Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models

Summary: Neural networks have long strived to emulate the learning capabilities of the human brain. While deep neural networks (DNNs) draw inspiration from the brain in neuron design, their training methods diverge from biological foundations. Backpropagation, the primary training method for DNNs, r...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Joseph Bingham, Saman Zonouz, Dvir Aran
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Patterns
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266638992500090X
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850277971827359744
author Joseph Bingham
Saman Zonouz
Dvir Aran
author_facet Joseph Bingham
Saman Zonouz
Dvir Aran
author_sort Joseph Bingham
collection DOAJ
description Summary: Neural networks have long strived to emulate the learning capabilities of the human brain. While deep neural networks (DNNs) draw inspiration from the brain in neuron design, their training methods diverge from biological foundations. Backpropagation, the primary training method for DNNs, requires substantial computational resources and fully labeled datasets, presenting major bottlenecks in development and application. This work demonstrates that by returning to biomimicry, specifically mimicking how the brain learns through pruning, we can solve various classical machine learning problems while utilizing orders of magnitude fewer computational resources and no labels. Our experiments successfully personalized multiple speech recognition and image classification models, including ResNet50 on ImageNet, resulting in an increased sparsity of approximately 70% while simultaneously improving model accuracy to around 90%, all without the limitations of backpropagation. This biologically inspired approach offers a promising avenue for efficient, personalized machine learning models in resource-constrained environments. The bigger picture: Inspired by the concept of biological neural pruning, the Fine-Pruning approach addresses the need for large labeled datasets and extensive computational resources. It could enable real-time, on-device processing for small devices, including medical devices, without relying on cloud-based systems. Applications like personalized health monitoring, speech recognition, and image classification could become more efficient, accessible, and privacy preserving. This research paves the way for smarter, more adaptable devices that operate effectively in low-resource settings, transforming how we interact with technology in daily life and healthcare.
format Article
id doaj-art-1ebed9484e2a451baa4e673d43753852
institution OA Journals
issn 2666-3899
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Patterns
spelling doaj-art-1ebed9484e2a451baa4e673d437538522025-08-20T01:49:40ZengElsevierPatterns2666-38992025-05-016510124210.1016/j.patter.2025.101242Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning modelsJoseph Bingham0Saman Zonouz1Dvir Aran2Faculty of Biology, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Corresponding authorCollege of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USAFaculty of Biology, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Taub Faculty of Computer Science, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, IsraelSummary: Neural networks have long strived to emulate the learning capabilities of the human brain. While deep neural networks (DNNs) draw inspiration from the brain in neuron design, their training methods diverge from biological foundations. Backpropagation, the primary training method for DNNs, requires substantial computational resources and fully labeled datasets, presenting major bottlenecks in development and application. This work demonstrates that by returning to biomimicry, specifically mimicking how the brain learns through pruning, we can solve various classical machine learning problems while utilizing orders of magnitude fewer computational resources and no labels. Our experiments successfully personalized multiple speech recognition and image classification models, including ResNet50 on ImageNet, resulting in an increased sparsity of approximately 70% while simultaneously improving model accuracy to around 90%, all without the limitations of backpropagation. This biologically inspired approach offers a promising avenue for efficient, personalized machine learning models in resource-constrained environments. The bigger picture: Inspired by the concept of biological neural pruning, the Fine-Pruning approach addresses the need for large labeled datasets and extensive computational resources. It could enable real-time, on-device processing for small devices, including medical devices, without relying on cloud-based systems. Applications like personalized health monitoring, speech recognition, and image classification could become more efficient, accessible, and privacy preserving. This research paves the way for smarter, more adaptable devices that operate effectively in low-resource settings, transforming how we interact with technology in daily life and healthcare.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266638992500090Xmachine learningbiomimicryneurosynaptic pruningbiologically feasible learninglot machine learningembedded learning
spellingShingle Joseph Bingham
Saman Zonouz
Dvir Aran
Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
Patterns
machine learning
biomimicry
neurosynaptic pruning
biologically feasible learning
lot machine learning
embedded learning
title Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
title_full Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
title_fullStr Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
title_full_unstemmed Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
title_short Fine-Pruning: A biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
title_sort fine pruning a biologically inspired algorithm for personalization of machine learning models
topic machine learning
biomimicry
neurosynaptic pruning
biologically feasible learning
lot machine learning
embedded learning
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S266638992500090X
work_keys_str_mv AT josephbingham finepruningabiologicallyinspiredalgorithmforpersonalizationofmachinelearningmodels
AT samanzonouz finepruningabiologicallyinspiredalgorithmforpersonalizationofmachinelearningmodels
AT dviraran finepruningabiologicallyinspiredalgorithmforpersonalizationofmachinelearningmodels