MS Master of Data Science 4

Question 1

Which Python library provides the DataFrame abstraction and is the de facto standard for tabular data manipulation in data science?

Accepted Answer

pandas

Answer

pandas provides the DataFrame and Series data structures along with powerful data manipulation tools, making it the standard for tabular data work in Python.

Question 2

In gradient descent, what happens when the learning rate is set too high?

Accepted Answer

The optimizer may overshoot the minimum and diverge

Answer

A learning rate that is too large causes the optimizer to take steps that overshoot the loss minimum, potentially causing oscillation or divergence.

Question 3

What is the primary difference between supervised and unsupervised learning?

Accepted Answer

Supervised learning trains on labeled data; unsupervised finds patterns in unlabeled data

Answer

Supervised learning uses input-output pairs with known labels to learn a mapping, while unsupervised learning discovers hidden structure in data without labels.

Question 4

A data pipeline fails intermittently due to race conditions when multiple processes write to the same file. What is the best solution?

Accepted Answer

Implement file locking or use an atomic write pattern

Answer

File locking or atomic writes (write to temp file then rename) prevent race conditions by ensuring only one process modifies a file at a time.

Question 5

In the context of recommendation systems, what is collaborative filtering?

Accepted Answer

Recommending items based on the preferences of similar users

Answer

Collaborative filtering identifies users with similar behavior patterns and recommends items that similar users have liked, without needing item content features.

MS - Master of Science Practice Test

MS - Master of Science Practice Test

MS Master of Data Science 4