of the famous Dimensionality
reduction techniques are: Principle component analysis (PCA), t-
Distributed Stochastic Neighbor Embedding (t-SNE), etc.
Regularization: Some regularization techniques like L1 and L2
regularizations are useful when deciding the impact each feature
has on the model training.

Q.68 How does the random forest algorithm handle feature

selection?

Mentioned below is how Random forest handles feature selection

When creating individual trees in the Random Forest ensemble, a

subset of features is assigned to each tree which is called Feature
Bagging. Feature Bagging introduces randomness and diversity
among the trees.
After the training, the features are assigned a “importance score”
 based on how well those features performed by reducing the error
of the model. Features that consistently contribute to improving the
model’s accuracy across multiple trees are deemed more important
Then the features are ranked based on their importance scores.
Features with higher importance scores are considered more
influential in making predictions.

Q.69 What is feature engineering? Explain the different feature

engineering methods.

Feature Engineering: It can be defined as a method of preprocessing

of data for better analysis purpose which involves different steps like
selection, transformation, deletion of features to suit our problem at
hand. Feature Engineering is a useful tool which can be used for:

Improving the model’s performance and Data interpretability

Reduce computational costs
Include hidden patterns for elevated Analysis results.

Some of the different methods of doing feature engineering are

mentioned below:

Principle Component Analysis (PCA) : It identifies orthogonal axes

(principal components) in the data that capture the maximum
variance, thereby reducing the data features.
Encoding – It is a technique of converting the data to be
represented a numbers with some meaning behind it. It can be done
in two ways :
One-Hot Encoding – When we need to encode Nominal
Categorical Data
Label Encoding – When we need to encode Ordinal Categorical
Data
Feature Transformation: Sometimes, we can create new columns
essential for better modelling just by combining or modifying one or
more columns.
Q.70 How we will deal with the categorical text values in machine
learning?

Often times, we are encountered with data that has Categorical text
values. For example, male/female, first-class/second-class/third-class,
etc. These Categorical text values can be divided into two types and
based on that we deal with them as follows:

If it is Categorical Nominal Data: If the data does not have any

hidden order associated with it (e.g., male/female), we perform
One-Hot encoding on the data to convert it into binary sequence of
digits
If it is Categorical Ordinal Data : When there is a pattern associated
with the text data, we use Label encoding. In this, the numerical
conversion is done based on the order of the text data. (e.g.,
Elementary/ Middle/ High/ Graduate,etc.)

Q.71 What is DBSCAN and How we will use it?

Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise

(DBSCAN), is a density-based clustering algorithm used for grouping
together data points that are close to each other in high-density
regions and labeling data points in low-density regions as outliers or
noise. Here is how it works:

For each data point in the dataset, DBSCAN calculates the distance
between that point and all other data points
DBSCAN identifies dense regions by connecting core points that are
within each other’s predefined threshold (eps) neighborhood.
DBSCAN forms clusters by grouping together data points that are
density-reachable from one another.

Q.72 How does the EM (Expectation-Maximization) algorithm work

in clustering?

The Expectation-Maximization (EM) algorithm is a probabilistic

approach used for clustering data when dealing with mixture models.
EM is commonly used when the true cluster assignments are not
known and when there is uncertainty about which cluster a data point
belongs to. Here is how it works:

First, the number of clusters K to be formed is specified.

Then, for each data point, the likelihood of it belonging to each of
the K clusters is calculated. This is called the Expectation (E) step
Based on the previous step, the model parameters are updated.
This is called Maximization (M) step.
Together it is used to check for convergence by comparing the
change in log-likelihood or the parameter values between
iterations.
If it converges, then we have achieved our purpose. If not, then the
E-step and M-step are repeated until we reach convergence.

Q.73 Explain the concept of silhouette score in clustering

evaluation.

Silhouette score is a metric used to evaluate the quality of clusters

produced by a clustering algorithm. Here is how it works:

the average distance between the data point and all other data
points in the same cluster is first calculated. Let us call this as (a)
Then for the same data point, the average distance (b) between the
data point and all data points in the nearest neighboring cluster (i.e.,
the cluster to which it is not assigned)
silhouette coefficient for each data point is calculated, which given
by: S = (b – a) / max(a, b)
if -1<S<0, it signifies that data point is closer to a neighboring
cluster than to its own cluster.
if S is close to zero, data point is on or very close to the decision
boundary between two neighboring clusters.
if 0<S<1, data point is well within its own cluster and far from
neighboring clusters.
Q.74 What is the relationship between eigenvalues and
eigenvectors in PCA?

In Principal Component Analysis (PCA), eigenvalues and eigenvectors

play a crucial role in the transformation of the original data into a new
coordinate system. Let us first define the essential terms:

Eigen Values: Eigenvalues are associated with each eigenvector

and represent the magnitude of the variance (spread or extent) of
the data along the corresponding eigenvector
Eigen Vectors: Eigenvectors are the directions or axes in the original
feature space along which the data varies the most or exhibits the
most variance

The relationship between them is given as:

AV = λV , where

A = Feature matrix

V = eigen vector

λ = Eigen value.

A larger eigenvalue implies that the corresponding eigenvector

captures more of the variance in the [Link] sum of all eigenvalues
equals the total variance in the original data. Therefore, the proportion
of total variance explained by each principal component can be
calculated by dividing its eigenvalue by the sum of all eigenvalues

Q.75 What is the cross-validation technique in machine learning?

Cross-validation is a resampling technique used in machine learning to

assess and validate the performance of a predictive model. It helps in
estimating how well a model is likely to perform on unseen data,
making it a crucial step in model evaluation and selection. Cross
validation is usually helpful when avoiding overfitting the model.
Some of the widely known cross validation techniques are:
 K-Fold Cross-Validation: In this, the data is divided into K subsets,
and K iterations of training and testing are performed.
Stratified K-Fold Cross-Validation: This technique ensures that
each fold has approximately the same proportion of classes as the
original dataset (helpful in handling data imbalance)
Shuffle-Split Cross-Validation: It randomly shuffles the data and
splits it into training and testing sets.

Q.76 What are the ROC and AUC, explain its significance in binary
classification.

Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) is a graphical representation

of a binary classifier’s performance. It plots the true positive rate (TPR)
vs the false positive rate (FPR) at different classification thresholds.

True positive rate (TPR) : It is the ratio of true positive predictions to

the total actual positives.

Recall = TP / (TP + FN)

False positive rate (FPR) : It is the ratio of False positive predictions to

the total actual positives.

FPR= FP / (TP + FN)

Area Under the Curve (AUC) as the name suggests is the area under
the ROC curve. The AUC is a scalar value that quantifies the overall
performance of a binary classification model and ranges from 0 to 1,
where a model with an AUC of 0.5 indicates random guessing, and an
AUC of 1 represents a perfect classifier.

Q.77 Describe gradient descent and its role in optimizing machine

learning models.

Gradient descent is a fundamental optimization algorithm used to

minimize a cost or loss function in machine learning and deep learning.
Its primary role is to iteratively adjust the parameters of a machine
learning model to find the values that minimize the cost function,
thereby improving the model’s predictive performance. Here’s how
Gradient descent help in optimizing Machine learning models:

1. Minimizing Cost functions: The primary goal of gradient descent is

to find parameter values that result in the lowest possible loss on
the training data.
2. Convergence: The algorithm continues to iterate and update the
parameters until it meets a predefined convergence criterion, which
can be a maximum number of iterations or achieving a desired level
of accuracy.
3. Generalization: Gradient descent ensure that the optimized model
generalizes well to new, unseen data.

Q.78 Describe batch gradient descent, stochastic gradient descent,

and mini-batch gradient descent.

Batch Gradient Descent: In Batch Gradient Descent, the entire training

dataset is used to compute the gradient of the cost function with
respect to the model parameters (weights and biases) in each iteration.
This means that all training examples are processed before a single
parameter update is made. It converges to a more accurate minimum of
the cost function but can be slow, especially in a high dimensionality
space.
Stochastic Gradient Descent: In Stochastic Gradient Descent, only one
randomly selected training example is used to compute the gradient
and update the parameters in each iteration. The selection of examples
is done independently for each iteration. This is capable of faster
updates and can handle large datasets because it processes one
example at a time but high variance can cause it to converge slower.

Mini-Batch Gradient Descent: Mini-Batch Gradient Descent strikes a

balance between BGD and SGD. It divides the training dataset into
small, equally-sized subsets called mini-batches. In each iteration, a
mini-batch is randomly sampled, and the gradient is computed based
on this mini-batch. It utilizes parallelism well and takes advantage of
modern hardware like GPUs but can still exhibits some level of
variance in updates compared to Batch Gradient Descent.

Q.79 Explain the Apriori — Association Rule Mining

Association Rule mining is an algorithm to find relation between two

or more different objects. Apriori association is one of the most
frequently used and most simple association technique. Apriori
Association uses prior knowledge of frequent objects properties. It is
based on Apriori property which states that:

“All non-empty subsets of a frequent itemset must also be

frequent”

Data Science Interview Questions for Experienced

Q.80 Explain multivariate distribution in data science.

A vector with several normally distributed variables is said to have a

multivariate normal distribution if any linear combination of the
variables likewise has a normal distribution. The multivariate normal
distribution is used to approximatively represent the features of
specific characteristics in machine learning, but it is also important in
extending the central limit theorem to several variables.

Q.81 Describe the concept of conditional probability density

function (PDF).

In probability theory and statistics, the conditional probability density

function (PDF) is a notion that represents the probability distribution of
a random variable within a certain condition or constraint. It measures
the probability of a random variable having a given set of values given
a set of circumstances or events.

Q.82 What is the cumulative distribution function (CDF), and how is

it related to PDF?

The probability that a continuous random variable will take on

particular values within a range is described by the Probability Density
Function (PDF), whereas the Cumulative Distribution Function (CDF)
provides the cumulative probability that the random variable will fall
below a given value. Both of these concepts are used in probability
theory and statistics to describe and analyse probability distributions.
The PDF is the CDF’s derivative, and they are related by integration
and differentiation.

Q.83 What is ANOVA? What are the different ways to perform

ANOVA tests?

The statistical method known as ANOVA, or Analysis of Variance, is

used to examine the variation in a dataset and determine whether
there are statistically significant variations between group averages.
When comparing the means of several groups or treatments to find
out if there are any notable differences, this method is frequently used.

There are several different ways to perform ANOVA tests, each suited
for different types of experimental designs and data structures:
1. One-Way ANOVA
2. Two-Way ANOVA
3. Three-Way ANOVA

When conducting ANOVA tests we typically calculate an F-statistic

and compare it to a critical value or use it to calculate a p-value.

Q.84 How can you prevent gradient descent from getting stuck in
local minima?

Ans: The local minima problem occurs when the optimization

algorithm converges a solution that is minimum within a small
neighbourhood of the current point but may not be the global
minimum for the objective function.

To mitigate local minimal problems, we can use the following

technique:

1. Use initialization techniques like Xavier/Glorot and He to model

trainable parameters. This will help to set appropriate initial
weights for the optimization process.
2. Set Adam or RMSProp as optimizer, these adaptive learning rate
algorithms can adapt the learning rates for individual parameters
based on historical gradients.
3. Introduce stochasticity in the optimization process using mini-
batches, which can help the optimizer to escape local minima by
adding noise to the gradient estimates.
4. Adding more layers or neurons can create a more complex loss
landscape with fewer local minima.
5. Hyperparameter tuning using random search cv and grid search cv
helps to explore the parameter space more thoroughly suggesting
right hyperparameters for training and reducing the risk of getting
stuck in local minima.

Q.85 Explain the Gradient Boosting algorithms in machine learning.

Gradient boosting techniques like XGBoost, and CatBoost are used for
regression and classification problems. It is a boosting algorithm that
combines the predictions of weak learners to create a strong model.
The key steps involved in gradient boosting are:

1. Initialize the model with weak learners, such as a decision tree.

2. Calculate the difference between the target value and predicted
value made by the current model.
3. Add a new weak learner to calculate residuals and capture the
errors made by the current ensemble.
4. Update the model by adding fraction of the new weak learner’s
predictions. This updating process can be controlled by learning
rate.
5. Repeat the process from step 2 to 4, with each iteration focusing on
correcting the errors made by the previous model.

Q.86 Explain convolutions operations of CNN architecture?

In a CNN architecture, convolution operations involve applying small

filters (also called kernels) to input data to extract features. These
filters slide over the input image covering one small part of the input
at a time, computing dot products at each position creating a feature
map. This operation captures the similarity between the filter’s pattern
and the local features in the input. Strides determine how much the
filter moves between positions. The resulting feature maps capture
patterns, such as edges, textures, or shapes, and are essential for
image recognition tasks. Convolution operations help reduce the
spatial dimensions of the data and make the network translation-
invariant, allowing it to recognize features in different parts of an
image. Pooling layers are often used after convolutions to further
reduce dimensions and retain important information.

Q.87 What is feed forward network and how it is different from

recurrent neural network?
Deep learning designs that are basic are feedforward neural networks
and recurrent neural networks. They are both employed for different
tasks, but their structure and how they handle sequential data differ.

Feed Forward Neural Network

In FFNN, the information flows in one direction, from input to

output, with no loops
It consists of multiple layers of neurons, typically organized into an
input layer, one or more hidden layers, and an output layer.
Each neuron in a layer is connected to every neuron in the
subsequent layer through weighted connections.
FNNs are primarily used for tasks such as classification and
regression, where they take a fixed-size input and produce a
corresponding output

Recurrent Neural Network

A recurrent neural network is designed to handle sequential data,

where the order of input elements matters. Unlike FNNs, RNNs
have connections that loop back on themselves, allowing them to
maintain a hidden state that carries information from previous time
steps.
This hidden state enables RNNs to capture temporal dependencies
and context in sequential data, making them well-suited for tasks
like natural language processing, time series analysis, and sequence
generation.
However, standard RNNs have limitations in capturing long-range
dependencies due to the vanishing gradient problem.

Q.88 Explain the difference between generative and discriminative

models?

Generative models focus on generating new data samples, while

discriminative models concentrate on classification and prediction
tasks based on input data.
Generative Models:

Objective: Model the joint probability distribution P(X, Y) of input X

and target Y.
Use: Generate new data, often for tasks like image and text
generation.
Examples: Variational Autoencoders (VAEs), Generative Adversarial
Networks (GANs).

Discriminative Models:

Objective: Model the conditional probability distribution P(Y | X) of

target Y given input X.
Use: Classify or make predictions based on input data.
Examples: Logistic Regression, Support Vector Machines,
Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for image classification.

Q.89 What is the forward and backward propogations in deep

learning?

Forward and backward propagations are key processes that occur

during neural network training in deep learning. They are essential for
optimizing network parameters and learning meaningful
representations from input.

The process by which input data is passed through the neural network
to generate predictions or outputs is known as forward propagation.
The procedure begins at the input layer, where data is fed into the
network. Each neuron in a layer calculates the weighted total of its
inputs, applies an activation function, and sends the result to the next
layer. This process continues through the hidden layers until the final
output layer produces predictions or scores for the given input data.

The technique of computing gradients of the loss function with regard

to the network’s parameters is known as backward propagation. It is
utilized to adjust the neural network parameters during training using
optimization methods such as gradient descent.
The process starts with the computation of the loss, which measures
the difference between the network’s predictions and the actual target
values. Gradients are then computed by using the chain rule of
calculus to propagate this loss backward through the network. This
entails figuring out how much each parameter contributed to the error.
The computed gradients are used to adjust the network’s weights and
biases, reducing the error in subsequent forward passes.

Q.90 Describe the use of Markov models in sequential data

analysis?

Markov models are effective methods for capturing and modeling

dependencies between successive data points or states in a sequence.
They are especially useful when the current condition is dependent on
earlier states. The Markov property, which asserts that the future state
or observation depends on the current state and is independent of all
prior states. There are two types of Markov models used in sequential
data analysis:

Markov chains are the simplest form of Markov models, consisting

of a set of states and transition probabilities between these states.
Each state represents a possible condition or observation, and the
transition probabilities describe the likelihood of moving from one
state to another.
Hidden Markov Models extend the concept of Markov chains by
introducing a hidden layer of states and observable emissions
associated with each hidden state. The true state of the system
(hidden state) is not directly observable, but the emissions are
observable.

Applications:

HMMs are used to model phonemes and words in speech

recognition systems, allowing for accurate transcription of spoken
language
HMMs are applied in genomics for gene prediction and sequence
 alignment tasks. They can identify genes within DNA sequences
and align sequences for evolutionary analysis.
Markov models are used in modeling financial time series data, such
as stock prices, to capture the dependencies between consecutive
observations and make predictions.

Q.91 What is generative AI?

Generative AI is an abbreviation for Generative Artificial Intelligence,

which refers to a class of artificial intelligence systems and algorithms
that are designed to generate new, unique data or material that is
comparable to, or indistinguishable from, human-created data. It is a
subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on the creative component
of AI, allowing machines to develop innovative outputs such as
writing, graphics, audio, and more. There are several generative AI
models and methodologies, each adapted to different sorts of data and
applications such as:

1. Generative AI models such as GPT (Generative Pretrained

Transformer) can generate human-like text.” Natural language
synthesis, automated content production, and chatbot responses
are all common uses for these models.
2. Images are generated using generative adversarial networks
(GANs).” GANs are made up of a generator network that generates
images and a discriminator network that determines the
authenticity of the generated images. Because of the struggle
between the generator and discriminator, high-quality, realistic
images are produced.
3. Generative AI can also create audio content, such as speech
synthesis and music composition.” Audio content is generated using
models such as WaveGAN and Magenta.

Q.92 What are different neural network architecture used to

generate artificial data in deep learning?
Various neural networks are used to generate artificial data. Here are
some of the neural network architectures used for generating artificial
data:

1. GANs consist of two components – generator and discriminator,

which are trained simultaneously through adversarial training. They
are used to generating high-quality images, such as photorealistic
faces, artwork, and even entire scenes.
2. VAEs are generative models that learn a probabilistic mapping from
the data space to a latent space. They also consist of encoder and
decoder. They are used for generating images, reconstructing
missing parts of images, and generating new data samples. They
are also applied in generating text and audio.
3. RNNs are a class of neural networks with recurrent connections
that can generate sequences of data. They are often used for
sequence-to-sequence tasks. They are used in text generation,
speech synthesis, music composition.
4. Transformers are a type of neural network architecture that has
gained popularity for sequence-to-sequence tasks. They use self-
attention mechanisms to capture dependencies between different
positions in the input data. They are used in natural language
processing tasks like machine translation, text summarization, and
language generation.
5. Autoencoders are neural networks that are trained to reconstruct
their input data. Variants like denoising autoencoders and
contractive autoencoders can be used for data generation. They are
used for image denoising, data inpainting, and generating new data
samples.

Q.93 What is deep reinforcement learning technique?

Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) is a cutting-edge machine

learning technique that combines the principles of reinforcement
learning with the capability of deep neural networks. Its ability to
enable machines to learn difficult tasks independently by interacting
with their environments, similar to how people learn via trial and error,
has garnered significant attention.

DRL is made up of three fundamental components:

1. The agent interacts with the environment and takes decision.

2. The environment is the outside world with which the agent
interacts and receives feedback.
3. The reward signal is a scalar value provided by the environment
after each action, guiding the agent toward maximizing cumulative
rewards over time.

Applications:

1. In robotics, DRL is used to control robots, manipulation and

navigation.
2. DRL plays a role in self-driving cars and vehicle control
3. Can also be used for customized recommendations

Q.94 What is transfer learning, and how is it applied in deep

learning?

Transfer learning is a strong machine learning and deep learning

technique that allows models to apply knowledge obtained from one
task or domain to a new, but related. It is motivated by the notion that
what we learn in one setting can be applied to a new, but comparable,
challenge.

Benefits of Transfer Learning:

We may utilize knowledge from a large dataset by starting with a

pretrained model, making it easier to adapt to a new task with data.
Training a deep neural network from scratch can be time-consuming
and costly in terms of compute. Transfer learning enables us to
bypass the earliest phases of training, saving both time and
resources.
Pretrained models frequently learn rich data representations.
Models that use these representations can generalize better, even
 when the target task has a smaller dataset.

Transfer Learning Process:

Feature Extraction
It’s a foundation step in transfer learning. The pretrained data is
already trained on large and diverse dataset for a related task.
To leverage the knowlege, output layers of the pretrained model
are removed leaving the layers responsible for feature extraction.
The target data is passed through these layers to extract feature
information.
using these extracted features, the model captures patterns and
representations from the data.
Fine Tuning
After the feature extraction process, the model is fine-tuned for
the specific target task.
Output layers are added to the model and these layer are
designed to produce the desired output for the target task.
Backpropagation is used to iteratively update the model’s
weights during fine-tuning. This method allows the model to
tailor its representations and decision boundaries to the specifics
of the target task.
Even as the model focuses in the target task, the knowledge and
features learned from the pre-trained layers continue to
contribute to its understanding. This dual learning process
improves the model’s performance and enables it to thrive in
tasks that require little data or resources.

Q.95 What is difference between object detections and image

segmentations.

Object detection and Image segmentation are both computer vision

tasks that entail evaluating and comprehending image content, but
they serve different functions and give different sorts of information.
 Object Detection:

goal of object detection is to identify and locate objects and

represent the object in bounding boxes with their respective labels.
used in applications like autonomous driving for detecting
pedestrians and vehicle

Image Segmentation:

focuses on partitioning an image into multiple regions, where each

segment corresponding to a coherent part of the image.
provide pixel level labeling of the entire image
used in applications that require pixel level understanding such as
medical image analysis for organ and tumor delineation.

Q.96 Explain the concept of word embeddings in natural language

processing (NLP).

In NLP, the concept of word embedding is use to capture semantic

and contextual information. Word embeddings are dense
representations of words or phrases in continuous-valued vectors in a
high-dimensional space. Each word is mapped to a vector with the real
numbers, these vectors are learned from large corpora of text data.

Word embeddings are based on the Distributional Hypothesis,

which suggests that words that appear in similar context have similar
meanings. This idea is used by word embedding models to generate
vector representations that reflect the semantic links between words
depending on how frequently they co-occur with other words in
the text.

The most common word embeddings techniques are-

Bag of Words (BOW)

Word2Vec
Glove: Global Vector for word representation
Term frequency-inverse document frequency (TF-IDF)
BERT
Q.97 What is seq2seq model?

A neural network architecture called a Sequence-to-Sequence

(Seq2Seq) model is made to cope with data sequences, making it
particularly helpful for jobs involving variable-length input and output
sequences. Machine translation, text summarization, question
answering, and other tasks all benefit from its extensive use in natural
language processing.

The Seq2Seq consists of two main components: encoder and

decoder. The encoder takes input sequence and converts into fixed
length vector . The vector captures features and context of the
sequence. The decoder takes the vector as input and generated output
sequence. This autoregressive technique frequently entails influencing
the subsequent prediction using the preceding one.

Q.98 What is artificial neural networks.

Artificial neural networks take inspiration from structure and

functioning of human brain. The computational units in ANN are called
neurons and these neurons are responsible to process and pass the
information to the next layer.

ANN has three main components:

Input Layer: where the network receives input features.

Hidden Layer: one or more layers of interconnected neurons
responsible for learning patterns in the data
Output Layer: provides final output on processed information.

Q.99 What is marginal probability?

A key idea in statistics and probability theory is marginal probability,

which is also known as marginal distribution. With reference to a
certain variable of interest, it is the likelihood that an event will occur,
without taking into account the results of other variables. Basically, it
treats the other variables as if they were “marginal” or irrelevant and
concentrates on one.

Marginal probabilities are essential in many statistical analyses,

including estimating anticipated values, computing conditional
probabilities, and drawing conclusions about certain variables of
interest while taking other variables’ influences into account.

Q.100 What are the probability axioms?

The fundamental rules that control the behaviour and characteristics

of probabilities in probability theory and statistics are referred to as
the probability axioms, sometimes known as the probability laws or
probability principles.

There are three fundamental axioms of probability:

1. Non-Negativity Axiom
2. Normalization Axiom
3. Additivity Axiom

Conclusion
We all know that data science is growing career and if you are looking
a future in data science, then explore this detailed article on data
science interview questions.

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