Definitely a valid question. I've had success <http://mrcslws.com/gorilla/?path=hotgym.clj> hand-crafting model parameters. I wrote that whole post without running a swarm, except to compare final results.
Speaking from my experience, I think swarming could be useful to use side-by-side with "intelligent design". As I wrote that post, I wanted a way to randomly explore the parameter-space around my current solution. Then, ideally, I'd investigate why that parameter-change causes an improvement, and then make a decision about what to do next. So I'd be using reasoning, but part of my reasoning is knowing that my current mental model is probably wrong, and random exploration is a good heuristic for breaking through that. There are other answers to your question, corresponding to other NuPIC audiences. Not everyone wants to dive right into Hard Mode. :) On Fri, Dec 4, 2015 at 12:28 PM, Ryan Singer <[email protected]> wrote: > Hello NuPIC community, > > I'm just getting started. I'm excited about Nupic because the HTM model > and SDR data structure make so much sense intuitively. Finally, an approach > that doesn't feel arbitrary and over-engineered. > > However I'm confused about why swarming is necessary when configuring > models. I've been reading all the docs and I haven't yet found an > explanation of why a human can't arrive at the right model parameters > through reasoning. > > Am I missing some documentation or video that explains this? Any help is > appreciated. > > Ryan >
